Open Letter to Rick Hart

[RyanSMU98]

You might want to add that you would appreciate his thoughts and comments. The letter makes many good points that are known by many but does not request a reply.

I noted that when I re-sent it to him. That's a very good point.

[Rebel10]

Let's face it, a 6 or 7 win season at SMU in the 6th year of a coach for some is like a 11 or 12 win season for some other schools. Most (not all) of the those that came to SMU after the DP just want to cling on to a bowl. Unfortunate just going to a meaningless bowl will not help us in the next realignment. But this is how some fans feel.

[Stallion]

Then we got the "SMU is a BCS Buster" but "Forget about A&M and TCU-Our Season Begins against Rutgers" crowd after missing SMU/Tech prediction by about 30 points

[Rebel10]

That's true. Granted we are a BCS team now so we would not be a BCS buster this year but I do remember those comments a couple of years ago about SMU being a BCS Buster this year. Now they are just jumping up and down over 6 or 7 wins. What happened to the expectations?

[GRGB]

I sent this to Hart this morning, and suggest that all of you who have constructive criticism voice it as well. Fair warning, it is long, so you might want to stop reading now, but I will also post whatever response I get out here as he is usually pretty good at responding:

Mr. Hart,

I've spent the past day or so reflecting on the beginning of our football season and tried to look at it through the lens of the future of the program. I tried to filter out the raw emotions of another frustrating, embarrassing loss on national television and focus on what that loss says about the current state of things and where we might be headed. Unfortunately, doing so has left me at a loss for positives. I see a program that claims to want to be in the upper echelon of college athletics. To that end, I see the efforts of coach Brown to build his basketball program to compete at that level. Then I am struck by coach Jones' either unwillingness or inability to do the same. With all due respect to coach Jones and sincerest appreciation for his efforts to bring the worst program in America to a level of respectability deemed unfathomable before his arrival, the fact remains that 6 years into his tenure we are stuck in neutral with no sign of a path ahead.

There are two undeniable facts, both of which you are well aware: the first is that the college athletic landscape continues to shift with an ever expanding separation between those who want to compete at the highest levels and those who either can't or don't. The second is that this separation, and the revenue and reputation that comes with it, is driven first and foremost by football. The window to stay at the top is closing, and for SMU to make the argument that it belongs at that level becomes increasingly hard to substantiate when year after year we play upper echelon conference teams and look completely unprepared. This speaks to recruiting, to game preparation, and ultimately execution. All of these things fall on the head coach on game day, and for all the effort and talk about engaging the fan base and improving the game day experience, the simple fact is that it is unreasonable to expect the casual fan to adopt a sub-par team as their own in a market filled with multiple ways to spend their entertainment dollars.

It also comes down to the true commitment of the university from President Turner, to the Board of Trustees, to the AD's office to ensure that all of our coaches have the resources they need to consistently compete at the highest levels. I know significant efforts have been made to address what in the past were glaring issues in the recruitment and retention of student athletes, but I would be curious if I were to ask coach Jones "what do you need to make that next leap?" what his answer might be and whether or not SMU has risen to the challenge. The optimist in me chooses to believe that the answer overall is yes, but Friday night's result lead me to question at exactly what level (or levels) have failures occurred and what is being done to rectify them. You have taken on a job that will be a unique opportunity to excel but one with a history of unnecessary challenges being thrown in your way. In many ways, you and coach Jones have that in common. I am not sure he has it in him at this point to overcome those challenges; I am hopeful that you will find the strength to take on those things that are holding the Mustangs back from taking their next big leap. Mediocrity is not a goal, and those who accept it as such are destined to destroy a legacy of excellence at SMU both on and off the field.

If you sent that with a check for $2m contingent on a new coach, then I think he'll read it

[RyanSMU98]

Rick responded to my note this evening. He did it within the text of the original note, so rather than cut and paste what is now an excessively long email, I will simply cut in the portions that include his responses (which are in bold). Not sure I agree with all of it, but here it is nonetheless:

the fact remains that 6 years into his tenure we are stuck in neutral with no sign of a path ahead. Building a football program and building a basketball program are different endeavors. This is especially true for small private universities in metropolitan locations. Our challenges are very similar to Miami, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Standford and others. Assembling the depth needed to compete on a national scale in football is a process. This is not an excuse or acceptance of meritocracy, just a fact.

the college athletic landscape continues to shift with an ever expanding separation between those who want to compete at the highest levels and those who either can't or don't. Don't think this is necessarily a matter of "want to."

This speaks to recruiting, to game preparation, and ultimately execution. I disagree that our inability to beat Big 12 and SEC programs is limited to these three factors. Too much to get into here.

The optimist in me chooses to believe that the answer overall is yes, but Friday night's result lead me to question at exactly what level (or levels) have failures occurred and what is being done to rectify them. The commitment and support is present, but it does not erase our history and the long period of irrelevance our program faced. Recovering from years of neglect is not an overnight process. Up until very recently, recruits did not associated SMU and college football. Developing the "resources needed to consistently compete at the highest levels" is becoming increasingly difficult given the disparity in conference revenue distribution. For the foreseeable future, we will have to compete without an equivalent amount of resources., at least financially.

[LHS81]

Rick responded to my note this evening. He did it within the text of the original note, so rather than cut and paste what is now an excessively long email, I will simply cut in the portions that include his responses (which are in bold). Not sure I agree with all of it, but here it is nonetheless:

the fact remains that 6 years into his tenure we are stuck in neutral with no sign of a path ahead. Building a football program and building a basketball program are different endeavors. This is especially true for small private universities in metropolitan locations. Our challenges are very similar to Miami, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Standford and others. Assembling the depth needed to compete on a national scale in football is a process. This is not an excuse or acceptance of meritocracy, just a fact.

the college athletic landscape continues to shift with an ever expanding separation between those who want to compete at the highest levels and those who either can't or don't. Don't think this is necessarily a matter of "want to."

This speaks to recruiting, to game preparation, and ultimately execution. I disagree that our inability to beat Big 12 and SEC programs is limited to these three factors. Too much to get into here.

The optimist in me chooses to believe that the answer overall is yes, but Friday night's result lead me to question at exactly what level (or levels) have failures occurred and what is being done to rectify them. The commitment and support is present, but it does not erase our history and the long period of irrelevance our program faced. Recovering from years of neglect is not an overnight process. Up until very recently, recruits did not associated SMU and college football. Developing the "resources needed to consistently compete at the highest levels" is becoming increasingly difficult given the disparity in conference revenue distribution. For the foreseeable future, we will have to compete without an equivalent amount of resources., at least financially.

His response is in BOLD, eh. Confirms what I thought. SMU is officially a basketball school

[SMU_Alumni11]

I kinda wish I didn't see the responses cause now I hate the guy even more. He won't even admit what the problem is even when we aren't even looking for his head. How many years does it or will it take to actually beat a school worth mentioning (besides TCU)? How long does it take to get into a conference that isn't laughed at or pitied... How is our school not embracing mediocrity when we consider a 31-30 won over an FCS team a good thing...

For the sake of the moderators, I won't cuss, but you can guess the words I would describe rich hart right now.

[mrydel]

I actually think he did a pretty good job considering he is not obligated to respond at all if he so desires. It is administrative speak and you cannot expect much more unless you have a giant check and a closed door.

[Arkpony]

Sad.

[ebrooks11]

I actually think he did a pretty good job considering he is not obligated to respond at all if he so desires. It is administrative speak and you cannot expect much more unless you have a giant check and a closed door.

Exactly. Did y'all really expect him to bash the head coach in an email response to a random fan.

[SMU_Alumni11]

I agree with you Myrdel but I expecte a little more "understanding" from him in a way where he understand and agrees that things should be better but that he will do everything in his power to get smu rolling. Not basically dismiss an upset fan as a chump (at least that's the tone I got from him)

[mustangxc]

This speaks to recruiting, to game preparation, and ultimately execution. I disagree that our inability to beat Big 12 and SEC programs is limited to these three factors. Too much to get into here.

Great letter and I also happen to agree with Hart's responses except for this one. I think he could have provided a little more depth and definitely have stated that he has spoken to Jones about recruiting and is in constant communication with him about it. Also stating that it is an issue that needs to be addressed going forward and will look into tweeking the staff so that the right people are in place to recruit against SMU's peer institutions in Texas (TCU, Baylor, Houston, Texas Tech, Rice).

[mrydel]

He is not going to openly discuss anything he talks to Jones about in private. How much clout do you think ponyfans have in this situation?

[1983 Cotton Bowl]

Tried to work my way through this entire thread, but then I turned 90 years old. A few observations:

1. The letter is one of the more articulate expressions of frustration that I've seen on this Board. I don't necessarily agree with all of it, but its well said.

2. Hart's responses might be frustrating to many, but I don't see anything he says that I can call bulls*** on. I think he's right. There is definitely a "traditional power" structure in football, both in conference affiliation (power 5 conferences) and then within the conferences themselves (Alabama, Ohio State, Texas, etc.). A few schools (typically giant state schools) have for the most part dominated this structure. That is no easy thing to break into for a small metro private because the powers-that-be have no interest in letting those types of schools in. I think what TCU has accomplished is not just admirable, its downright amazing. I can't think of any other school in an equivalent situation that has been able to build a football program that has succeeded at the highest level over the long term (flash-in-the-pan SMU of 1980-1984 doesn't count). But even so, they had to have huge breaks go their way in order to reach the Big-12 and it took 15 years of building. Among the have-nots of today's college football world, I think SMU is the best positioned to eventually pull off what TCU has accomplished. But its going to take a long time and a lot of patience.

3. Finally, I had to dredge up this line from Stallion's earlier post. So true, so true.

"Ah the Open Letter to AD

It must be September"