Long-time educator, basketball coach dies; funeral is set for 2 p.m, Saturday, March 18
Coach Diamond, right, visits with Smith during gym dedication
"He taught so much to so many and asked so little in return" is how Lance Youngblood described John Clarence Smith who died Wednesday, March 8 in Jay.
Smith, 97, a 1944 graduate of Jay High School, spent 40 years as an educator in Santa Rosa County with 36 of those years as the head basketball coach at Jay High School.
Smith's basketball teams won 613 games and he was inducted into the Florida High School Athletic Associations' Hall of Fame in 1991.
On Jan. 27, 2022, family members, friends and former players gathered at the gymnasium at Jay High School for the official naming of the of the JHS gym as the 'John Clarence Smith Gymnasium'.
Youngblood, a 1978 graduate of Jay High School, played basketball for the Royals under Smith and would replace Smith as the head basketball coach in 1989. At the time of Smith's retirement he was the winningest basketball coach in the state Florida.
"He had old school ways that you didn't appreciate then, but you appreciate now," Youngblood said of Smith before the gym dedication. "He let you be a kid, so he also understood the aspect of the game and life."
Youngblood said Smith was very active in the community and coached Little League baseball for years and led the Jay team to the state championship. By default, Smith was the head football coach at Jay in 1972 when he inherited a team that went 0-9 the season before and led the Royals to a 4-6 season in his only season as the head football coach.
Smith was also a certified swimming instructor and taught swimming lessons in Jay during the summer months.
In addition to his coaching duties, Terry Diamond said Smith was a great teacher, teaching, among other things, history.
"Anybody he taught history to, still knows that history," Diamond said.
Current Jay High School Principal Benji West said his relationship with Smith began before he was ever born.
West, a 1986 graduate of Jay High School, said his father played for Coach Smith in 1958 and said he had uncles to play for him afterwards. West played basketball for Coach Smith in 1985 and 1986.
West said his daddy said the 1961 team, which his uncle Dan played on, was the best team at Jay. His uncle David felt the 1963 team that made it to the final four was the best team and Benji West said the best team was in 1975.
"The craziest thing is we didn't learn until later we were being coached by such a wonderful man," Benji West said. "We were just snotty-nosed kids at the time."
West said Coach Smith had a tremendous impact on his life and said he probably wouldn't be where he is today without Coach Smith.
"I wanted to go to college and come back and coach basketball at Jay because of Coach Smith," West said. "He was a tremendous human being and impacted so many lives. It made it special that we were able to dedicate the gym in his honor before his passing."
Smith was also a veteran of World War II with the Army Rainbow Division in Germany.
Smith's funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 18 at the Jay Funeral Chapel with Cecil Jackson, pastor of Jay United Methodist Church officiating. Visitation will be held at the chapel from 12 noon until the 2 p.m. service. Burial will be held at the Cora Baptist Church Cemetery.
