CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2006 SMU

6–⁠6 (4–⁠4 Conference USA), coached by Phil Bennett.

Schedule and results

SMU in 2006, game by game: lost at No. 25 Texas Tech 3–35; lost at North Texas 6–24; won vs. Sam Houston 45–14; won vs. Arkansas State 55–9; won at Tulane 33–28; lost at UTEP 21–24; won vs. Marshall 31–21; lost at East Carolina 21–38; won vs. UAB 22–9; lost vs. Houston 27–37; won vs. Tulsa 34–24; lost at Rice 27–31+46−32Lost 3–35 at No. 25 Texas Tech-32No. 25 Texas TechLost 6–24 at North Texas-18North TexasWon 45–14 vs. Sam Houston+31Sam HoustonWon 55–9 vs. Arkansas State+46Arkansas StateWon 33–28 at Tulane+5TulaneLost 21–24 at UTEP-3UTEPWon 31–21 vs. Marshall+10MarshallLost 21–38 at East Carolina-17East CarolinaWon 22–9 vs. UAB+13UABLost 27–37 vs. Houston-10HoustonWon 34–24 vs. Tulsa+10TulsaLost 27–31 at Rice-4Rice
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2at25Texas TechL 3–⁠3522%
Sep 9atNorth TexasL 6–⁠2450%
Sep 16vsSam HoustonW 45–⁠1469%
Sep 23vsArkansas StateW 55–⁠962%
Sep 30atTulaneW 33–⁠2853%
Oct 7atUTEPL 21–⁠2439%
Oct 14vsMarshallW 31–⁠2163%
Oct 21atEast CarolinaL 21–⁠3848%
Oct 31vsUABW 22–⁠956%
Nov 11vsHoustonL 27–⁠3744%
Nov 18vsTulsaW 34–⁠2439%
Nov 25atRiceL 27–⁠3145%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Rice 31–⁠27; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 6th in the Conference USA.

In program history: The 65th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 110 on file).

Record
6–⁠6
Conference
4–⁠4 tied for 6th in Conference USA
AP final
Unranked
Points
325–⁠294
Coach
Phil Bennett
Elo
1459 +19 this season
SP+ rating
-7.7 No. 86 of 119; offense No. 78, defense No. 94, special teams No. 9
SRS
−6.4 No. 83 of 119 in FBS
Recruiting class
No. 105
Offensive coordinator
Rusty Burns
Defensive coordinator
Jim Gush
Offense
Spread
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense64th of 119
  • Defense80th of 119
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0239%0.9464th of 119
Defense0.0743%0.9280th of 119
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense-0.4own 334% allowed
Defense-0.2own 292% caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Top recruits in the 2006 class

Phillip Burley ATH★★★No. 498
Bryan McCann ATH★★★No. 782
Jordan Johnson SDE★★★No. 1045
Tim Crosby ATH★★No. 1223
Zac Thomas WDE★★No. 1370

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

The 2006 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Receivers12.00.700
Offensive line12.00.744
Defensive line52.20.736
Linebackers22.00.722
Defensive backs22.00.722
Athletes and specialists42.50.796
Whole class152.20.746

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 2007

The 2007 draft
Rd 6Justin Rogers LBNew England Patriots

2006 Conference USA standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
Houston7–⁠110–⁠4
Southern Miss6–⁠29–⁠5
Rice6–⁠27–⁠6
Tulsa5–⁠38–⁠5
East Carolina5–⁠37–⁠6
SMU4–⁠46–⁠6
Marshall4–⁠45–⁠7
UTEP3–⁠55–⁠7
UCF3–⁠54–⁠8
Tulane2–⁠64–⁠8
UAB2–⁠63–⁠9
Memphis1–⁠72–⁠10

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