Junior kicker Collin Rogers bypassed some SMU football royalty Saturday at Louisville on his way to the top of the all-time scoring list (photo by SMU athletics).

"I think the next step for him: we’ve got to work on his celebration,” SMU football head coach Rhett Lashlee deadpanned when asked about junior kicker Collin Rogers. "Kickers aren’t used to celebrating. He likes to, (but) got to get him some swag on his celebrations.

Lashlee could afford to take a bit of a playful jab at his team’s placekicker. The coach was enjoying the glow of satisfaction and pride as he met the media after the Mustangs picked up a huge 34-27 road victory at Louisville, a win that lifted the Mustangs into the top 25 in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches, while knocking the Cardinals into the ranks of “others receiving votes.”

One player who played a key role in the victory, as he has all season, was Rogers, the junior from Prattville, Alabama. Rogers accounted for 10 points in the victory on four extra points and a pair of field goals, one of which was a career-long 55-yard bomb (that would have been good from 60 or more) with 17 seconds left in the first half and stretched the Mustangs’ lead to 24-13 at halftime.

It also gave Rogers 289 points in his SMU career — he finished the day with 293 — to move him to the top of the program’s all-time list of the most points scored, surprising three former SMU who shared the previous mark of 288: Xavier Jones, Eric Dickerson and Doak Walker.

Maybe the best part about the new mark for the Mustangs and their fans: Rogers still has a season and a half of eligibility remaining in his SMU career.

"(The) 55-yarder was big — right before half, I believe,” Lashlee said. "Eric Dickerson, Doak Walker and Xavier Jones — that’s some big-time company there. I mean, he’s been big for us this year. We’ve put him in some tough situations — I think that was another 50-yarder, the only one he missed. He’s been big for us, and that’s a weapon, offensively, when you can be aggressive, knowing that once you get past the (opponent’s) 40, you’re in scoring range. That’s a big deal in college football."

Rogers has been solid since he arrived and took over the placekicking job as a freshman, connecting on at least 74 percent of his attempts in each season. This year, his accuracy has reached 80 percent.

The 20 field goals he made as a sophomore are the most has hit in a season at SMU. So far in 2024, he already has 16, with six — at least — games remaining.

"I’m really proud of him,” Lashlee said. “He’s just halfway through his junior year, so hopefully he’s going to put some distance outhouse big names with that record, I think."