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PonyFans.com is proud to welcome, as a new columnist, Nate, who is 12 years old, in seventh grade, might want to be a sports writer and knows more about football than a lot of people who already make their living covering sports. Nate will preview each game throughout the season, looking at a key player, matchup or statistic that could prove relevant in each upcoming game … and he'll go out on a limb and pick the score of each game. Feel free to post comments and constructive criticism, and to give suggestions for upcoming games!

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Well, here we go. Another season within hand-shaking distance. Some have high hopes and some have no expectations in the new American Athletic Conference for the Ponies. They look good, but we’re missing some key players: Bryan Collins, Aaron (“Spike”) Davis, Ja’Gared Davis, Jordan Free, Kevin Grenier, Margus Hunt, Darius Johnson, Blake McJunkin, Torlan Pittman, Taylor Reed, Cameron Rogers, and Ryan Smith.

Nate says defensive end/kick blocking specialist Margus Hunt is one of the two toughest 2012 seniors for SMU to replace (photo by PonyFans.com).

Who will be the hardest to replace, you ask? You might say Darius or Ja’Gared, McJunkin or Pittman. I personally feel that it is a tie between Margus Hunt and Taylor Reed — Taylor because of his vocal leadership, Margus because of how he led with his play, not his voice. Of course, we know about Taylor, who started as a freshman in ’09, had 391 career tackles and was seventh in the NCAA as a sophomore with 145 tackles and is currently trying to make the Dallas Cowboys. Margus, as we all know had never played football before he came to SMU from Estonia. The 6-foot-8-inch, 277-pound beast set an NCAA record for blocked field goals with 10, and his 17 blocked kicks (he also blocked seven extra points) were just two short of the all-time NCAA record. He also seemed to come alive in bowl games: last year, he had an amazing game against Fresno State in the Hawaii Bowl, and he also had three sacks the year before in the Compass Bowl against Pitt. He was drafted in the second round — 53rd overall pick in the NFL Draft — by the Cincinnati Bengals and has been featured on HBO’s Hard Knocks.

But that’s all in the past. We have to focus on this year and here in a couple days, Week 1, Friday night, 7 p.m., national TV, at home, vs. Texas Tech.

Now here are some efficiencies, deficiencies, key players, and just little Texas Tech nuggets:

• Another thing is that TTU starts out fast and finishes slow: in 2011, the Red Raiders started 5-2, and finished 0-5; in 2012, they started 6-1 and finished 2-4.

• We know about new head coach Kliff Kingsbury, the former Texas Tech QB who was the offensive coordinator for Heisman winner Johnny Manziel last year at Texas A&M. Last year the Red Raiders averaged 37.5 points per game (20th in the country), but they also gave up 31.8 (91st).

• The Red Raiders have some worries in the running game ... on offense and defense. Tech has a thin, young offensive line that consists of three sophomores, a freshman and a junior, and the defense is experienced but can’t seem to stop the run (Tech gave up 175.3 rushing yards per game in 2012).

• June Jones and Hal Mumme with their Air Raid/Run-and-Shoot need to exploit Tech’s starting two cornerbacks who both have six or fewer starts under their belts.

• Watch out for 5-6 Jakeem Grant, as a kick returner and a receiver, and 6-5 TE/WR Jace Amaro, as these two players could have a major impact on the game result (they combined last year for 57 catches for 695 yards and seven receiving touchdowns). Also, watch out for freshman QB Davis Webb who will most likely get the start for the Red Raiders after Michael Brewer got injured. Webb reportedly had a GREAT spring.

• One more little nugget: SMU is 16-32 all-time versus TTU. The last time the Mustangs beat the Red Raiders was in the Pony Express days in 1986 at Texas Tech 13-7. The last time the two teams played was in 2010 at Texas Tech, with Tech winning in a tight one, 35-27, as SMU tried to tie the game with the last possession and couldn’t do it. Texas Tech is very beatable with its questions on the o-line and defense, though it’ll be tough.

Nate's Take: SMU 38 TTU 35