Bobby Collins
Bobby Collins went 89–46–3 on the field as a head coach, 1975–1986, at Southern Miss and SMU; 91–44–3 officially, with 1975 (8–3) and 1976 (3–8) after forfeits. His 1982 SMU team claims the national title. Share
- Record
- 91–44–3 official; 89–46–3 on the field
- Seasons
- 12
- Schools
- 2
- National titles
- 1 claimed: 1982
- Best season
- 1982 11–0–1, No. 2
Season by season
| Season | School | Record | Conference finish | Bowl | AP final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Southern Miss | 7–4 (8–3 official) | ||||
| 1976 | Southern Miss | 2–9 (3–8 official) | ||||
| 1977 | Southern Miss | 6–6 | ||||
| 1978 | Southern Miss | 7–4 | ||||
| 1979 | Southern Miss | 6–4–1 | ||||
| 1980 | Southern Miss | 9–3 | Independence Bowl W | |||
| 1981 | Southern Miss | 9–2–1 | Tangerine Bowl L | 19 | ||
| 1982 | SMU | 11–0–1 | 1st | Cotton Bowl W | 2 | |
| 1983 | SMU | 10–2 | 2nd | Sun Bowl L | 12 | |
| 1984 | SMU | 10–2 | T–1st | Aloha Bowl W | 8 | |
| 1985 | SMU | 6–5 | 5th | |||
| 1986 | SMU | 6–5 | T–4th |
Each season links to the team’s season page; bowls and playoff games link to the game. Conference finishes from the Wikipedia article’s record table.
Players he coached
Russell CarterConsensus All‑American, 1983- Roderick JonesNo. 25 pick, 1986
Every player from his seasons with a Heisman top-five finish, a national award, consensus All-America honors or a first-round pick. Photos: Wikimedia Commons, free licenses; credits on each player’s page.
How his teams did
| Kind of game | Games | Record | Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Against ranked teams | 22 | 7–13–2 | 36% |
| Against top-10 teams | 9 | 1–6–2 | 22% |
| Against rivals | 30 | 25–5 | 83% |
| Conference games | 40 | 30–9–1 | 76% |
| Bowls and playoffs | 5 | 3–2 | 60% |
| Decided by 8 points or fewer | 56 | 32–21–3 | 60% |
| At home | 58 | 41–15–2 | 72% |
| On the road | 68 | 38–29–1 | 57% |
| At neutral sites | 12 | 10–2 | 83% |
| As our Elo’s favorite | 88 | 69–17–2 | 80% |
| As our Elo’s underdog | 50 | 20–29–1 | 41% |
His own 138 games on file, 1975–1986, as played (vacated wins counted, ties as half a win). Ranks are the AP poll going into the game; rivals are the ones either program’s Wikipedia article names; favorite and underdog by our own Elo rating, which reads only scores.
Against other head coaches
| Coach | Record | Their schools | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jerry Moore 1979–1985 | 5–0 | North Texas, Texas Tech | 5 | |
| Richard Williamson 1975–1979 | 4–1 | Memphis | 5 | |
| Vince Gibson 1978–1982 | 4–0–1 | Louisville, Tulane | 5 | |
| Bill Yeoman 1982–1986 | 4–1 | Houston | 5 | |
| Grant Teaff 1982–1986 | 4–1 | Baylor | 5 | |
| Bob Tyler 1975–1981 | 3–2 | Mississippi State, North Texas | 5 | |
| Jackie Sherrill 1982–1986 | 3–2 | Texas A&M | 5 | |
| Fred Akers 1982–1986 | 2–3 | Texas | 5 | |
| Bobby Bowden 1976–1981 | 1–4 | Florida State | 5 | |
| Jim Wacker 1983–1986 | 4–0 | TCU | 4 |
Bobby Collins’s record against the head coaches he met three or more times, from the games on file, as played.
Most-faced opponents
| Opponent | Games | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Mississippi Stateseries | 7 | 5–2 |
| Memphisseries | 6 | 5–1 |
| North Texasseries | 6 | 4–2 |
| Louisvilleseries | 6 | 3–2–1 |
| Ole Missseries | 6 | 3–3 |
| Riceseries | 5 | 5–0 |
| TCUseries | 5 | 5–0 |
| Texas Techseries | 5 | 5–0 |
Also a player: Bobby Collins’s playing career.
Career
| Years | Team | Job | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | Mississippi State | Graduate assistant | |
| 1956 | Colorado State | Backfield coach | |
| 1957–58 | Mississippi State | Freshman coach | |
| 1959–60 | Mississippi State | Offensive backfield | |
| 1961–63 | George Washington | Backfield coach | |
| 1964–66 | Virginia Tech | Defensive coordinator | |
| 1967–74 | North Carolina | Offensive coordinator | |
| 1975–81 | Southern Miss | Head coach | |
| 1982–86 | SMU | Head coach |
Every job as the infobox of his Wikipedia article lists it (CC BY-SA), assistant jobs included.
Coaching tree
Worked under
- Darrell RoyalMississippi State
- Tuffy MullisonColorado State
- Wade WalkerMississippi State
- Jerry ClaiborneVirginia Tech
- Bill DooleyNorth Carolina
Assistants who became head coaches
- Jeff BowerSouthern Miss
- Mack BrownTulane, North Carolina, Texas, App State
- Jim CarmodySouthern Miss
- Bob WeberArizona, Louisville, Trinidad, Ottawa Rough Riders
Worked under (5)
| Head coach | Team | Years | His job | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Darrell Royal | Mississippi State | 1955 | Graduate assistant | |
| Tuffy Mullison | Colorado State | 1956 | Backfield coach | |
| Wade Walker | Mississippi State | 1957–60 | 1957–58: freshman coach; 1959–60: offensive backfield | |
| Jerry Claiborne | Virginia Tech | 1964–66 | Defensive coordinator | |
| Bill Dooley | North Carolina | 1967–74 | Offensive coordinator |
Coached under him, later head coaches (4)
| Coach | With him | Head coach at | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jeff Bower | Southern Miss, 1975–77: graduate assistant; 1978–81: wide receivers and quarterbacks coach; SMU, 1982–86: quarterbacks coach | Southern Miss | |
| Mack Brown | Southern Miss, 1975–77: wide receivers coach | Tulane, North Carolina, Texas, App State | |
| Jim Carmody | Southern Miss, 1978–80: defensive coordinator | Southern Miss | |
| Bob Weber | SMU, 1985: linebackers coach | Arizona, Louisville, Trinidad, Ottawa Rough Riders |
Other assistants under him (3)
| Coach | With him | |
|---|---|---|
| Pete Jenkins | Southern Miss, 1975–77: defensive coordinator | |
| Bill Clay | SMU, 1982–86: defensive coordinator | |
| Melvin Robertson | SMU, 1986: assistant coach |
From coaches’ Wikipedia infoboxes (CC BY-SA) and each season’s article for its coordinators: an assistant’s seasons at a school count under its head coach in our records; jobs in the NFL and elsewhere, under the head coach whose own article lists the job that year. Names without a page here link to their Wikipedia articles.