Miles Smith is in his sixth season with the Boilermakers in 2023-24 and coaches Purdue’s long sprinters. Smith is a former world champion and professional sprinter.
Smith led the women’s 4x400 relay to a Big Ten bronze medal and an NCAA Championships berth during the 2022-23 season. The relay earned honorable mention All-America honors. Smith also saw six top-10 times in school history set by his runners, three by Brett Otterbacher. Those top-10 marks included one at No. 2 all-time and two at No. 3, while three of the times were the fastest by a Boilermaker in those events since 2018.
The 2021-22 season saw Smith lead K’Ja Talley and the women’s 4x400 relay to the NCAA Championships, while freshman Shianne Dacosta won a 400m Big Ten bronze medal. Talley, Purdue’s first woman to run in an individual event at the NCAA Championships since 2018, and the 4x400 relay earned honorable mention All-America distinction as Smith helped the Boilermakers send nine entries to nationals, their most since 2018.
In 2020-21, the women’s 4x400 relay won a Big Ten silver medal outdoors and a bronze medal indoors, and the relay squad capped the year by qualifying for the NCAA Outdoor Championships to place 20th. Brian Faust made the NCAA Championships indoors and earned second team All-America accolades in the 400m. Three top-10 marks in school history were set by long sprinters during the indoor and outdoor season, including a program-record time by Faust in the 400m.
In 2019-20, Smith coached Faust to indoor All-America honors to cap a season where Faust broke two of his own school records, in the 400 three times and the 600. Smith also coached Ella Robinson to the sixth-fastest indoor 600-meter time in school history at the Big Ten Championships.
Smith’s debut season in West Lafayette saw Faust break the 500-meter indoor school record to open 2018-19, followed by a 400-meter outdoor time that was second-fastest in program history that sent him to the NCAA Championships. Additionally, Brittney Campbell ran a 2:07.94 in the 800-meters outdoors, a time that ranks No. 10 in program history.
Smith came to Purdue from Memphis, where he helped the Tigers sprint program to its finest performance in decades. In his two years as an assistant coach, he oversaw the men’s team to a 20th-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Additionally, Smith coached four NCAA championship qualifiers, four NCAA All-America Honorable Mentions, a program-high two American Athletic Conference (AAC) team runner-up finishes, 25 All-AAC performers and 10 program records.
Smith moved to the coaching ranks after a stellar professional track and field career. In 2005, Smith was a member of the gold-medal winning 4x400-meter relay at the IAAF World Championships in Helsinki, Finland. Additionally, he was a United States Olympic Trials semifinalist in the 400-meters in both 2008 and 2012, and also a 400-meter finalist at the U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 2005 (sixth place), 2009 (eighth) and 2011 (sixth).
As a student-athlete at Southeast Missouri, Smith earned All-America honors five times in the 400-meters (indoor and outdoor combined). A 15-time OVC champion, Smith was named the OVC Athlete of the Year three times, in 2005, ‘06 and ‘08. He stills owns five school records, in the 400-meters (indoor and outdoor), 200-meters (indoor) and 4x400-meter relay (indoor and outdoor).
Smith is a 2008 Southeast Missouri graduate with a degree in mass communication. He was inducted into the Southeast Missouri Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014. He was elected to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.
Smith led the women’s 4x400 relay to a Big Ten bronze medal and an NCAA Championships berth during the 2022-23 season. The relay earned honorable mention All-America honors. Smith also saw six top-10 times in school history set by his runners, three by Brett Otterbacher. Those top-10 marks included one at No. 2 all-time and two at No. 3, while three of the times were the fastest by a Boilermaker in those events since 2018.
The 2021-22 season saw Smith lead K’Ja Talley and the women’s 4x400 relay to the NCAA Championships, while freshman Shianne Dacosta won a 400m Big Ten bronze medal. Talley, Purdue’s first woman to run in an individual event at the NCAA Championships since 2018, and the 4x400 relay earned honorable mention All-America distinction as Smith helped the Boilermakers send nine entries to nationals, their most since 2018.
In 2020-21, the women’s 4x400 relay won a Big Ten silver medal outdoors and a bronze medal indoors, and the relay squad capped the year by qualifying for the NCAA Outdoor Championships to place 20th. Brian Faust made the NCAA Championships indoors and earned second team All-America accolades in the 400m. Three top-10 marks in school history were set by long sprinters during the indoor and outdoor season, including a program-record time by Faust in the 400m.
In 2019-20, Smith coached Faust to indoor All-America honors to cap a season where Faust broke two of his own school records, in the 400 three times and the 600. Smith also coached Ella Robinson to the sixth-fastest indoor 600-meter time in school history at the Big Ten Championships.
Smith’s debut season in West Lafayette saw Faust break the 500-meter indoor school record to open 2018-19, followed by a 400-meter outdoor time that was second-fastest in program history that sent him to the NCAA Championships. Additionally, Brittney Campbell ran a 2:07.94 in the 800-meters outdoors, a time that ranks No. 10 in program history.
Smith came to Purdue from Memphis, where he helped the Tigers sprint program to its finest performance in decades. In his two years as an assistant coach, he oversaw the men’s team to a 20th-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Additionally, Smith coached four NCAA championship qualifiers, four NCAA All-America Honorable Mentions, a program-high two American Athletic Conference (AAC) team runner-up finishes, 25 All-AAC performers and 10 program records.
Smith moved to the coaching ranks after a stellar professional track and field career. In 2005, Smith was a member of the gold-medal winning 4x400-meter relay at the IAAF World Championships in Helsinki, Finland. Additionally, he was a United States Olympic Trials semifinalist in the 400-meters in both 2008 and 2012, and also a 400-meter finalist at the U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 2005 (sixth place), 2009 (eighth) and 2011 (sixth).
As a student-athlete at Southeast Missouri, Smith earned All-America honors five times in the 400-meters (indoor and outdoor combined). A 15-time OVC champion, Smith was named the OVC Athlete of the Year three times, in 2005, ‘06 and ‘08. He stills owns five school records, in the 400-meters (indoor and outdoor), 200-meters (indoor) and 4x400-meter relay (indoor and outdoor).
Smith is a 2008 Southeast Missouri graduate with a degree in mass communication. He was inducted into the Southeast Missouri Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014. He was elected to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.