American college football season
1981 SMU Mustangs football |
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Co-national champion (NCF) SWC champion |
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Conference | Southwest Conference |
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Ranking |
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AP | No. 5 |
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Record | 10–1 (7–1 SWC) |
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Head coach | |
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Offensive scheme | Option |
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Defensive coordinator | Steve Sidwell (6th season) |
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Base defense | 3–4 |
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Home stadium | Texas Stadium |
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Seasons |
1981 Southwest Conference football standings | Conf | | | Overall |
Team | W | | L | | T | | | W | | L | | T |
No. 5 SMU $ | 7 | – | 1 | – | 0 | | | 10 | – | 1 | – | 0 |
No. 2 Texas | 6 | – | 1 | – | 1 | | | 10 | – | 1 | – | 1 |
Houston | 5 | – | 2 | – | 1 | | | 7 | – | 4 | – | 1 |
Arkansas | 5 | – | 3 | – | 0 | | | 8 | – | 4 | – | 0 |
Texas A&M | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | | | 7 | – | 5 | – | 0 |
Rice | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | | | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 |
Baylor | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | | | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 |
TCU | 1 | – | 6 | – | 1 | | | 2 | – | 7 | – | 2 |
Texas Tech | 0 | – | 7 | – | 1 | | | 1 | – | 9 | – | 1 |
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Rankings from AP Poll |
The 1981 SMU Mustangs football team represented Southern Methodist University (SMU) as a member of the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by Ron Meyer in his sixth and final season as head coach, the Mustangs compiled an overall record 10–1 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, winning the SWC title.
The Mustangs had been put on probation by the NCAA for recruiting violations and were banned from participating in any bowl game in 1981. Since SMU's performance would have given them an automatic berth in the Cotton Bowl Classic, the team decided to treat its final regular season game at Arkansas as their bowl game and nicknamed it the "Polyester Bowl". SMU defeated the Razorbacks 32–18.
SMU finished at No. 5 in the final AP Poll. Because its rules prevent schools under probation from being considered, the Mustangs were not ranked in the Coaches Poll at all during the season. At season's end, the Mustangs were recognized as one of five co-national champions by the National Championship Foundation (NCF).[1]: 112–114
The team's offense scored 365 points while the defense allowed 137 points.
Schedule
Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
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September 5 | Texas–Arlington* | | | W 48–0 | 20,130 | [2] |
September 12 | North Texas State* | | | W 34–7 | 20,400 | [3] |
September 19 | Grambling State* | | | W 59–27 | 45,700 | |
September 26 | at TCU | No. 20 | | W 20–9 | 25,862 | |
October 10 | Baylor | No. 14 | | W 37–20 | 33,110 | |
October 17 | at Houston | No. 10 | | W 38–22 | 36,892 | |
October 24 | No. 10 Texas | No. 8 | | L 7–9 | 62,777 | |
October 31 | at Texas A&M | No. 13 | | W 27–7 | 62,646 | |
November 7 | Rice | No. 10 | | W 33–12 | 28,750 | |
November 14 | Texas Tech | No. 8 | | W 30–6 | 24,410 | |
November 21 | at No. 16 Arkansas | No. 6 | | W 32–18 | 43,842 | |
- *Non-conference game
- Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
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Roster
1981 SMU Mustangs football team roster |
Players | Coaches |
Offense | Defense Pos. | # | Name | Class | DL | 75 | Harvey Armstrong | Sr | DT | 74 | Michael Carter | Jr | DL | 99 | Eric Ferguson | Sr | DL | | Jerry Kovar | Jr | DB | 20 | James Mobley | Sr | DB | 29 | Russell Carter | So | | Special teams Pos. | # | Name | Class | K | 1 | Eddie Garcia | Jr | | - Head coach
- Coordinators/assistant coaches
- Legend
- (C) Team captain
- (S) Suspended
- (I) Ineligible
- Injured
- Redshirt
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Rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked | Week |
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Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | Final |
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AP | — | — | — | 20 | 15 | 14 | 10 | 8 | 13 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 |
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Game summaries
Arkansas
#6 SMU at #16 Arkansas | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | • No. 6 Mustangs | 3 | 9 | 0 | 20 | 32 | No. 16 Razorbacks | 7 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 18 | - Source: Eugene Register-Guard
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Scoring summary |
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| 1 | | SMU | Garcia 39-yard field goal | SMU 3-0 | | 1 | | ARK | Anderson 7-yard pass from Jones (Lohay kick) | ARK 7-3 | | 2 | | SMU | Garcia 43-yard field goal | ARK 7-6 | | 2 | | SMU | Washington 10-yard interception return (pass failed) | SMU 12-7 | | 3 | | ARK | Clark 1-yard run (Jones to Pierce pass) | ARK 15-12 | | 3 | | ARK | Lohay 21-yard field goal | ARK 18-12 | | 4 | | SMU | Garcia 24-yard field goal | ARK 18-15 | | 4 | | SMU | Garcia 47-yard field goal | Tied 18-18 | | 4 | | SMU | Jones 10-yard run (Garcia kick) | SMU 25-18 | | 4 | | SMU | Dickerson 31-yard run (Garcia kick) | SMU 32-18 | |
- SMU wins first conference title since 1966 (ineligible for Cotton Bowl Classic berth).
Team players drafted into the NFL
[4]
References
- ^ 2020 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (PDF). Indianapolis: The National Collegiate Athletic Association. July 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
- ^ "Mustangs mash Mavericks". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. September 6, 1981. p. B1. Retrieved January 9, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "SMU runners slash NT, 34–7". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. September 13, 1981. Retrieved October 28, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "1982 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on December 21, 2007. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
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People | |
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Seasons | |
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National championship seasons in bold |
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National championships in bold |
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