Rod Smith is a Canadian sports commentator and host of TSN's SportsCentre. He formerly hosted the ''

CFL on TSN The ''CFL on TSN'' is TSN's presentation of the Canadian Football League. The Sports Network (TSN) has broadcast CFL games since the 1987 season and has been the exclusive broadcaster of all CFL games (including the playoffs and Grey Cup) sin ...

'' before being replaced by

Kate Beirness Kate Beirness ( ; born March 8, 1984) is a Canadian television sportscaster, currently working as a host for ''SportsCentre'' on The Sports Network, TSN. Career During her first year hosting SportsCentre, Beirness often worked with Bryan Mudryk ...

in 2021. He is currently the lead play-by-play announcer for the ''CFL on TSN''.

Career

Smith has been with TSN since 1987, joining as an editorial assistant for '' SportsCentre'' (then ''SportsDesk''). He became a reporter in 1992 and has presented ''SportsCentre'' since 1995. He was also a play-by-play announcer for ''

'' and CIS University Football. At the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, Smith provided the play-by-play commentary for Long Track Speed Skating. He earned his first

Gemini Award The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in the United States ...

nomination in the category of Best Sports Play-by-Play Announcer later that year. During the London 2012 Olympic Summer Games, Smith delivered play-by-play commentary from the Aquatic Centre and was honoured with the first-ever

Canadian Screen Award The Canadian Screen Awards (french: link=no, Les prix Écrans canadiens) are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media (web series) p ...

for Best Sports Play-by-Play Announcer in 2013. In 2014, Smith won a Canadian Screen Award for Best Sports Host in a Sports Program or Series for his work on SportsCentre. After

Dave Randorf Dave Randorf (born July 31, 1967) is a Canadian sportscaster who serves as the play-by-play announcer for the television broadcasts of the Tampa Bay Lightning professional hockey team. He is best known for his work at TSN hosting the network's Ca ...

left as host of the ''CFL on TSN'' panel to join

Rogers Media Rogers Media Inc., operating as Rogers Sports & Media, is a Canadian subsidiary of Rogers Communications that owns the company's mass media and sports properties, such as the Citytv and Omni Television terrestrial television stations, Sportsnet, ...

, Smith took over as host. Smith returned to providing play-by-play commentary for some CFL games during the 2018 season, mostly for ''Thursday Night Football''. Starting in 2021,

took over as the ''CFL on TSN'' studio host, while Smith became the secondary CFL announcer alongside

Duane Forde Duane Forde (born May 8, 1969) is a Canadian television broadcaster for TSN and a former player in the CFL. Career College football Born in Toronto, Forde attended the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario where he obtained his Bache ...

. Upon

Rod Black Rod Black (born September 28, 1962) is a Canadian sports announcer best known for his work with CTV Sports and TSN from 1990 to 2021. He is now a host and brand ambassador for NorthStar Bets, a brand of NorthStar Gaming. Education Black was bor ...

's departure from TSN on October 14, 2021, Smith became the lead ''CFL on TSN'' play-by-play announcer. He also called his first

Grey Cup The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...

as play-by-play man, the 108th game at

Tim Hortons Field Tim Hortons Field, nicknamed "The Donut Box", is a multi-purpose stadium in Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Built as a replacement for Ivor Wynne Stadium, Tim Hortons Field is primarily used for Canadian football and association fo ...

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Hamilton has a population of 569,353, and its census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington and Grimsby, has a population of 785,184. The city is approximately southwest of T ...

, on December 12, 2021.

Personal life

Smith graduated from

Ryerson Polytechnical Institute Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU or Toronto Met) is a public university, public research university located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The university's core campus is situated within the Garden District, Toronto, Garden District, although i ...

in Radio and Television Arts, in 1986. Earlier, he had attended Queen's University and was an

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

for the Golden Gaels.

References

External links

TSN.ca biography
Major League Baseball broadcasters Canadian television sportscasters Toronto Metropolitan University alumni Queen's University at Kingston alumni Queen's Golden Gaels football players Year of birth missing (living people) Canadian players of Canadian football Canadian Football League announcers Living people Place of birth missing (living people) Canadian Screen Award winners {{canada-tv-bio-stub