Equestrian: Bad News - Schoolfield to TCU

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Shocking news, actually. TCU has named Haley Schoolfield director of their Equestrian program.

http://gofrogs.cstv.com/sports/w-equest/spec-rel/062013aaa.html

I'm not sure what to make of this one. It does put SMU in a bit of an tough position with no coach while adding a Western team at the same time and less than three months before the season starts.

I hope we have a good pool of applicants interested in the position and we are able to move forward quickly. It would be a shame to lose the momentum of the past three or four years.

[horsemanx]

Wow.

This is the first coach Hart has lost and had to replace, correct?

[fifty]

Give coach western team. Coach leaves. Oi vey.

[WildHorse]

I can't imagine anyone wanting to go to TCU unless they threw big money at her. I would find it even harder to imagine someone who has been at SMU wanting to go to TCU - even for big money.

[Mustangsabu]

We must remember she was at TCU before she came to us

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Obviously, as SMU fans, we are all conditioned to expect the worst.

Hopefully it was just something like money, although that actually would be kind of bad in its own way...

Maybe Haley got an offer she just had to take. Maybe Hart wouldn't match it. Maybe Hart didn't have the chance to match it. I'm sure we will never know.

I just hope it wasn't for promises not being met by the athletic department - either regarding resources (coach, infrastucture, etc.) for adding the Western team or with the new Equestrian center. Assuming SMU is holding up its own end of the deal the SMU Equestrian job is a pretty nice one at this point.

We should have a lot of interest in the job, and SMU has been going pretty big with its recent hires (Petrucelli, Brown). Of course, with Equestrian being an emerging sport you can't really go "big" the same way, right? I do believe the other poster is correct about this being Hart's first full interview/hire process.

Haley's star is probably pretty high right now so maybe she just felt the need to strike while the iron is hot if she got a huge offer. She gets a lot of the credit for making SMU a legitimate top Hunter Seat team, and she has overseen the development of some pretty impressive riders (Jordyn Pettersen, Emma Roberts, Schaefer Raposa) over the past three seasons.

The Western team has to have been part of the overall plan since we are the only major program that doesn't have a team, but if Schoolfield pushed hard to get the team added, and then as soon as she got it she bailed because her overall record might take a bit of a hit, then that's kind of uncool. No matter the circumstances, the timing is terrible for SMU.

I know Equestrian is an easy joke target, but this one is worth watching. How Hart handles filling the position and any details of Schoolfield's departure if they come out probably say at least a little bit about the future of SMU athletics.

[Hoofprint]

We must remember she was at TCU before she came to us

That's all the more reason you would think she would realize how much she had moved up in life by moving to SMU.

[EastStang]

Heck, we could probably find a good coach in the Metroplex and even find a good coach in our alumna ranks. I suspect TCU offered her more money and we simply decided that we could use those resources elsewhere.

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

I am hearing there is a good chance we will name Natalie Burton head coach and hire a Western assistant. Considering Burton has also played a major part in our stellar Hunter Seat rise since 2010 it's hard to argue she doesn't deserve the chance.

Other names I have heard who may be under consideration are Suzanne Flaig (Associate Head Coach at Oklahoma State), Lisa Helfer (Associate Head Coach at Auburn), Carol Gwin (Assistant Coach at South Carolina), and Megan Rossiter (Head Coach at South Dakota State).

Hopefully things will happen quickly. If we do go with Burton we will need to hire a Western coach quickly since we are probably only about two months from the start of the season...

Go Ponies!

[Mustangsabu]

I would agree. With this being our first year with a western program, which is bizarre for a Texas team, we need to hit the ground running.

[Roach]

And jumping.

[DanFreibergerForHeisman]

Cool. Rick Hart took an Equestrian question in today's edition of Straight From The Hart!

It sounds like he is taking the coaching search seriously which is good of course. Go Ponies!

http://www.smumustangs.com/genrel/070413aaa.html

Sarah (Dallas): Thank you for taking the time to connect with SMU fans each week! I was just wondering if we could have an update on the new equestrian center, the status of the new Western team, and - most importantly - the search for a new head coach. Pony Up!

Answer: My pleasure, Sarah! I enjoy interacting with individuals who share my passion for SMU and SMU Athletics. I have learned a lot about the sport of equestrian this year. The highlight has been getting to know our student-athletes and coaches and watching them compete. As far as facility updates go, the potential exists for a partnership with the city as part of the Trinity River Corridor Project, but I do not have specific details to share at this time. We have added a Western team, making us eligible to complete for both Western and English championships beginning this season.

As you correctly stated, the most important thing we are addressing with our equestrian program at the moment is a transition in leadership. Haley Schoolfield did a fantastic job building a nationally competitive program here on the Hilltop. She will be missed. A national search is underway to identify her replacement. We are confident that there will be great interest in this opportunity, and we will have a new head coach in place by the end of the summer.

[horsemanx]

Any news? The team reports this week, right?