Question: Your favorite Mustang 'moment'

[NavyCrimson]

1966 when Levias ran 100+ yds against Baylor (Cotton Bowl Year) when I went to the bathroom just before kickoff - needless to say, I missed it all!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How dumb can a 5th grader be??????

[EastStang]

The memory while I was at SMU was Louie Kelcher shutting down the #1 ranked Aggies and that same game, we screwed up the Aggie Band as they were performing their big block "T" formation. By the end of the number they were in a lopsided "y". Big high point there.

Afterward, the Cotton Bowl win over Pitt in 1984. Nasty, rainy, snowy, but we won.

[Casey]

Shutting down Pitt in the Cotton Bowl was sweet.
We were screwed out of that national championship.

[MrMustang1965]

Being named Mr. Mustang 1965 at Homecoming that year against the University of Texas Longhorns! I got my picture on the cover of The Mustang (alumni magazine) being kissed on the cheek by the very pretty Diane Cosper (SMU cheerleader) after being handed a football with the autographs of the team members (I still have it!) and then getting to ride in an open air convertible ('66 Ford Mustang!) to the Cotton Bowl and sitting on the sidelines with the cheerleaders and the football team as the Mustangs TROUNCED the Longhorns, 31-14! What a day!

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"Winning ain't everything...but it's a lot more fun than the alternative!" S.M.U. SPIRIT: IT STARTS NOW!

[This message has been edited by MrMustang1965 (edited 06-01-2003).]

[OldPony]

Lucky you. Diane was a lovely. Ah, 66 what a year. Football by the Cardiac Mustangs and beautiful women. A little El Toro's for a booster.

[MrMustang1965]

Old Pony: Any idea where Diane is these days? Another 'moment' for me was several years later at the Astro Bluebonnet Bowl game against O.U. During the final heart-stopping moments before the Mustangs won, I realized that Diane was sitting about two rows back behind me and my parents. She and I lead cheers in the stands to rally the Mustangs over the Sooners! What a game!

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"Winning ain't everything...but it's a lot more fun than the alternative!" S.M.U. SPIRIT: IT STARTS NOW!

[OldPony]

I haven't thought of Diane in years- until your post. I'll ask Mrs. OP. She sometimes knows these things. I'll get back to you if I learn anything. The OU-SMU Bluebonnet Bowl was a great memory. That year SMU lost 3 games. To No. 1 Ohio St., to No. 2, UT and No 3 Ark. The Ark game was 35-0 Ark going into the 4th quarter. It ended 35-29 with Ark gasping for breath. The Ponies beat a bunch of good schools including OU who was co-champ of the Big 8 and Auburn and ended up in the top 10 if memory serves me right.

[LA_Mustang]

I am so jealous of those stories about SMU back then. I cant imagine what it must have been like to have SMU competing at that level. Just reading about us beating OU in a bowl game and challenging top 5 teams makes my mind wonder??????? That really must have been great. Please keep telling.........

[PK]

That also explains why some of us cannot get too excited about any of our conference options these days. Part of the problem was that the size of the state schools continued to get bigger and bigger while the private schools were not in a position to grow like that. Thus eventially the number of the alumni for the state schools swelled well beyond that of the private schools altering the landscape of fan support in the state.

[PonyTales]

I disagree. I get excited every time the Ponies take the field.

[LA_Mustang]

I think PK is saying that he cannot get excited about all of the weak conference scenarios being tossed around these days (WAC, C-USA, North Texas, NMSU, blah, blah, blah) which I totally agree with. He never said that he doesn’t still get excited every time the Ponies take the field or the court.

[PK]

Exactly LA. I was also trying to point out why SMU, TCU, Rice and Baylor do not have the following they use to have. Baylor, because of their big xii affiliation (thanks to gov. Ann) still gets more media attention then the rest of us, but they don't really get that much more statewide support than the rest of us. Back in the 50's and 60's, people all over the state were picking their favorites in the SWC and back then the state schools didn't have that big of an advantage over the privates in the SWC for fan support.

[MrMustang1965]

LA Mustang: When time travel is finally invented, you'll get to experience it!!!!

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"Winning ain't everything...but it's a lot more fun than the alternative!" S.M.U. SPIRIT: IT STARTS NOW!

[Diehard Pony]

Nothing of reasonably recent vintage tops our dominance of the SWC during the 80's.

From 1981 to 1984 we won the SWC championship three out of four years (co-champ in 84), and finished second in the one year we did not win the title.

We had the longest undefeated streak in Div I (21 games covering 81-83)

We were not out of the national Top 20 for even a week during a 4+ year stretch, finishing the year as high as 2nd and 7th during that period.

For myself, I have missed very few games since SMU returning from the DP, but having witnessed what I just outlined above, as well as the Bluebonnet Bowl, et al, it is hard to swallow our current position in the college football world. I continue to harbor hopes (however small or unlikely they might be) that Bennett combined with a few breaks and time might get us back into the big time.

It doesn't hurt to dream.

[MrMustang1965]

Fellow Mustangs: my intent in starting this thread was to let some of the younger Mustangs know what it was like back in the 'good ol' days'...but not to have us become angry or upset about our current situation. Time and circumstances have a way of changing things. As my father used to say: Nothing is permanent except change. Our Mustangs will return to prominence! It will just take time and patience and commitment on our parts to make it happen! GO MUSTANGS! STAMPEDE!

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"Winning ain't everything...but it's a lot more fun than the alternative!" S.M.U. SPIRIT: IT STARTS NOW!