SMU football announces contract extension with head coach Rhett Lashlee

While some coaches are finding new homes, other are seeing productive seasons rewarded.

SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee on Monday agreed to a multi-year contract extension with the university, athletic director Rick Hart announced. The exact length of the extension was not announced.

”We are excited to announce this extension with Coach Lashlee to keep him on the Hilltop for years to come,” said Hart in a statement.

“This extension is well deserved and there’s no question about the commitment and dedication that he has shown to SMU. As we enter the ACC, there is no one we’d rather have leading our football program than Rhett.”

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Lashlee is in his second season as head coach at SMU and has a 17-8 career record and a 13-3 mark in league play. SMU is 10-2 in 2023, ranked in the AP and AFCA Coaches Polls , and, after an undefeated 8-0 mark in conference play, is set to play in its first AAC Championship Game next Saturday against Tulane .

“We believe in what we are building on the Hilltop,” Lashlee said.

“We’re humbled to be leading our program into the ACC in 2024 and beyond.”

Lashlee also served as offensive coordinator for the Mustangs for two seasons (2018-19), helping lead the Mustangs to a 10-3 finish in 2019, guiding an offense that ranked No. 7 in FBS in scoring (41.8 points per game).SMU’s 10 wins were the school’s most since the 1984 season.

Lashlee has SMU on the cusp of a conference championship now thanks in large part to his teams’ ability to win in the month of November. Lashlee has posted a 7-1 (.875) mark for November in his two seasons as leader of the Mustangs, and his winning percentage for the month ranks as the highest for a head coach in the program’s history.

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