The Franklin & Marshall football team has certainly had some dominating defenses during its storied history. Nevertheless, Roger Smith ’75 and the rest of his Class of 1975 teammates hold the rare distinction of being the only class in school history to win four consecutive conference championships. Right in the middle of those team’s dominant defensive showings was star middle linebacker Roger Smith ’75 as he helped lead the team to a combined 30-2 Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) record during his time on the gridiron. F&M’s undefeated 1974 team was the second of Smith’s career, as he also was a member of the 1972 undefeated team. During that historic 1974 season, Smith would go on to earn both first-team All-Middle Atlantic Conference and honorable mention All-America accolades.
Smith served as a team tri-captain during the undefeated 1974 campaign and was awarded with numerous other accolades throughout his career. Some of those plaudits included being honored on the weekly ECAC All-East Team in 1972, which followed MAC Player of the Week recognition during his junior season. Smith was twice named F&M’s Karvasales Award recipient (1973, 74) as the top defensive player. He was additionally recognized as the Chuck Taylor Johnson & Johnson Award winner following his decorated career. With Smith on defense, the two longest winning streaks in program history came with his leadership on the field. A 16-game winning streak began when Smith arrived on campus in the fall of 1971 and continued into the 1973 season. Shaking off their first defeat in two years, the Diplomats started a new streak just two weeks later and ran off a program-record 17 consecutive victories before that streak was snapped only after Smith had graduated.
The 1974 defense garnered national attention as the team ranked second among all schools in rushing defense. The undefeated 1972 and 1974 defenses both held the opposition to under 700 yards rushing for two of the top four performances in program history. In between those seasons, Smith and his teammates allowed just 170.6 yards of total offense per game to the opposition. Fittingly enough, it was the final game of the 1974 season against Muhlenberg that Smith remembers to this day. Although sad that his career was coming to an end, Smith could not help but reflect on his team and individual success following another dominant 47-13 win. That was a season in which the defense allowed over 20 points just twice, and won six of its nine contests by over 30 points. The only one possession games during that season were a 21-14 victory at Hamilton in the season opener and a thrilling 26-22 win at home against Widener in front of 6,200 fans.
Completely exhausted by his own admission following the season finale at Muhlenberg, he felt equally satisfied as he walked off the field knowing that he gave everything he had to the program he loved. Those efforts were certainly rewarded with the four championships, two undefeated seasons, and a combined 32-3 record during those seasons.
After graduating from Franklin & Marshall with bachelor’s degree in accounting, Smith became a certified public accountant. He joined PricewaterhouseCoopers in New York City and was admitted to the Partnership in 1988. Smith’s professional career saw him work primarily with clients from the United States and Europe with a variety of industries that included technology, industrial, pharmaceuticals, financial services and mergers and acquisitions. He transferred to the Global PwC Firm in 2008 as the global risk management leader, requiring extensive global travel for four years before his retirement in 2012. In his personal life, Smith is married to his amazing wife Holly, whom they are blessed with three wonderful children and three beautiful grandchildren. Smith supports F&M philanthropically and is a member of the 1787 and the Benjamin Franklin Societies, and he is a supporter of the Diplomat Athletic Club.
