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It was a fun year. I savor the championship while simultaneously wondering
whether Stanford is going kick the you know what out of us. The Ponies
rarely make a Cali appearence. Just hope we can hold our own against
the Cardinal in 2024.

orguy wrote:It was a fun year. I savor the championship while simultaneously wondering
whether Stanford is going kick the you know what out of us. The Ponies
rarely make a Cali appearence. Just hope we can hold our own against
the Cardinal in 2024.

Stanford has been terrible for years and I understand is resisting NIL. Lots of scarier games on the schedule (including @ Duke).

leopold wrote:I wonder if there was a "didn't want to be here" mentality in the game. I hate it when people use that excuse, but I know it exists.

Credit to BC. They made it happen and Fenway is great. I wish they could have played there when I was living in Boston.

Sun Bowl...Bama...

Dukie wrote:Stanford has been terrible for years and I understand is resisting NIL. Lots of scarier games on the schedule (including @ Duke).

Did you watch the BC game? Stanford is recruiting well in the portal and rapidly
overcoming its NIL problems. They are always very physical. Just ask 2022 ND.
Not really worried about Duke with the loss of Elko.

orguy wrote:

Dukie wrote:Stanford has been terrible for years and I understand is resisting NIL. Lots of scarier games on the schedule (including @ Duke).

Did you watch the BC game? Stanford is recruiting well in the portal and rapidly
overcoming its NIL problems. They are always very physical. Just ask 2022 ND.
Not really worried about Duke with the loss of Elko.

Yes, I watched the Fenway Bowl, assuming that’s what you mean. Stanford didn’t play.

They are, however, so very physical and awesome that they’ve won 6 of their last 24 games. You literally picked their only semi-noteworthy win in their last two seasons. (And last year’s ND was so fearsome they lost to Marshall.)

Did Stanford suddenly make some brand new NIL commitment that is enabling them to do things like Duke is with bringing in UT QB Maalik Murphy? Great if so, for them and the ACC; but it’d a brand-new development—as in, they started this month, for the first time ever in the NIL era. Evidence?

Well, June did win the Bowl Game in Birmingham against an ACC team-Pitt.

In the first 3 quarters, we dominated everywhere but the scoreboard. That dropped TD pass was huge. Then our run D cratered in the 4th. So I don't think we should let 1 bad quarter, with our Freshman QB making his 2nd start, on the road, in horrible conditions, diminish this great season. It shouldn't matter to us whether we finish the season ranked. We know we have a great team that will be better next year. I am still very optimistic about next year. One bad quarter in a, frankly, meaningless bowl game will not change that.

highlander wrote:I We know we have a great team that will be better next year. I am still very optimistic about next year. One bad quarter in a, frankly, meaningless bowl game will not change that.

better next year? we have a lot of holes to fill and so far haven't added what we need. IIRC the portal closes today.
BTW- 'meaningless bowl game'? I suspect a lot of recruits watched that game and it could have impacted their decision on what school to attend. Plus those who watched it on TV were left unimpressed with our team etc. Not a good image.

Always more fun to win, and would have been nice to cap an amazing season with a W, but it has zero effect on next year’s success or failure. Players aren’t making decisions based on spare bowl games.

What did the mighty bowl wins with June do for SMU football besides give us fans some temporary pride.

Hop Sing wrote:Always more fun to win, and would have been nice to cap an amazing season with a W, but it has zero effect on next year’s success or failure. Players aren’t making decisions based on spare bowl games.

What did the mighty bowl wins with June do for SMU football besides give us fans some temporary pride.

True but those Hawaii Bowls sure were fun for SMU fans

Hop Sing wrote:What did the mighty bowl wins with June do for SMU football besides give us fans some temporary pride.

IIRC our applications to attend SMU skyrocketed.

That’s nice, but not football.

We have finally made it back to the big stage with the ACC invite, and next year is going to be EPIC!

Hop Sing wrote:Always more fun to win, and would have been nice to cap an amazing season with a W, but it has zero effect on next year’s success or failure. Players aren’t making decisions based on spare bowl games.

What did the mighty bowl wins with June do for SMU football besides give us fans some temporary pride.

Correct that is has zero effect on next year's success or failure, but it definitely took a ton away from this season. In effect we won a meaningless G5 championship from a depleted AAC. To me it means nothing since we didn't manage to beat anyone.

Hop Sing wrote:That’s nice, but not football.

We have finally made it back to the big stage with the ACC invite, and next year is going to be EPIC!

Based on our P5 results, I anticipate an epic catastrophe. 3-5 wins.

mustangxc wrote:Correct that is has zero effect on next year's success or failure, but it definitely took a ton away from this season. In effect we won a meaningless G5 championship from a depleted AAC. To me it means nothing since we didn't manage to beat anyone.

So you were not excited when we beat Tulane? Be honest. If you were, I don't see why that should change after we lose a meaningless bowl game under the aforementioned extremely adverse conditions.

Beating Tulane in New Orleans was an accomplishment and that was clearly this team's best win of the season. Beating Memphis in their home stadium was also impressive and a close 2nd. It's unfortunate that Stone went down when he did because this team was really starting to click. Losing in Ft Worth and not really competing in that game was a huge disappointment...far worse than losing that bowl game in miserable conditions

While I appreciate what June Jones did for us shortly after he came aboard, I don't miss him and will always remember him for somehow having managed to leave the program in worse shape than it was when he took over. Truly a roller coaster period when he was here.