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2002 SMU

3–⁠9 (3–⁠5 Western Athletic Conference), coached by Phil Bennett.

Schedule and results

SMU in 2002, game by game: lost vs. Navy 7–38; lost vs. Texas Tech 14–24; lost at TCU 6–17; lost at Oklahoma State 16–52; lost at Hawai’i 10–42; lost vs. San José State 23–34; lost at Fresno State 7–30; won vs. Louisiana Tech 37–34; lost at Rice 15–27; lost vs. Nevada 6–24; won at UTEP 42–35; won vs. Tulsa 24–21+7−36Lost 7–38 vs. Navy-31NavyLost 14–24 vs. Texas Tech-10Texas TechLost 6–17 at TCU-11TCULost 16–52 at Oklahoma State-36Oklahoma StateLost 10–42 at Hawai’i-32Hawai’iLost 23–34 vs. San José State-11San José StateLost 7–30 at Fresno State-23Fresno StateWon 37–34 vs. Louisiana Tech+3Louisiana TechLost 15–27 at Rice-12RiceLost 6–24 vs. Nevada-18NevadaWon 42–35 at UTEP+7UTEPWon 24–21 vs. Tulsa+3Tulsa
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 31vsNavyL 7–⁠3872%
Sep 7vsTexas TechL 14–⁠2435%
Sep 14atTCUL 6–⁠1720%
Sep 21atOklahoma StateL 16–⁠5229%
Sep 28atHawai’iL 10–⁠4216%
Oct 5vsSan José StateL 23–⁠3439%
Oct 12atFresno StateL 7–⁠3013%
Oct 19vsLouisiana TechW 37–⁠3439%
Oct 26atRiceL 15–⁠2728%
Nov 2vsNevadaL 6–⁠2441%
Nov 16atUTEPW 42–⁠3544%
Nov 23vsTulsaW 24–⁠2166%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Tulsa 24–⁠21; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 6th in the Western Athletic Conference.

In program history: The 103rd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 110 on file).

Players on this team

Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 2002.

Record
3–⁠9
Conference
3–⁠5 tied for 6th in Western Athletic Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
207–⁠378
Coach
Phil Bennett
Elo
1301 −121 this season
SP+ rating
-24.8 No. 112 of 117; offense No. 116, defense No. 98
SRS
−22.0 No. 112 of 117 in Division I-A
Recruiting class
No. 77
Offensive coordinator
Larry Edmondson
Defensive coordinator
Jim Gush
Offense
Pro-style
Defense
4–⁠3

Top recruits in the 2002 class

Mike Benson OG★★No. 898
Daniel Francis ATH★★No. 898
Rolando Humphrey CB★★No. 898
Donnie Gilray PRO★★No. 898
Martin Guidry OG★★No. 898

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2002 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks12.00.767
Receivers12.00.767
Offensive line72.00.767
Defensive line32.00.767
Linebackers32.00.767
Defensive backs42.00.767
Athletes and specialists42.00.767
Whole class232.00.767

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2003

The 2003 draft
Rd 5Kevin Garrett DBSt. Louis Rams

2002 Western Athletic Conference standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
Boise State8–⁠012–⁠115
Hawai’i7–⁠110–⁠4
Fresno State6–⁠29–⁠5
San José State4–⁠46–⁠7
Nevada4–⁠45–⁠7
Rice3–⁠54–⁠7
Louisiana Tech3–⁠54–⁠8
SMU3–⁠53–⁠9
UTEP1–⁠72–⁠10
Tulsa1–⁠71–⁠11

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.