Missouri’s Smith Fired After 3-8 Season

Larry Smith, who followed two bowl seasons with two losing seasons, was fired after seven years as the Missouri football coach.

The former USC coach was dismissed Saturday night by Athletic Director Mike Alden after a 28-24 loss to Kansas State at Columbia, Mo., ending a 3-8 season.

Smith, who had three years to go on his contract, had a 33-46-1 record at Missouri. His record in 24 seasons is 143-126-7, with previous stops at Tulane, Arizona and USC.

Missouri lost all five games it played this year against top 25 teams. It defeated Oklahoma State and Baylor, the Big 12 Conference’s worst teams, and Division I-AA Western Illinois. Smith was 1-27 against top 25 teams while at Missouri.

“We believe that the University of Missouri’s athletics program, football being one part of the program, should be and can be one of the top three or four programs in this conference,” Alden said Sunday. “That’s what we’re looking to try and do.”

In a statement released by the school, Smith said he was given no reasons for the dismissal.

“I am very proud of what our program has accomplished these past seven years,” he said. “It appears that what counts to this administration is only winning and losing.”

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Maryland fired football Coach Ron Vanderlinden, one day after the team ended its fourth consecutive losing season.

Maryland’s 35-22 home loss to Georgia Tech on Saturday capped a 5-6 season, eliminated the team from bowl contention and ran Vanderlinden’s record with the Terrapins to 15-29.

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The graduation rate for football players at the nation’s major colleges dropped from 51% to 48%, the lowest since 1985, according to the latest NCAA study.

But overall, the graduation rate for all Division I athletes remained at 58%, the same as the last survey by the NCAA a year ago.

The data were for the athletes who entered college in 1993. The overall graduation rate of 58% remained 2% higher than the rate for the general student population.