Lester Smith grew up in Foley where he became a star on the field for the Lions. The 1961 season was one of the best in Foley history with Smith behind the controls at quarterback.

The Lions finished the season 10-0 and outscored their opponents 433-6 on their way to being named State Champions by several sources.

Following his playing days at Foley, Smith attended East Mississippi Junior College in 1962-63 and Southeastern Louisiana (1964-67).

After graduation, he coached one year at Hammond High School in Louisiana before returning home to Foley in the fall of 1967.

Smith served as an assistant coach under Ivan Jones for two years before taking over the head coaching duties in 1969.

His record for the next seventeen years was 119-53-2. Coach Smith stepped down as head coach of the Lions and into administration in 1986 as principal, assistant principal and human resources director. In 2001 he returned as head coach for another four seasons.

Smiths overall record at Foley is 127-85-2 in 21 years as the head football coach. His teams won three region titles and qualified for the playoffs four times. They also won five county championships. His 1977 team went 10-0 during the regular season before losing to Sidney Lanier 22-15 in the state playoffs.

He is a member of the Baldwin County Coaches, Baldwin County Middle School Athletic, Foley High School and East Mississippi Community College Athletic Halls of Fame.

Smith was inducted into the Alabama High School Athletic Associations Hall of Fame in 2011.