Fixing this program

[Charleston Pony]

Let's face it; SMU's football program is a long ways from being fixed. In 2004, we will rely heavily on 1st and 2nd year players at virtually every position. Not usually a recipe for success, unless those guys were top 100 national recruits.

I'm optimistic that we will be more competitive in the trenches, but that will depend on guys like Johnson, Turner, Boren, Peveto and Burley on the OL and Jones and Bonds on the DL. I still think it's more realistic to expect those guys to be competitive by 2005 instead of next year.

Same thing with the skill postions. Massey, Phillips, Chase, Pellerin, Warren, McGee, Dorsey, Turner, etc... may all have good careers at SMU, but can we expect much next year?

Dement has this bball program a lot closer to being a post season contender. With 4 starters returning next year and the addition of Derrick Roberts alone, I fully expect Dement's team to continue being able to compete with top 25 programs. Their inconsistency bothers me, but it's still early and I'm hopeful they will get on a roll late in the season unlike past years when we've folded down the stretch.

Those who blame our problems on Copeland don't seem to understand that he doesn't set the academic policies of this school, nor can he simply snap his fingers and have a sports management or physical education degree program established. If you want SMU to create a "Miami" model, you better convince the Trustees to free up some of the endowment to make it happen. With only 5% of our living alumni even participating in the Mustang Club and so pitiful few fans coming out to attend our games, it's not going to happen because of the support this program enjoys from it's students and alumni.

[fbdad]

I try to keep my mouth shut since the season is over but I'm sick and tired of hearing how the first and second year players are going to be our salvation. Don't be surprised if most don't produce..its a historical fact proven each year that Rivals,etc,rankings don't mean S*** other than maybe the top 25 ranked. Look for the core players,juniors and seniors to get this program going. They've got a lot invested, they've got the experience and they want to win.Sometimes getting your a** kicked on a regular basis makes you into a better fighter and a winner. Don't continue to sell these guys short.

[Charleston Pony]

my comments weren't meant to slight the upperclass players. They SHOULD be the leaders of any team and certainly Adami is the heart and sole of the DL, Hargis & Kieschnik are keys to the OL and hopefully, transfers like Munlin and Akinyemi will play major parts in turning this program around...BUT, make no mistake about it; we will rely HEAVILY on 1st and 2nd year players. That's the reality of our situation. Sorry if that upsets you. I wish we were a Jr & Sr laden team. Might see more wins on Saturdays. Care to name a position where we will start a SR who is backed up by a Jr?

[jjmccain]

To anyone on this board that thinks we need to schedule TT and OSU for attendance reasons because later on we will avg. 6,000 fans: YOU ARE WRONG.

Can you imagine playing Boise State, the last game of the year, with SMU sitting at 7-3? You don't think we could draw 25,000 fans to that game?

Perennial losing is why fans stay away. And starting off 0-4 every year is a great foundation for perennial losing.

SMU needs to schedule the absolute weakest teams we can find no matter what the effects are on attendance. Winning cures all.

And for those of you who don't think I know what Copeland has to deal with, think again. You don't even know who I am or how I am associated with SMU.

Who cares about the Miami model. Let's take a look at the Vanderbilt model (focus on basketball there) or the GT model or the Stanford model or the Tulane model or the Tulsa model or the .... the list goes on and on.

[RGV Pony]

I'd even be okay with the North Texas model

[OldPony]

If you were 7-3 going into a last gaqme with BSU and they were also good, you MIGHT draw 25,000. However, we only play 4 OOC games and you can't name 4 OOC D-1 opponents we could beat nor a conference team we can beat. If you want to play HS competition and win go ahead. I'll not listen to SMU play Plano nor care if they win. Same goes for Grambling or Sam Houston etc.

[GoRedGoBlue]

Originally posted by Stallion:
OSU didn't bring many fans?-are you color-blind too? Other than Tech and UT and Arkansas (in the Cotton Bowl), nobody has brought more.

CORRECTION: OSU did not bring AS MANY fans as they thought they would. 26k is not TTech. For an opening weekend with a **** team we would have had 23k

[Stallion]

you are nothing but a cheerleader for this program. There were no more than 12-14,000 SMU fans in that stadium against OSU. We bring 20,000 and its a sellout.

[RGV Pony]

I can tell you that if OSU had brought more fans, it would have been an even more pathetic showing for the SMU faithful. SMU needs to ramp up their marketing efforts and sell more season tickets. And, before anyone says they can't suck and do that at the same time, New Mexico did the same when they were winning two and three games a year...and sold more season tickets, ultimately won more games, and have since expanded their stadium to hold >40,000 (previously 30,300-close to Ford's capacity). What happened? They got more fan support, won more games, and now average >30k/game. Oh yeah, they play Texas State, N. Arizona, Weber St. etc.

[PlanoStang]

Originally posted by Vitale:
I couldn't disagree more.

First of all, it was Copeland who convinced Gerald Ford to raise his initial pledge of $5 million to $20 million. So yes, Ford's desire to want it done was vital, of course, but it was Copeland who convinced him how instrumental he could be in the acceleration of the project, and who convinced him of the stadium's value to the school.

To say Copeland "hasn't been pursued" is inaccurate. He was considered at North Carolina State and at Kansas, among others. Your statement isn't entirely inaccurate, since he withdrew his name from consideration once it was clear he wasn't going to be offered those jobs, so you're right that he hasn't been someone else's #1 target candidate. But he absolutely has drawn some interest from other programs, and I have heard quotes from more than one AD who called Copeland "one of the best ADs in the country." He was even mentioned as a possibility at Florida State a few years ago, but their level of interest was never clarified, since he said he wasn't interested.

And as for the need to replace him and/or Bennett next year: as a former offensive lineman, Copeland understands perhaps better than any other AD in the country that football success starts at the line of scrimmage, and that no matter how talented or how big and strong the Darrin Johnsons, Justin Borens, etc., are, they need time to mature before the success arrives on the field. Coach Bennett will be allowed the time to develop his guys, and the results will make all the naysayers retract their words.

Mr. Ford, not Gerald Ford to me, and probably you, went to Mr. Copeland, and said he wanted to help build a nice division I stadium on campus. I have seen the 20 million figure that he donated to build the stadium.

I have no clue where you came up the 5 million first offer, beacause there was NO way a new stadium was going to be financed with that gift. That would've been about 50 million short. Mr. Ford wanted SMU to preserve division I football in a stadium preferably named after him which would also give us some assets to mortgage on legal fees if the NCAA ever wants to level the DP against us again.

No major athletic assets (football stadium) + major football infractions = death penalty.
We were the ultimate SCAPEGOATS. See no death penalties levied since then. Why?

Anyway, if the first Ford offer actually was $5 mil, it didn't take a whole lot of prodding
on Copeland's part to get Mr. Ford to realize if he really wanted a stadium, preferably named after him on campus, he needed to donate a lot more, and arrange for his SMU buddies to make up the difference.

Also, maybe Copeland has made some short lists of AD jobs, and was actually interviewed for them. I don't remember him actually being "invited" to come rescue a different school.

Hmmmm, I suppose he's submitting his resume for them too. I would imagine coach Cavan, and a few years ago, Dave Smith made some short lists also.

If Bennett doesn't produce next year, and at most after the 2005 season, both coach, and AD need to
BEGONE.

[GoRedGoBlue]

Originally posted by Stallion:
you are nothing but a cheerleader for this program. There were no more than 12-14,000 SMU fans in that stadium against OSU. We bring 20,000 and its a sellout.

And you are a banned booster that got us into this situation in the first place.

Thanks! Asswipe

[GoRedGoBlue]

Originally posted by RGV Pony:
I can tell you that if OSU had brought more fans, it would have been an even more pathetic showing for the SMU faithful. SMU needs to ramp up their marketing efforts and sell more season tickets. And, before anyone says they can't suck and do that at the same time, New Mexico did the same when they were winning two and three games a year...and sold more season tickets, ultimately won more games, and have since expanded their stadium to hold >40,000 (previously 30,300-close to Ford's capacity). What happened? They got more fan support, won more games, and now average >30k/game. Oh yeah, they play Texas State, N. Arizona, Weber St. etc.

NOTE TO ALL THOSE WHO THINK THAT THE SMU ATHLETIC "MARKETING" DEPARTMENT NEEDS TO DO MORE:

Until we win, no one will come, period. Don't fool yourself into thinking that there can be at best marginal benefit to more 'promotional' campaigns or giveaways...

If someone gave you tickets to GIGLI, would you have gone?

I think not. Bad movie, poor attendance.

OSU did NOT bring as many fans as we would have liked, period.

The last time UT was in town, they didn't bring anyone either (though it was a rainy day at the ROTTEN Bowl, 25k in attendance).

[EastStang]

I'll go out on a limb, SMU won't be 7-3 next year and we have SJS, Nevada, Tulsa and La. Tech on the schedule at home. None of those teams will draw very large crowds. My estimate average of 10,000 (could be 12,000). In order to offset that number we need 50,000 fans for two other dates. That's why we need to drop OSU and put in another team which can draw. That's reality, not fiction.

[RGV Pony]

How is it that at the Cotton Bowl we consistently had 15, 17, 21, 23k at games-regardless of the competition (usually WAC) & now that we have a bigger, brighter, nicer stadium we have fewer fans?

[RGV Pony]

Oops! I should've proofread the post...take the word "bigger" out of my comments regarding Ford vs. Cotton Bowl