SMU Protects Home Turf, Improves to 5-1 With Win Over Virginia

No. 24 SMU improved to 5-1 on the season and continued its home dominance in ACC play with a 23-13 win over Virginia on Saturday at Ford Stadium in Dallas, running its conference winning streak to 10 consecutive games and remaining unbeaten at home since joining the ACC in 2024.

Like many games in conference play this season, the Mustangs found themselves in a tight contest and had to pull away in the fourth quarter, but in the end, they were able to execute in critical areas to win the game.

“There’s three real keys to winning the game,” SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee explained postgame. “It’s who wins the run game, who wins the explosive [plays], and who wins the turnover battle. … At the end of the day, those things are why we won the game. We had a couple of penalties thta hurt us in some moments, and maybe we get a touchdown or a field goal, but overall, we did a good job of making ourselves hard to beat. We’re just not putting the game out of reach.”

SMU won the matchup in all three categories — outrushing the Cavaliers 158-121, coming up with eight explosive plays for 221 yards, and causing the game’s only turnover, which had been a struggle recently and an advantage for Virginia entering Saturday’s contest.

The victory builds on SMU’s recent conference record since transitioning to the ACC. In 2024, the Mustangs finished 8-0 in regular-season conference play, earning a spot in the ACC Championship Game and the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff field. SMU followed with a 6-2 conference record last season and now holds a 3-1 mark in league play this year.

All of SMU’s conference losses over the past three seasons have occurred on the road, while its home contests have historically ended in wider scoring margins than Saturday’s 10-point result.

“That’s not normal,” Lashlee added. “It’s normal for games to come down to the fourth quarter in conference play when you play the team that won the league last year in the regular season. We’re finding ways to win games late, and we’ve got to keep doing that. Eventually, it’ll break, and maybe everyone’s blood pressure will get a little lower. But at the end of the day, it’s all about survive and advance, and that’s what we’ve been able to do.”