Finally, grass is greener on Hilltop
Posted: Tue Oct 17, 2006 8:10 pmFinally, grass is greener on Hilltop
07:23 PM CDT on Tuesday, October 17, 2006
UNIVERSITY PARK – You didn't have to be a pessimist or any kind of Phil Bennett hater at all to figure out that a football coach's job was on the line this fall.
A new AD on campus ... an 8-35 record for Bennett before SMU finished 2005 with a three-game win streak ... a steadily decreasing profile for a college team trying to carve its niche in a big-city pro sports market.
Then Bennett did a funny thing. He pushed his chances of being dismissed one step further.
Having finally found a quarterback who could take this program somewhere in his fifth year as head coach, Bennett suspended Justin Willis for one game. And this was despite the fact that Bennett and his staff really weren't certain of what had taken place in an off-campus incident in which Willis hit another student.
SMU lost that game to UT-El Paso, 24-21, when backup Corey Slater threw as many interceptions (three) as Willis has all season.
Bennett, trying to do the right thing when other college coaches would have let it slide (there was no police report filed), might have cost his team a victory.
And that's something new AD Steve Orsini should consider when he's pondering the direction of the football program after this season. But he may not have to think too hard about Bennett's future after all.
The Mustangs, for the first time in Bennett's tenure, are a winning team. Their 3-2 record after beating Tulane was the first trip above the .500 mark that deep into a season since Mike Cavan managed a 6-5 record in 1997.
Now at 4-3 and headed to East Carolina, Bennett and Willis may have the Mustangs headed toward a bowl for the first time since Texas governors stopped helping SMU buy players.
(At least I don't suspect that Aggie Rick Perry is involved).
As much as Bennett is thankful for and encouraged by the turnaround, he made clear he wanted no talk of bowls from his players at Tuesday's press luncheon.
"We've got to stay ahead of this curve," he said. "[Being] 4-3 is not good enough for us. We need to be a team that plays with great passion every week, and I think we will."
It's easier for the Mustangs to take the field with passion and confidence with Willis in the huddle. It's not often that a redshirt freshman saves a veteran coach's job. But that's precisely what the Denton Ryan product is doing.
He leads Conference USA in passing efficiency. Nationally, Willis ranks in the top 10. Since opening with two defeats, Willis has led SMU to a 4-0 record with a 72 percent completion rate, 15 touchdowns and two interceptions.
Had Bennett let Willis play in El Paso, the Mustangs likely would be 5-2 and that much closer to a bowl.
"I thought we did the right thing," Bennett said. "It's important to me our guys see this as a privilege, not a right."
To that end, Bennett has suspended two more Mustangs for this week's game – including wide receiver Zack Sledge, who caught Willis' first touchdown pass Saturday against Marshall. Sledge and holder Duke Hasson were involved in an incident outside a bar that, reading reports, doesn't rank near the top of the college athletes' screw-up list.
But they were arrested, and Bennett wants to keep driving home that message.
Meanwhile, Willis is driving this team places it has never been. Or at least not since coming back from the NCAA's death penalty in 1989.
"We thought there was going to be a learning curve," Bennett said. "And against [Texas] Tech, he tried to run too fast. Against North Texas, he missed throws. Then the game slowed down for him.
"He's still a little reckless with the ball, and that scares me to death. But he has the ability to make plays. Justin does what good quarterbacks do. He makes good players better."
When is the last time anyone could honestly sit back and say that about an SMU quarterback?
Lance McIlhenny?
Things are changing at SMU. The coach is holding his players accountable even while, finally, helping them find success.
SMU's may not be the biggest football story in this town. But for a change, it's a positive story today with a chance for even better things tomorrow.
07:23 PM CDT on Tuesday, October 17, 2006
UNIVERSITY PARK – You didn't have to be a pessimist or any kind of Phil Bennett hater at all to figure out that a football coach's job was on the line this fall.
A new AD on campus ... an 8-35 record for Bennett before SMU finished 2005 with a three-game win streak ... a steadily decreasing profile for a college team trying to carve its niche in a big-city pro sports market.
Then Bennett did a funny thing. He pushed his chances of being dismissed one step further.
Having finally found a quarterback who could take this program somewhere in his fifth year as head coach, Bennett suspended Justin Willis for one game. And this was despite the fact that Bennett and his staff really weren't certain of what had taken place in an off-campus incident in which Willis hit another student.
SMU lost that game to UT-El Paso, 24-21, when backup Corey Slater threw as many interceptions (three) as Willis has all season.
Bennett, trying to do the right thing when other college coaches would have let it slide (there was no police report filed), might have cost his team a victory.
And that's something new AD Steve Orsini should consider when he's pondering the direction of the football program after this season. But he may not have to think too hard about Bennett's future after all.
The Mustangs, for the first time in Bennett's tenure, are a winning team. Their 3-2 record after beating Tulane was the first trip above the .500 mark that deep into a season since Mike Cavan managed a 6-5 record in 1997.
Now at 4-3 and headed to East Carolina, Bennett and Willis may have the Mustangs headed toward a bowl for the first time since Texas governors stopped helping SMU buy players.
(At least I don't suspect that Aggie Rick Perry is involved).
As much as Bennett is thankful for and encouraged by the turnaround, he made clear he wanted no talk of bowls from his players at Tuesday's press luncheon.
"We've got to stay ahead of this curve," he said. "[Being] 4-3 is not good enough for us. We need to be a team that plays with great passion every week, and I think we will."
It's easier for the Mustangs to take the field with passion and confidence with Willis in the huddle. It's not often that a redshirt freshman saves a veteran coach's job. But that's precisely what the Denton Ryan product is doing.
He leads Conference USA in passing efficiency. Nationally, Willis ranks in the top 10. Since opening with two defeats, Willis has led SMU to a 4-0 record with a 72 percent completion rate, 15 touchdowns and two interceptions.
Had Bennett let Willis play in El Paso, the Mustangs likely would be 5-2 and that much closer to a bowl.
"I thought we did the right thing," Bennett said. "It's important to me our guys see this as a privilege, not a right."
To that end, Bennett has suspended two more Mustangs for this week's game – including wide receiver Zack Sledge, who caught Willis' first touchdown pass Saturday against Marshall. Sledge and holder Duke Hasson were involved in an incident outside a bar that, reading reports, doesn't rank near the top of the college athletes' screw-up list.
But they were arrested, and Bennett wants to keep driving home that message.
Meanwhile, Willis is driving this team places it has never been. Or at least not since coming back from the NCAA's death penalty in 1989.
"We thought there was going to be a learning curve," Bennett said. "And against [Texas] Tech, he tried to run too fast. Against North Texas, he missed throws. Then the game slowed down for him.
"He's still a little reckless with the ball, and that scares me to death. But he has the ability to make plays. Justin does what good quarterbacks do. He makes good players better."
When is the last time anyone could honestly sit back and say that about an SMU quarterback?
Lance McIlhenny?
Things are changing at SMU. The coach is holding his players accountable even while, finally, helping them find success.
SMU's may not be the biggest football story in this town. But for a change, it's a positive story today with a chance for even better things tomorrow.
...at least for one day.