The Destruction of the SWC

[GoRedGoBlue]

I think Texas and A$M would have left the SWC at any rate. But why, when they did join the BIG 8 bringing TT and Baylor, was there no attempt to keep the SWC going. What league were Memphis, Tulsa, So. Miss. and Tulane in at that time? Was the name SWC sullied too badly? Just seems we could have created the league we are in now C-USA, back then and remained the SWC, with whatever NCAA perks we had at the time.

Again, at the time, TEXAS had sucked for quite some time...had they not sucked, then they wouldn't have bolted.

[GoRedGoBlue]

Let's not forget the good old FRED JACOBY not signing on board with the fledgling little network called ESPN who WANTED the SWC (who ended up settling for the BigEast)...

...instead deciding to stick with RAYCOM or whatever was the SWC Broadcast network at that time.

[SMU Football Blog]

I think Texas and A$M would have left the SWC at any rate. But why, when they did join the BIG 8 bringing TT and Baylor, was there no attempt to keep the SWC going. What league were Memphis, Tulsa, So. Miss. and Tulane in at that time? Was the name SWC sullied too badly? Just seems we could have created the league we are in now C-USA, back then and remained the SWC, with whatever NCAA perks we had at the time.

Again, at the time, TEXAS had sucked for quite some time...had they not sucked, then they wouldn't have bolted.

This is very confusing. You might as also blame A&M for 3 consecutive Cotton Bowl losses. The last year of the SWC was 1995. Texas' three bowls in six years does not equal "sucked for quite some time."

Texas
1995= 10-2-1 (Sugar Bowl)
1994= 8-4 (Sun Bowl)
1990= 10-2 (Cottn Bowl)

Let us also not say Texas "sucked" because, if Texas sucked, then I cannot imagine what act would describe SMU during that time. From 1989-1995, Texas had a 62% winning percentage against I-A teams; SMU's was 12% and during that time, Texas beat us by no fewer than 21 points during that span.

And again, I just don't see how Texas was the problem. For the last five years of the SWC, the same 4 teams are at the bottom ever year and the same four teams are on top. The lone exception is Rice managed to outperform Baylor in 1993 (though they played a much weaker schedule and lost the head to head). People forget that from 1990-1995, Baylor had one year below .500. SMU was not any good; Rice was not any good; TCU was not any good; Houston was not any good. That was OUR fault, not Texas'.

[EastStang]

There were so many factors involved. First, the SWC was not pro-active against the Big 12. Why hadn't overtures been made to OU, OSU, KU, and Nebraska after the SEC raided Arkansas, or for that matter, prior to the SEC run at Arkansas? Second, there were a lot of private schools, but the ACC has Duke, BC, WF, Miami and UVA might as well be. So, four private schools is not unprecedented. Third, the entire conference was on a down cycle due in part to NCAA punishments all over the conference, the TCU living death penalty, the A&M recruiting punishments and of course SMU's death penalty and subsequent over reaction. UT had a bad period as well. Fourth, the Court ruling against the NCAA that gave colleges their own television rights thus creating the BCS and changing the financial dynamics. Pye was brought in as a reformer, not to dis-similar from Fay Vincent with regard to MLB. He came with an ACC mentality that basketball was king and football was something you did in the fall. He instituted rules that were reform-minded and seemed plausible to an academic law school dean. Remember also, the football scandels threatened the entire University's survival and the Board of Trustees wanted assurance that these problems would not happen again. I remember when the DP was issued, many potential SMU students who were not athletes wondered if the school would disband, if funding would be cut off, if tuitions would go through the roof. The crazy rules instituted by Pye and approved by the Board helped to weather that storm. However, they were not abandoned soon enough when it was clear that they were clearly adversely affecting our competitiveness.

[HixsontoLeVias]

So, Stallion...coming off the Death Penalty, Pye was suppossed to build a state-of-the-art fball stadium and loosen the academic standards of the University?? If he would have done that, then I would have called him an idiot!!

[SMU Football Blog]

So, Stallion...coming off the Death Penalty, Pye was suppossed to build a state-of-the-art fball stadium and loosen the academic standards of the University?? If he would have done that, then I would have called him an idiot!!

I invite you to read the NCAA's final report; every DMN and Times Herald report from the era as well as A Payroll to Meet and tell me where there is any allegation of academic impropriety. Fore example, in A Payroll to Meet, the entire discussion of academics and SMU football consists of four sentences and at no time alleges that anyone ever did anything wrong or inconsistent with NCAA rules in place at the time.

When the "academic" reforms were being implemented in 1989-1990, SMU had a 91% acceptance rate; look it up. It was easier to get into SMU if you did not want to play football than if you did.

[jtstang]

I invite you to read the NCAA's final report; every DMN and Times Herald report from the era as well as A Payroll to Meet and tell me where there is any allegation of academic impropriety. Fore example, in A Payroll to Meet, the entire discussion of academics and SMU football consists of four sentences and at no time alleges that anyone ever did anything wrong or inconsistent with NCAA rules in place at the time.

When the "academic" reforms were being implemented in 1989-1990, SMU had a 91% acceptance rate; look it up. It was easier to get into SMU if you did not want to play football than if you did.

Look, Pye's kneejerk academic reaction may have been focused in the wrong place, but it was still a kneejerk reaction TO THE DEATH PENALTY. Those who argue that our current plight has no connection with the cheating of the '80s and the death penalty, but is solely the fault of Ken Pye, always conveniently overlook this point.

[SMU Football Blog]

Look, Pye's kneejerk academic reaction may have been focused in the wrong place, but it was still a kneejerk reaction TO THE DEATH PENALTY. Those who argue that our current plight has no connection with the cheating of the '80s and the death penalty, but is solely the fault of Ken Pye, always conveniently overlook this point.

I don't disagree. Except for one thing. With Pye, it wasn't a knee jerk reaction. He came here knowing what had already happened to football. He was taking advantage of an opportunity.

[jtstang]

I don't disagree. Except for one thing. With Pye, it wasn't a knee jerk reaction. He came here knowing what had already happened to football. He was taking advantage of an opportunity.

Well, I can't argue with that.

[EastStang]

The theory advanced by the Faculty Senate was that if you limited your admissions to the types of students normally admitted to SMU and got rid of athlete friendly majors, the schools academic reputation would be enhanced, and thus the more academically high calibre football players like those going to Stanford would come here. They missed the point of course that Stanford has athlete friendly majors which doesn't seem to hurt its reputation. Also, for those of us who were at SMU in the "glory days", there were a number of athletes that tried the patience of many a professor. This was their chance to get the potential bad students out of their hair. Also a number of professors believed that a poor student was more likely to be tempted to accept gratuities since he would probably never graduate. I believe that Pye thought that SMU's academic reputation was better than it was, and he didn't realize the realities of recruiting meant early not late contacts with recruits.

[SMU Football Blog]

The theory advanced by the Faculty Senate was that if you limited your admissions to the types of students normally admitted to SMU and got rid of athlete friendly majors, the schools academic reputation would be enhanced, and thus the more academically high calibre football players like those going to Stanford would come here. They missed the point of course that Stanford has athlete friendly majors which doesn't seem to hurt its reputation. Also, for those of us who were at SMU in the "glory days", there were a number of athletes that tried the patience of many a professor. This was their chance to get the potential bad students out of their hair. Also a number of professors believed that a poor student was more likely to be tempted to accept gratuities since he would probably never graduate. I believe that Pye thought that SMU's academic reputation was better than it was, and he didn't realize the realities of recruiting meant early not late contacts with recruits.

Which is all proof that Pye behaved foolishly. No doubt a smart man, but foolish. I would not hire the smartest person I know to run a hot dog stand-though bright, it is a field he has no experience in and knows nothing about. And the smartest person I know is smart enough to know his limitations and seek the advice of people with knowledge.

I refuse to believe there is any difference between the student athlete "trying the patience of a professor" and the dozens of Paris Hilton wanna-be's that populate the University as it is. The only differences are they are pretty to look at, their daddy's pay full tuition and they give nothing back to the University as opposed to the football players who at least show up on gameday. I made this exact same statement to an SMU psychology professor at a party last year and left her speechless.

[Stallion]

in the same vein remember that Kenneth Pye did not allow SMU to hire an Athletic Director for about a year after the DP-he took advantage of a complete vacuum of leadership and direction of people in the business of athletics.

[EastStang]

The only thing I will say in Pye's defense, is that there were voices on the Board of Trustees that wanted to shut down football entirely. I believe there was a lot of horse trading on the Board of Trustees level concerning a lot of this. Remember in 1988, the United Methodist Church reinserted itself into governance of SMU. They were embarrassed to have the church name tarnished. They would have been very happy to lose football entirely or have it de-emphasized like Georgetown did. They got what they wanted without saying that they actually did it. The pro-football types got to keep Division 1 football, but without the players needed to compete. As I said in the first post, there were a lot of things going around at the time, and in a vacuum, those who step forward get the power. When the Board of Governors disbanded, that created a vacuum that the faculty, Pye and the Trustees filled. Was Pye malicious? No. Was he naive? Maybe. Was the crisis that followed the scandel real or exaggerated? Exaggerated. But that is what hindsight gives us. At the time, I know there was just a lot of uncertainty which clearly impacted decisions made at the time.

[SMU Football Blog]

Again, really can't disagree with anything you've said, though for the lawyers in the thread, if malicious includes a reckless disregard, then I might say Pye acted maliciously. I think Dooby made this same argument.

Everything you said is basically true. The Church in its report recommended dropping to Division III. BTW, the Church's report is one of the few things I don't have a copy of in my "stack of stuff". If anybody has it, I'd love to get a copy of it.

[KnuckleStang]

I'm sure it didn't help when Dave Bliss went into Pye's office, RIGHT AFTER THE DP WAS HANDED DOWN, with mysterious "late-qualifying" test scores from Larry Johnson. "Mr. Pye! I don't understand it, but he can read! It's a Christmas Miracle!!!" That fat man must have sh*t blood. I would have.

I've always felt it's hard to blame Pye for the decisions he made at the time, given all the crap that was happening around him, and the intense shame brought on this university. During the Cavan era, I'd talk to friends of mine who went to Ivy league schools, and complain and joke how they had an easier time getting recruits on campus to visit than SMU does, and they'd say, "yeah, well, we never got the death penalty. If we did, we wouldn't be playing football today. Be thankful you're playing football at all, with the crap y'all did."