He coached at the University of Georgia in the mid ’90s before accepting a position with the University of Kentucky, where he replaced Rick Pitino, who was coming off a national championship. Smith emulated Pitino’s success, winning the title in his first season with the Wildcats. His accomplishments in Kentucky include a perfect regular season conference record, five SEC regular season championships, five SEC Tournament wins, six Sweet Sixteen appearances, and four Elite Eight tickets. He resigned in 2007 to coach at the University of Minnesota and was eventually fired in 2013 after a disappointing tenure. Soon after, he was hired at Texas Tech University. Smith served as a coach for the U.S. national team during the 2000 Olympics when America won the gold medal. He and his wife, Donna, are active with the Tubby Smith Foundation in Lexington, Kentucky.