Former Mizzou assistant reflects on Brian Smith’s legacy as Tigers wrestling coach prepares to retire

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Brian Smith's influence on Missouri wrestling can be measured in individual National Championships, All-Americans and conference titles.

But for those who spent time around his program, his legacy extends well beyond the results on the mat.

Smith announced Wednesday that his 29th season as Missouri’s head wrestling coach will be his last. He plans to retire at the end of the season, bringing an end to a tenure that began in 1998 and helped transform the Tigers into a national wrestling powerhouse.

Mike Eirman, the head women's wrestling coach at William Woods University and a former volunteer assistant at Missouri, saw firsthand how Smith helped build that culture.

Eirman first crossed paths with Smith in the early 2000s. After finishing his collegiate wrestling career at the University of Nebraska from 1992-94, his parents relocated from Chicago to Missouri when former Missouri assistant Lee Pritz reached out to him. Eirman began spending time around the program, eventually working alongside Smith as a volunteer assistant.

“I think he made everyone feel comfortable. He did a good job with just bringing in the right people, the right coaches, and just made a great atmosphere,” Eirman told ABC 17 News. “There was no sides, or nothing like that. I think everybody felt comfortable there and just felt that they can progress.”

That environment became one of the defining characteristics of Smith's program, particularly his approach to developing wrestlers as individuals rather than trying to fit everyone into the same system.

It was a philosophy Eirman carried into his own coaching career. Rather than asking every wrestler to compete the same way, he learned to recognize what made each athlete successful and give them the freedom to use those strengths.

“I look back and just letting each wrestler wrestle their way. Each wrestler has their own way, their own way of doing things,” Eirman said. “I kind of learned that there. Instead of forcing them to wrestle a certain way, you know, the freedom of what their strengths are, their individual strengths.”

Eirman saw that approach work with some of Missouri's most accomplished wrestlers, including Ben Askren and J'den Cox. Askren was part of the program during Eirman's time there, while Eirman later coached Cox in the Olympics.

Both wrestlers went on to become national champions under Smith. Askren won back-to-back NCAA titles in 2006 and 2007, while Cox became Missouri's only three-time NCAA champion, winning titles in 2014, 2016 and 2017 and earned a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympics

“It seems like when they get to Missouri, they excel. I mean, they really continue to thrive there. So there's an atmosphere of growth, understanding what you're dealing with and how to connect with each one of your athletes because they're all so different, you know. So to be able to connect with each one in a positive way and make them all feel comfortable,” Eirman said. “It's a good place for each wrestler. That's a good a good trait to have as a coach.”

Some of Eirman's fondest memories of his time in Columbia came from the everyday routine of the wrestling room rather than any particular accomplishment.

He recalled Askren's time with the program and having Smith and Pritz consistently present to watch practices and evaluate the work being done.

“Brian and Lee would just be there all the time, and after the practices, you know, they would watch it,” Eirman said. “Nothing really stands out. It was always just professional, I mean, it was just consistent. It was a good atmosphere and I think that when wrestlers go there, they really can hit their best, their pinnacle the journey that they're on.”

That consistency helped Missouri establish itself as one of the country's premier wrestling programs. Through his first 28 seasons, Smith coached the Tigers to 10 NCAA individual national championships, 66 individual conference championships and 72 All-American performances.

Missouri also captured 12 consecutive conference tournament championships during Smith's tenure, including nine straight in the Mid-American Conference before returning to the Big 12 in 2022. Smith led the Tigers to two NCAA team trophies, finishing third in 2007 and fourth in 2015.

For Eirman, however, the impact of Smith's success reaches far beyond the University of Missouri. He believes the program's rise helped elevate wrestling throughout Mid-Missouri and across the state.

“The whole state is elevated. He's brought that; we got a powerhouse," he said. "The college is now a powerhouse. So that bleeds through the high schools. It bleeds to our youth programs. It excels everything. It makes everybody want to do better. That was special, and that’s what the state needed, and that’s what Brian brought.”

Smith's sustained success also gave high school and youth coaches something to work toward, Eirman said, creating a pipeline of wrestlers who could aspire to compete at the collegiate level in their home state.

“He brought a consistency of a successful program for the last 15-to-20 years,” Eirman said. “All the high school coaches and all the youth club coaches, they all try to do better, try to elevate so we can send our kids there and continue to thrive.”

Smith's accomplishments also extended into the classroom. Missouri wrestlers earned 180 academic honors during his tenure, while Smith collected multiple conference and national coaching awards, including the National Wrestling Coaches Association Coach of the Year honor in 2017.

He also became Missouri's winningest coach in any sport in March 2023, surpassing former men's basketball coach Norm Stewart. Smith enters his 29th and final season with a 351-130-4 career dual record.

As the program prepares for its first coaching transition in nearly three decades, Eirman said the relationships Smith built with generations of wrestlers will remain an important part of his legacy.

“It was a great experience. I learned a lot and he'll be missed. I think he he did a great job there,” Eirman said. “You can't deny the success he's had and the relationships he's built with his ex-wrestlers.”