One part of PB that should stay..

[MrMustang1965]

Now I completely agree with that. He was a [deleted] bastard that cared more about his golf game and filling his Mangino sized tummy!!

Real classy to say something like that about a man who is battling abdominal cancer. So, if you wish Copeland ill will, you got your wish.

[perunapower]

Some of you messageboard coaches think that coaching is SOLELY what you see on Saturday (or whatever day we happen to play on). That is but a small fraction of what coaching entails. If you think otherwise, you have lost your mind.

[SMUer]

I really don't understand Bennett apologists...or applauding sub-mediocrity in general *sigh*...goofy smile, tough past...I only hope that I can get paid so much money and be granted so much levity for so long if I should f*ck up so often, blatantly or find myself in a situation for which I am completely incapable of excelling/being competent in...I'll call that my Phil Bennett bedtime prayer.

[QuikSStang]

as long as we don't pay for the wins like before and go bowling, our coach can be Oscar for all i care

[Col. Nathan R. Jessep]

Everyone agrees that PB is a class act. He is gone now. SO should find a coach that has integrity like PB.

SO will do the best that he can to find the best available replacement. Now, we as fans, have the responsibility of keeping our fans hopeful that things are changing for the better.

***********************************

LH95:
Over the next few days/weeks/months, you will begin to hear from the players (parents) about the alledged 'class' of PB.

I have heard from both players & their parents that PB was less than he presented himself to the Alumni & public.

Stay tuned... you will begin to understand why we could not recruit most family members of existing SMU players let alone quality recruits....

[LakeHighlands95]

Now I completely agree with that. He was a [deleted] bastard that cared more about his golf game and filling his Mangino sized tummy!!

Real classy to say something like that about a man who is battling abdominal cancer. So, if you wish Copeland ill will, you got your wish.

I do not wish the man ill will. I was unaware of his circumstances and I wish him well in his recovery.

[SWC2010]

What is classy about a coach and staff who are so concerned about finding their next jobs that they fail to get their team ready for a game in their present job?

The team was prepared for this game and played their [deleted] off. Neither the team nor the coaches quit and if you can't see that then you are mentally blind. Take your sour grapes elsewhere. There is no doubt in my mind that PB is not HC material, but you cannot accuse him of not trying. Exactly how many coaches having been fired would make the effort he and his staff made to keep on trying. Sure they are trying to find their next job...wouldn't you. He is gone let him go in peace.

Very well put. To this day, I bet he would treat all of us kindly, not like
Fran has been. I agree, let him go in peace.

One other thing about PB that I haven't seen mentioned, in public he always stood by his players and knew that the buck stopped with him. Contrast that to Leach at Tech that blamed his players for some of their problems during the past couple of years. Night and Day!

Phil has (behind the scenes) blamed many players. The fact that he walks out in front of the cameras & claims to take blame has nothing to do with his coaching manners on/off the field.

[couch 'em]

I hope he recovers fully and hope no further ill health or suffering on him.

That doesn't mean we can't criticize his abilities as AD, which seemed like he was coasting to retirement.

[LakeHighlands95]

Everyone agrees that PB is a class act. He is gone now. SO should find a coach that has integrity like PB.

SO will do the best that he can to find the best available replacement. Now, we as fans, have the responsibility of keeping our fans hopeful that things are changing for the better.

***********************************

LH95:
Over the next few days/weeks/months, you will begin to hear from the players (parents) about the alledged 'class' of PB.

I have heard from both players & their parents that PB was less than he presented himself to the Alumni & public.

Stay tuned... you will begin to understand why we could not recruit most family members of existing SMU players let alone quality recruits....

Colonel, I know Phil. I don't question his integrity because I know him. The are many people, just like you, that sit on the sidelines and watch. The keyword was watch. Notice, i didn't say participate.

The vast majority of letterman are upset for Phil that he could not push the players enough to win. It is frustrating now and it was frustrating when I played. My former teammates and I have nothing but respect for the man. I am in debt to him for the opportunities that he gave me. So there is no need for me to stay tuned other than to hope for a replacement that cares about the game and life the way he does.

[gostangs]

It is a total waste of time, and although the word class is the most overused word in sports - i would say classless to suggest we should all wait to hear later about all the bad stuff that has happened over the years. That sounds like some old lady with too much time on her hands that wants to stir up gossip that nobody cares about anyway.

Phil always seemed like a good man trying his best to turn this program around. It didn't work on his watch. I think SMU now has a better situation, a better AD and a better pile of money to get the next guy.

So lets let our AD do his job, and show some class ourselves by wishing PB well and hope for the best for him and his family.

[Bergermeister]

Everyone agrees that PB is a class act.

Whoa, not everyone.

[SMUMan02]

Help me out. What is classy about a coach who doesn't do his job? What is classy about someone who takes players with enough talent to compete in Conference USA and cannot win even a game? What is classy about a coach who runs across the field at the end of a game and physically confronts the other team's coach (TTech) because he was trying to score? What is classy about a coach who frequently loses his composure during a game and gets unsportsmanlike calls against him? What is classy about a coach who consistently gets out-coached by the opponent? Yes, today was a good effort. But were you at Ford last week? What is classy about a coach and staff who are so concerned about finding their next jobs that they fail to get their team ready for a game in their present job?

Phil Bennett may be a lot of things. But, classy is not one of them.

Phil Bennett does do his job. Just because he couldn't get the W's here, doesn't mean he wasn't doing his job. Class does not come from on-the-field performance. He ran across the field to confront Mike Leach, a guy who is known to run up the score, because he felt Leach wasn't winning with class. I wouldn't ever say Phil frequently gets unsportsmanlike penalties against him. He may get caught up in the game because he cares so much and let his emotions get the best of him, but it's not because he's classless.

Exactly. You can be classy without accomplishing your goals. He's not a bad guy. There have no scandals. He wasn't charging us $1200 a month so we could get inside injury information to use to place bets. There was a bad guy in College Station, but not on the Hilltop.

[H-E-B Mustang]

What is classy about a coach and staff who are so concerned about finding their next jobs that they fail to get their team ready for a game in their present job?

The team was prepared for this game and played their [deleted] off. Neither the team nor the coaches quit and if you can't see that then you are mentally blind. Take your sour grapes elsewhere. There is no doubt in my mind that PB is not HC material, but you cannot accuse him of not trying. Exactly how many coaches having been fired would make the effort he and his staff made to keep on trying. Sure they are trying to find their next job...wouldn't you. He is gone let him go in peace.

Yes, they played well against Memphis. Very well. I was proud of the players' effort. We should have won the game. A bad coaching decision near the end deprived the players and the fans of a deserved win. Against UCF, it was obvious that we weren't ready to play. Phil himself was quoted in the DMN as saying that his staff had seemed to be distracted and had not prepared the team for that game.

PK, good job at taking my quote out of context. There may be future for you at Fox News.

[mrydel]

What is classy about a coach and staff who are so concerned about finding their next jobs that they fail to get their team ready for a game in their present job?

The team was prepared for this game and played their [deleted] off. Neither the team nor the coaches quit and if you can't see that then you are mentally blind. Take your sour grapes elsewhere. There is no doubt in my mind that PB is not HC material, but you cannot accuse him of not trying. Exactly how many coaches having been fired would make the effort he and his staff made to keep on trying. Sure they are trying to find their next job...wouldn't you. He is gone let him go in peace.

Yes, they played well against Memphis. Very well. I was proud of the players' effort. We should have won the game. A bad coaching decision near the end deprived the players and the fans of a deserved win. Against UCF, it was obvious that we weren't ready to play. Phil himself was quoted in the DMN as saying that his staff had seemed to be distracted and had not prepared the team for that game.

PK, good job at taking my quote out of context. There may be future for you at Fox News.

Actually that was a direct quote from CNN.

[perunapower]

From Calvin Watkins on the DMN College Blog:

Sorry to see Phil Bennett get fired by SMU. Considering how things went this season, it's not surprising. But Bennett is a good guy, a real good guy. He basically reshaped the entire football program from nothing after the Mike Cavan debacle.

Was Bennett a good game-day coach? Nope.
Should he have recruited better in Dallas? Yes.
But this is a bottom-line business, and Bennett, who will be the first to tell you, understands that.

Bennett will get another job somewhere, as a defensive coordinator, or linebackers coach. He's a good coach but didn't get it done at SMU.

If he gets another chance at a head coaching job, he will do much better.