A Suncoast family’s coaching legacy continues

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - Joshua Smithers, the head football coach at Riverview High School in Sarasota, says at an early age he knew he wanted to pursue a coaching career.

“I obviously look up to my father, he’s a longtime coach as long as my Mother. But when I was a kid I was able to see the kind of effect that my father was able to have on young men and I always thought that was something special and I knew at an early age that is something I wanted to do,” says Smithers.

Smithers is entering his ninth season at Riverview High School, and his twenty-fourth season overall.

For Coach Smithers coaching up student-athletes is a dream come true.

“I was also very fortunate growing up, I’ve had a lot of great football coaches when I started at nine years old all the way through high school with Mike Dowling and so for me the experience was a very positive experience,” says Smithers.

The 2023 Riverview Rams kick off their 2023 FHSAA football season hosting Hillsborough High School in the kick off classic.