AP Story on the SWC little 4

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http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/vi ... hp?t=10898

TCU, Houston, Rice, SMU still recovering from SWC's fall
Posted: August 24, 2005

Associated Press

Associated Press Writer
DALLAS -- For former SMU star Craig James, one night best typifies the passion and tradition of the Southwest Conference.

The unbeaten Mustangs took national championship hopes into their last conference game of 1982 against an 8-1 Arkansas team coached by Lou Holtz. The game drew 65,000 fans to Texas Stadium -- more than the Dallas Cowboys did for any game that season -- and many were wearing Razorbacks colors.

"It was very intense," James said of the 17-17 tie, the only blemish on SMU's 11-0-1 season. "My brother was walking out of the tunnel and his shirt was all ripped up. I asked him what happened and he said, 'I got in a fight with some Arkansas fans."'

No conference game since has meant so much for SMU. The same is true for TCU, Houston and Rice, which were also left on the fringes of big-time football after the SWC's 81st and final season a decade ago. The conference dissolved when Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Baylor jumped to the Big 12.

Since then, the SWC's Forgotten Four have fallen from a stable, elite league into the vast midsection of Division I-A football, missing out on millions of dollars in bowl and television revenue while playing before smaller crowds in ever-changing conferences against faraway foes.

But all four have new hope this season.

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http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/vi ... hp?t=10898