Mustangs_Maroons wrote:On the surface, our ranking seems a bit low, but honestly, as a neutral observer who first saw SMU on prime time television last Saturday night, one would conclude we have a very good offense (who was missing a starting receiver) and a defense with poor DBs and a special teams that looked to be the worst I have seen in a D1 team. We would only check one out of three areas. I’d consider us lucky to be ranked based on the eye test, and there’s no likely improvement on special teams. We have to outscore opponents, and after watching the game, I’m not sure we’re better than Cincinnati or Navy. We have to improve to truly have a chance to stay ranked by the end of the season.
From a DB perspective, Stephens has been solid, the rest though is a crap shoot, not great, but better than we field most years. Denbow, bless his heart, God knows he tries, but you could have an epic debate throughout the night over many drinks over whether he is more of a liability as a safety or as a punter. Either way, he has cost us.
Special teams could be better, if we are willing to bite the bullet and put our defensive starters and most athletic offensive players out on the field on kickoff coverage. You risk injury, but SMU's B team is just not athletic enough to cover kickoffs. For good reason, you like to put guys out there that don't normally play on kickoffs, but SMU cannot afford that luxury. Get the starters out there on kickoffs.