SMU Head Coach Chad Morris (photo by PonyFans.com).

A vital part of running any team is the acquisition of talent. Each year, whether at the helm of a college team signing high school seniors or a professional team that drafts players, coaches and personnel executives talk about the balancing act between taking the proverbial “best players available” as opposed to targeting — and perhaps reaching for —players to help supplement specific position groups identified as areas of need.

When SMU football head coach Chad Morris met the media Wednesday to discuss his second recruiting class as the Mustangs’ head coach, he discussed what he hopes is an ideal combination of the two in a class that he proudly pointed out is made up entirely of players from Texas.

The Mustangs were markedly improved in 2015 from the previous season, but with a 2-10 record, it would be irresponsible, at best, to suggest an infusion of talent was not needed.

The Mustangs’ offense last year scored an average of 27.8 points per game, a decent total that represented a significant improvement over the 11.1 points the 2014 team averaged. But Morris has his sights set higher in the scoring department, and has acknowledged several times that offensive improvement starts on the offensive line, where he inked four new blockers — Plano’s Kadarius “KD” Smith, Frisco Wakeland’s Jacob Todora, San Angelo Central’s Braxton Webb and Houston Christian’s Harrison Barton. Smith and Webb are expected to start their college careers at tackle, while Barton and Todora figure to compete at center or guard.

Denton Ryan’s Ken McLaurin is one of three defensive tackles who signed Wednesday with the Mustangs (photo by Denton ISD).

The running game found two talented freshmen a year ago in Xavier Jones and Braeden West, and Morris and his staff hope they can repeat the double dip with the addition of a pair of runners who previously had been committed to Power 5 schools: Van’s Aphonso Thomas had been committed to Nebraska before reversing fields and signing and enrolling a semester early at SMU, and Manvel’s Jordan Carmouche was a coveted linebacker prospect who ditched an earlier commitment to Arkansas and ended up signing with the Ponies as a running back. Morris said the addition of Carmouche is notable because of the size and power he adds to the running game. Jones and West lead a stable of able SMU runners, but both trailed quarterback Matt Davis for the team rushing lead: Davis paced the Mustangs’ ground game with 63.4 rushing yards per game, while Jones led the running backs with 52.8 yards per game and West added 27.2.

Since his arrival at SMU, Morris has made no secret of the fact that he wants to collect bigger receivers who can run, and began that process last year with the addition of redshirt freshman Courtland Sutton, as well as true freshmen Kevin Thomas, Xavier Castille and Alex Honey. This year, the Mustangs added two more wideouts who stand taller than six feet in Waco La Vega’s Brandon Benson and Lutheran South Academy’s Josh Shelmire. In addition to their size, they both have very good speed — Shelmire has been clocked below 4.4 — which should allow the Mustang quarterbacks to find more open targets. Include new tight ends Corey Rau and Ryan Becker, and the Mustangs will go into the 2016 season with close to 20 receivers and tight ends who are at least 5-11 (the height listed for Castille and 2015 redshirt James Proché).

Collin Rock is a high school quarterback who will move over to play safety when he arrives at SMU (photo by Cypress ISD).

One of the really intriguing members of the 2016 class is quarterback/athlete Ke’Mon Freeman, a last-day addition to the class from Liberty-Eylau High School in Texarkana. Freeman is an outstanding athlete who is thought by some to be too short (5-11) to play the position. But he had an enormously successful season, putting up nearly 5,200 yards of total offense and showing equal effectiveness as a passer and runner. Morris acknowledged that Freeman is an exceptional and versatile athlete, but confirmed that Freeman will begin his career as a quarterback.

The desire for big players with speed clearly carried over to the defense. Morris made no bones about the fact that there was an emphasis on starting the process of reshaping a defense that surrendered 45.7 points and 502.2 yards per game in 2015. He also said it’s very likely that next year’s class also will lean toward an emphasis on the defensive side of the line of scrimmage.

The defensive line got bigger — in number and in size. SMU signed three defensive tackles: Trinity Valley Community College’s J.T. Williams, Denton Ryan’s Ken McLaurin and Patrick Jones of Arlington Heights High School in Fort Worth, a trio that averages nearly 290 pounds per man. The front line also got a boost from two-time district defensive player of the year Demerick Gary, a 6-3, 245-pounder from Kimball High School in Dallas, and Mansfield Timberview’s Michael Badejo, a heavily recruited defensive end/linebacker hybrid who Morris said will contribute in 2016.

Linebackers coach Archie McDaniel cleaned up on the recruiting trail — he originated the recruitment of at least five of the new Mustangs — and was rewarded with a quartet of tall, fast linebackers in Blake Carlisle, Noah Spears, Jordan Ward and Myles Duke. Ward and Duke are transplanted linebackers — Ward was a safety and Duke was a high school quarterback and receiver — but both are very intelligent players and exceptional athletes who drew raves from Morris.

Linebacker Jordan Ward heads to SMU from Kemper High School, which also produced former SMU safety Chris Banjo (photo by Kemper High School).

The SMU defense had just 10 interceptions last year, eight of which came from a secondary which needs reinforcements: cornerback David Johnson and safeties Shakiel Randolph and Troy Castle are gone via graduation. Cornerbacks Horace Richardson and Kevin Johnson and safety Rodney Clemons had their 2015 seasons cut short by injuries, and Cedric Lancaster and Deion Sanders moved over from the offense during the 2015 season.

To bolster the ranks, the Mustangs welcomed three safeties — Cedar Hill’s Michael (“M.J.”) Clark, Sugar Land George Ranch’s Mikial Onu and Cypress Ranch’s — and cornerbacks Eric Sutton of Cedar Hill and Christian Davis of Midway High School in Waco.

Three of the incoming freshmen have former high school teammates already on the SMU roster: Davis played at Midway with quarterback Ben Hicks, Badejo played with wide receiver Myron Gailliard, and Spears played with twin defensive ends Delontae and Michael Scott.

Every coach in the country brags on Signing Day about his class, and with good reason: the addition of coveted players always inspires optimism. As Morris pointed out at the end of his press conference, a class can not be accurately evaluated for two or three years, at which point players who fell short of, met or exceeded expectations can be clearly identified.

But at first glance, the 2016 class looks like one that very well could include several building blocks for a significantly improved SMU team.

Running Backs

Wide Receivers

Tight Ends

Offensive Linemen

Defensive Linemen

Linebackers

Defensive Backs

Athletes