PFN:Amid skepticism, SMU continues to prove their legitimacy

[AfricanMustang]

Ranked for the first time since 1986, the SMU Mustangs have quietly climbed the AP Poll as offensive juggernauts.

Southern Methodist’s path to relevence has been paved with a few road blocks along the way.

The last time Southern Methodist was ranked, the year was 1986. They cracked the AP Top 25 for the first time in program history on Oct. 25, 1986, coming in at No. 18, to be precise. The following season, however, the school was hit with the death penalty, after the NCAA learned that the resurgent program was wrongfully paying some of the football players, dating back as early as the mid-1970’s. The ban effectively wiped out the Mustangs’ 1987-88 seasons.

Since returning from the death penalty in 1989, the once-formidable Southern Methodist Mustangs could only muster one winning season over the next two decades, going 6-5 in 1997. The program was eventually revitalized under legendary coach June Jones, who coached the team from 2008-2014, compiling three winning seasons over that span. The Mustangs were 36-43 under his leadership.

Fast forward to 2019, a year in which the surging Mustangs have taken the college football world by storm under second-year head coach Sonny Dykes. Armed with an explosive offense and an opportunistic defense, the modern-day Mustangs have won games in a multitude of ways in 2019, on their way to a 8-0 record. They currently come in at No. 15 on the AP Top 25 poll.

Despite asserting their dominance upon every team in their path, there are some who still aren’t sold on this year’s ‘Cinderella’ team.

I’ve identified some of the key offensive players that are responsible for the strong start, highlighting why they are equipped to stand tall in December.

https://www.profootballnetwork.com/sout ... macy-2019/

[PK]

NICE!

[The PonyGrad]

Not totally sure what they were trying to say here:

They cracked the AP Top 25 for the first time in program history on Oct. 25, 1986, coming in at No. 18, to be precise.

[mr. pony]

Not totally sure what they were trying to say here:

They cracked the AP Top 25 for the first time in program history on Oct. 25, 1986, coming in at No. 18, to be precise.

That’s patently incorrect.

[PonyLaw90]

Technically he’s correct. We cracked the top 25 that year. We blew it open in previous years.

[PonyKris89]

Technically, it may be correct. I believe that may have been the first year they had AP Top 25. Beforehand, it was always a Top 20 poll, which SMU spent a lot of time in the top 10 with the Pony Express.