Mike Cavan
Mike Cavan went 89–83–2 on the field as a head coach, 1986–2001, at Valdosta State, East Tennessee State and SMU; 85–77–2 officially, after the NCAA vacated four wins and six losses (1998). Share
11 seasons our game records don’t credit to him come from the coach’s Wikipedia article: 1986–91 at Valdosta State; 1992–96 at East Tennessee State. They’re marked in the table.
- Record
- 85–77–2 official; 89–83–2 on the field
- Seasons
- 16
- Schools
- 3
- Final AP top 10
- 0 seasons
- Best season
- 1997 6–5
Season by season
| Season | School | Record | Conference finish | Bowl | AP final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Valdosta State * | 9–2 | 2nd | |||
| 1987 | Valdosta State * | 6–4 | 4th | |||
| 1988 | Valdosta State * | 6–3–1 | 4th | |||
| 1989 | Valdosta State * | 5–5 | 3rd | |||
| 1990 | Valdosta State * | 5–5 | 4th | |||
| 1991 | Valdosta State * | 6–3–1 | T–2nd | |||
| 1992 | East Tennessee State * | 5–6 | 6th | |||
| 1993 | East Tennessee State * | 5–6 | 7th | |||
| 1994 | East Tennessee State * | 6–5 | T–5th | |||
| 1995 | East Tennessee State * | 4–7 | 5th | |||
| 1996 | East Tennessee State * | 10–3 | 2nd | NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal L | ||
| 1997 | SMU | 6–5 | T–2nd (Mountain) | |||
| 1998 | SMU | 5–7 (1–1 official) | T–5th (Mountain) | |||
| 1999 | SMU | 4–6 | 5th | |||
| 2000 | SMU | 3–9 | T–6th | |||
| 2001 | SMU | 4–7 | 5th |
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. * A season our game records don’t credit to him; its record is the article’s.
How his teams did
| Kind of game | Games | Record | Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Against ranked teams | 3 | 0–3 | 0% |
| Against rivals | 13 | 5–8 | 38% |
| Conference games | 38 | 18–20 | 47% |
| Decided by 8 points or fewer | 17 | 7–10 | 41% |
| At home | 28 | 14–14 | 50% |
| On the road | 27 | 7–20 | 26% |
| At neutral sites | 1 | 1–0 | 100% |
| As our Elo’s favorite | 18 | 12–6 | 67% |
| As our Elo’s underdog | 38 | 10–28 | 26% |
His own 56 games on file, 1997–2001, 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ken Hatfield 1997–2001 | 3–2 | Rice | 5 | |
| Dennis Franchione 1997–2000 | 1–3 | New Mexico, TCU | 4 | |
| Dana Dimel 1997–2000 | 1–2 | Wyoming, Houston | 3 | |
| Pat Hill 1999–2001 | 1–2 | Fresno State | 3 | |
| June Jones 1999–2001 | 0–3 | Hawai’i | 3 |
Mike Cavan’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 |
|---|---|---|
| Tulsaseries | 5 | 5–0 |
| Riceseries | 5 | 3–2 |
| TCUseries | 5 | 1–4 |
| UTEPseries | 4 | 2–2 |
| Hawai’iseries | 4 | 1–3 |
| Arkansasseries | 3 | 1–2 |
| Fresno Stateseries | 3 | 1–2 |
| Tulaneseries | 3 | 0–3 |
Career
| Years | Team | Job | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977–85 | Georgia | Offensive backs coach | |
| 1986–91 | Valdosta State | Head coach | |
| 1992–96 | East Tennessee State | Head coach | |
| 1997–2001 | SMU | Head coach |
Every job as the infobox of his Wikipedia article lists it (CC BY-SA), assistant jobs included.
Coaching tree
Worked under
- Vince DooleyGeorgia
Assistants who became head coaches
- David DeanValdosta State, West Georgia, Delta State
- Gunter BrewerNortheast Mississippi
- Brad SherrodTexas Wesleyan, Morehouse
- Darrell DickeyNorth Texas, Memphis
- Derek DooleyLouisiana Tech, Tennessee
Worked under (1)
| Head coach | Team | Years | His job | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vince Dooley | Georgia | 1977–85 | Offensive backs coach |
Coached under him, later head coaches (5)
| Coach | With him | Head coach at | |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Dean | Valdosta State, 1988–91: wide receivers coach | Valdosta State, West Georgia, Delta State | |
| Gunter Brewer | East Tennessee State, 1992–95: wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator | Northeast Mississippi | |
| Brad Sherrod | East Tennessee State, 1996: linebackers coach | Texas Wesleyan, Morehouse | |
| Darrell Dickey | SMU, 1997: offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach | North Texas, Memphis | |
| Derek Dooley | SMU, 1997–99: wide receivers coach | Louisiana Tech, Tennessee |
Other assistants under him (4)
| Coach | With him | |
|---|---|---|
| Eric Schumann | Valdosta State, 1990–91: defensive backs coach; East Tennessee State, 1992–96: defensive coordinator; SMU, 1997–2001: defensive coordinator | |
| Greg Briner | SMU, 1998–99: offensive coordinator | |
| Larry Kueck | SMU, 1999: co-offensive coordinator; 2000–01: offensive coordinator | |
| Pat Henderson | SMU, 2000–01: special teams, defensive tackles and defensive backs 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.