Newton County High School will have a lot of changes this fall, and one of them will be the new Head Baseball Coach, Jordan Tyler Smith. Son of James Earl and Rosemary Lewis Smith of Union, Jordan was born May 8, 1990. Jordan’s father is a poultry farmer, and his mother is a nurse at Meridian Medical Associates.
Jordan’s brother Nick is seven years older than he and his sister Cassie is seven years younger. Nick Smith, Principal of Union Middle School, and wife Kim Ellzey of Louisiana have two children, son Colt and daughter Ryann. Jordan’s sister Cassie, a Nurse Supervisor at Bedford Nursing Home in Marion, Mississippi, is married to Landry Gardner of Forest.
Jordan played baseball, as well as some football and golf, while in high school and graduated from Union High School in 2008. He played baseball for Coach Holliman at East Central Community College where he met his wife, Monica Vincent. To me, as we old folks have said, it sounded like he chased her till she caught him. She said she tells other girls about dating an interested young man, “Run the race, keep your eyes on the Lord. If he can catch you as you run the race, you might be able to give him some of your time.”
Monica Vincent was born August 5, 1991, to Rev. Mark and Mrs. Janine Vincent of Agricola. When the Vincents came to Decatur to pastor Clarke-Venable Baptist Church in 2004, Monica was 13 in the eighth grade, her sister Chelsey was 16 in the eleventh, and John Mark was in the first grade. Presently, her sister Chelsey is coordinator of the Supplemental Instruction Program as well as an instructor at Mississippi State University and is working on her Ph.D., while Monica’s brother John Mark Vincent is on staff at CVBC as Student Pastor of Middle School Students.
An honor student, Monica graduated from Newton County High School the spring of 2009. In 2011, she earned her A.A. at East Central, finishing pre-requisites for the nursing program. At ECCC, Monica had played soccer and cheered, while also being a member of the Collegian rock band as a singer. She was placed on the ECCC Hall of Fame, for her overall performance as an exemplary student.
I asked her what had prompted her to work toward becoming a nurse, to which she replied, “I have a heart for people. In high school one of the cheerleaders passed out. I ran to help. I didn’t know what to do, but I realized I wanted to be that person who would know what to do. She went on to the “W,” or, Mississippi University for Women, and was awarded her B.S. in Nursing in 2013, after which she worked at Baptist Hospital in Jackson for two years on the Medical Surgical Floor. She went on to earn her M.S. in Nursing from the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
Jordan Smith graduated college in 2013, having finished his B.S. in Secondary Education from Mississippi State University. He later went on to earn his Master’s degree in Sports Administration from Arkansas State University. On July 20, 2013, Jordan and Monica were married, and August 2013, Jordan began coaching. He was Assistant Coach of baseball and football at Pisgah High School, Sandhill, Mississippi, for one year before moving to McLaurin High School in Star, Mississippi, to serve as a baseball coach for another year. After six years coaching at East Webster High School in Webster County, Mississippi, Jordan Smith was brought on staff to be the Head Coach at Newton County High School, beginning this fall.
Their first daughter Mary Tyler was born April 19, 2019. When I asked what their biggest miracle has been, the Smiths had no problem remembering when little Tyler was born with a hip dysplasia. She had to wear a harness from five weeks old until she was six months, with the possibility that she may have to have surgery at that time. However, Monica said, “We learned to put our hope in the Lord and not in an outcome. We learned through it all, that no matter what, God is good and we were to lean on Him.” After six months, the doctor discovered that the harness had worked and no surgery was needed. The Smiths are expecting their second baby girl LuAnn Helen December 8, 2021.
Monica’s faith in God began when she was eight years old. Her Sunday School teacher in Burleson, Texas, said, “You could do all the right things, say all the right things, be in the right family, but it wouldn’t matter. None of it would matter in the end. I went home and asked my Dad. He had a special pen. He took it out of his pocket and asked what I would have to do to get it if he offered it to me. I told him, ‘Just take it,’ and he said, ‘That’s exactly what the Lord has done for us with the gift of salvation.’ So I prayed and asked the Lord to save me. And I am who I am because I’m a follower of Christ.”
Jordan was also raised in a Christian home, attending County Line Baptist Church in Union, Mississippi, “every time the church doors were open,” as they say. When he was twelve, at Gulf Shores Baptist Association Summer Camp, during an evening service, the evangelist Moses Caesar spoke on sin. He recalled, “I remember sitting there realizing I had a sin problem and I couldn’t save myself. Only by faith in the finished work of Christ could I be saved. The people in my life who heavily influenced me to walk with Christ were my grandfather, Earl J. Smith, my dad, James Earl Smith, and my father-in-law, Bro. Mark Vincent. These men are still discipling me. That is very important to me, because it’s a lifestyle, living and walking with Christ.”
When I asked about his coaching philosophy, he answered, “I’m a real person. I’m a coach. That’s what I do, but it’s not who I am. I am a follower of Christ, a husband, a father, and a coach—in that order.” He continued, “I love the game of baseball, and I love building men. I coach my boys hard, but I love them harder. I feel like my job is to develop the whole student athlete, focusing on the body, mind, and soul. Our goal is for our young men to be great husbands, fathers, and dependable citizens who can make a difference in their community. .
I’m very excited to be a part of the progress here at Newton County High School.
Having met the very dedicated Coach Jordan Smith and his wife Monica, I am looking forward to attending some games this year. Also, I am thankful we can trust that the people who are attending to the academics, administration, athletics, music and other elements of our school system have the best interests of our children and grandchildren at heart.
Live for Jesus! He’s coming soon! You may contact me at lagnesrussell@gmail.com or 601-635-3282.
