Head coach · Louisville 1998–2002
John Smith
41–21at Louisville
Career 83–73 (53.2%) at 4 programs, 1995–2012
Among Louisville's full-time coaches: Win rate 5th/13 · Ranked wins 3rd/13 · Bowl wins 5th/13 · Weeks ranked 5th/13 · NFL picks a year 5th/13 · Average SP+ 5th/12
Every Stop
Smith's head-coaching career, program by program. Louisville against everywhere else; SRS shows the team Smith inherited against the one left behind.
| Program | Years | Record | Win % | Conf | Bowls | Wks ranked | Peak | Avg SP+ | SRS in → out | NFL picks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Utah StateBig West | 1995–97 | 16–18 | 47.1% | 12–5 | 0–1 | — | — | −4.0 | −14.4 → −1.3 | 0 |
 LouisvilleConference USA | 1998–02 | 41–21 | 66.1% | 29–11 | 1–4 | 10 | #17 | +8.0 | −16.7 → +1.2 | 8 |
 Michigan StateBig Ten | 2003–06 | 22–26 | 45.8% | 12–20 | 0–1 | 12 | #9 | +6.9 | −4.6 → −2.5 | 12 |
 ArkansasSEC | 2012 | 4–8 | 33.3% | 2–6 | — | 2 | #8 | +11.6 | +16.1 → +2.6 | 4 |
Share of games won. The dashed line is .500. Tap a season for its numbers.
What the Numbers Say
Measured from every Louisville game Smith coached, plus CFBD's ratings, polls, recruiting, and draft data. Red marks a strength, steel a weakness.
41–21 at Louisville; 42–52 at Utah State, Michigan State, Arkansas.
1998 against the team inherited: +22.5 SP+, +14.6 SRS.
Louisville went 1–10 the year before Smith arrived (1997); 2002 finished 7–6.
Opponents ranked at kickoff; 3 wins in 8 tries. Best: #4 Florida State, 26–20 (2002).
The next game after beating a ranked opponent. Never lost it.
53% in games decided by 8 points or fewer.
11–4 in regular-season games from November on; 29–13 before.
Average recruiting class rank against average SP+ finish, 3 Louisville seasons.
0 in the first round, in the drafts after 5 Louisville seasons (1.6 a year).
Peaked at #17. 1 final top-25 finish.
Against Kentucky, 5 meetings.
Situational Record
The Louisville record cut every way the data allows. Ranks are the poll at kickoff; favorites come from the betting line, which starts in 2013.
Where
Who
When
Expectations
The next week
The Week After
Every win over a ranked team, and the game that came next: 2–0 in the follow-up.
Best Wins, Worst Losses
Best wins lead with ranked opponents, then bowls. Worst losses are the upsets: losing as the betting favorite (2013 on), as a ranked team to an unranked one, or to a lower-division opponent.
Every Game
All 62 Louisville games under Smith, one tile each. Longest winning streak: 7; longest losing streak: 2. Tap a tile for the game.
Season by Season
Every season of the career. Louisville rows are marked in red.
| Year | Team | Record | Conf | Bowl | Final | SP+ | SRS | Recruiting | NFL picks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Arkansas | 4–8 | 2–6 | — | — | +11.6 | +2.6 | #27 | 4 |
| 2006 | Michigan State | 4–8 | 1–7 | — | — | −1.3 | −2.5 | #44 | 3 |
| 2005 | Michigan State | 5–6 | 2–6 | — | — | +12.9 | +11.1 | #34 | 3 |
| 2004 | Michigan State | 5–7 | 4–4 | — | — | +4.9 | +4.2 | #15 | 4 |
| 2003 | Michigan State | 8–5 | 5–3 | 0–1 | — | +11.1 | +8.2 | #68 | 2 |
| 2002 | Louisville | 7–6 | 7–4 | 0–1 | — | +3.1 | +1.2 | #54 | 4 |
| 2001 | Louisville | 11–2 | 8–2 | 1–0 | #17 | +14.0 | +9.8 | #51 | 1 |
| 2000 | Louisville | 9–3 | 6–1 | 0–1 | — | +10.8 | +5.3 | #44 | 1 |
| 1999 | Louisville | 7–5 | 4–2 | 0–1 | — | +11.4 | +7.3 | — | 2 |
| 1998 | Louisville | 7–5 | 4–2 | 0–1 | — | +0.8 | −2.1 | — | 0 |
| 1997 | Utah State | 6–6 | 4–1 | 0–1 | — | +2.1 | −1.3 | — | 0 |
| 1996 | Utah State | 6–5 | 4–1 | — | — | −7.0 | −8.6 | — | 0 |
| 1995 | Utah State | 4–7 | 4–3 | — | — | −7.1 | −10.5 | — | 0 |
Careers from CFBD's coaching records, which cover FBS seasons from 1962 on. Louisville games come from the game archive, credited to whoever coached them. Recruiting is the team's class rank that year; NFL picks are the draft that followed the season.