Matt Smith (right) serves as new coach for the Tanner High School Rattlers. Smith is also the school’s soccer coach.

Matt Smith knows a thing or two about building a championship contender.

Look no further than last year, when he led Tanner’s varsity boys to the Class 1A-3A state soccer title.

Now, he’s hoping to bring that same formula for success to the school’s football program.

Smith was hired this week as the head coach of his alma mater, where he will take over for Oscar Bonds, who stepped down in December after guiding the Rattlers to a 28-36 record and three playoff berths in six campaigns.

Tanner produced an 8-4 record last season, winning its first region title since 2016.

Smith, who graduated in 2007, played four seasons under former coach Laron White and later served as an assistant for White at both Tanner and Sparkman.

“There are things I’ll do, but it’s more about getting back to the traditional Tanner way,” Smith said. “I’ve been here my whole life. I am a third-generation Rattler. It’s going to be about us getting back to those hard-nosed, disciplined Tanner teams that won state championships.

“This is my dream job. I’m excited and pumped up and ready to go.”

Smith has racked up a 139-59 record and eight playoff appearances in 10 seasons as the school’s soccer coach. He was named Class 1A-3A Coach of the Year in 2023 after helping the program earn its first state championship following a 2-0 win over St. Luke’s.

He is leaning on that experience to aid him in building a solid foundation moving forward.

“When I took over the soccer program, it was 14 players,” Smith said. “I had go to a bunch of clinics and talk to a lot of coaches to learn the game inside and out. Going into my 11th year now, we’ve got 46 players. The grind and the hours and sweat and blood and tears … I’ll put the same into this program to help us establish a winning culture here and how we want our program to be run and our kids to be viewed.”

“To be able to do this in front of my hometown, my school and my community is really just a blessing to me.”