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SMU's FOOTBALL TEAM TO RECEIVE NATIONAL SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD

ARA's Award Honors SMUs Above-and-Beyond Behavior Toward 'Rival' Tulane

WHO/WHAT: SMU's football team will be recognized by the Awards & Recognition Association (ARA) with the first-ever ARA Sportsmanship Team Award as part of the Association's quest to recognize good sportsmanship. ARA annually recognizes a collegiate football player for good sportsmanship with its ARA Sportsmanship award. This is the first time a team has been singled out by the ARA. Spike Dykes, former Texas Tech coach and ARA sportsmanship award selection panel member will present the award to SMU Director of Athletics Steve Orsini.

WHY: SMU is being honored for its unprecedented hospitality toward Tulane University in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. "SMU opened more than its doors for rival team, Tulane," said Spike Dykes, a member of ARA's sportsmanship award selection committee. "They reinvented sportsmanship - from sharing their practice fields, to scheduling games and even shared recruiting files with Tulane. SMU allowed Tulane's football program to go on and thrive, that kind of behavior embodies sportsmanship on and off the field and deserves to be recognized."

WHERE: ARA Sportsmanship Team Award will be presented at the SMU v. UAB game

WHEN: Tuesday, October 31st between 1st and 2nd quarter. Kick off is 6:30 p.m. (Central Standard Time)

ABOUT THE ARA: The ARA's award selection committee, consisting of famed coaches like Brigham Young University's LaVell Edwards and Syracuse's [deleted] MacPherson, was created to recognize the positive in college football. For more information on the award, visit www.ara.org.

This is a great tribute, especially following the antics of some of the other schools this year. I thought the team might also be recognized for not running up the score against Tulane this year when we had the chance.

I agree with you. The hospitality last year is a lot bigger than what did or didn't happen on the field this year, but this is one time every fan in the stadium -- for both teams -- should give SMU a standing ovation.

PonyPride wrote:I agree with you. The hospitality last year is a lot bigger than what did or didn't happen on the field this year, but this is one time every fan in the stadium -- for both teams -- should give SMU a standing ovation.

Your 2000th post better rock.

Nobody made Coach Bennett welcome Tulane like he did last year. Coach Bennett is one man who understands as well as anyone that there are bigger things out there than football, and the way he and his staff opened their arms to Tulane was unbelievable. I, for one, WILL stand and cheer.

Wouldn't it be more exciting to have the current TT coach present this award to Bennett?

mrydel wrote:Wouldn't it be more exciting to have the current TT coach present this award to Bennett?

Wouldn't that be the definition of ironic - having Leach associated with anything to do with sportsmanship?

Badass. This program deserves this kind of recognition. Good for them.

Wow! We are good sports. I know this may sound crass(because it sure is intended to sound that way) but maybe we can win the 2006 Gracious Loser Award as well since we let them stay at our place and then let Tulane kick our arse. I would rather be a team that is universally loathed but win's 10 games a year consistently.

BrianTinBigD wrote:Wow! We are good sports. I know this may sound crass(because it sure is intended to sound that way) but maybe we can win the 2006 Gracious Loser Award as well since we let them stay at our place and then let Tulane kick our arse. I would rather be a team that is universally loathed but win's 10 games a year consistently.

What are you saying? That we should have just closed our doors to them? Maybe we could have actively sabotaged them as well, you know lock in the win. If this is the only way we can win, then this team is in worse shape than I thought.

All I am saying is that I am sick and tired of winning the Loveable Loser awards. I thought it was great the way we invited Tulane to our campus and to use our facilities. I shook the hands of many Tulane football players thanking me and SMU for opening our arms to them. I was not thrilled the way that we rolled over and played dead when we played them though. Just once since I graduated from SMU, I would like to win something like Coach of the Year, Winner of the Spare Tire Bowl, or The Look Who is Above .500 at the End of the Season Award.

Maybe it is just I am tired of losing and suffering from a little Nice Guys Finish Last attitude today. Oh yeah, can we go hang Half a Hundred on "Bama Lite" tonight.

There was a nice little blurb about SMU receiving this award in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette this morning. The only difference in the article this morning and all of the others I have seen is that the one here ends the article by stating the NCAA shut down the SMU football program in 1987-1988.

I still say we will know when SMU is back when they can write articles that do not mention the DP.

mrydel wrote:There was a nice little blurb about SMU receiving this award in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette this morning. The only difference in the article this morning and all of the others I have seen is that the one here ends the article by stating the NCAA shut down the SMU football program in 1987-1988.

I still say we will know when SMU is back when they can write articles that do not mention the DP.

They're still pissed about that three-game win streak in the 90s.

jtstang wrote:

mrydel wrote:There was a nice little blurb about SMU receiving this award in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette this morning. The only difference in the article this morning and all of the others I have seen is that the one here ends the article by stating the NCAA shut down the SMU football program in 1987-1988.

I still say we will know when SMU is back when they can write articles that do not mention the DP.

They're still pissed about that three-game win streak in the 90s.

We should start a running thread of days that have passed since Arkansas has refused to play us again.

What's happened to you guys? You used to do whatever it took to win!!!! Where's my old SMU? Now you guys are getting awards for sportsmanship???? Damn!