Bill "Red" Schmitt is a graduate of Alton High School, Shurtleff College and the University of Illinois.

He began his career at Western Military Academy in Alton, Illinois in 1947 and began developing his winning methods. Three years later he moved to Granite City, Illinois and developed a dynasty that has a 342-28-4 record with seven undefeated seasons and 80 tournament wins throughout Illinois and Missouri. Schmitt's teams won 16 district championships and 21 district championships while capturing the Illinois state team title in 1965 and finishing second once and third once. Granite City never failed to qualify at least four representatives for the state tournament and never failed to score points in the state tournament.

Schmitt is well known for his work at the state level, including serving on the State Wrestling Advisory Committee for 14 years and as a rules interpreter for eight years.

He served as president of the National Wrestling Coaches Association and was very active and instrumental in getting high school representation on committees. He was a member of the National Executive committee and also served on the National High School Federation advisory rules committee.