part of the problem or part of the solution

[stangdad 40]

I'm not college educated so if my grammar is off forgive me .first i would like to start off by saying you are entitled to your opinion good bad or otherwise, you on this board have been loyal fans. and i dont blame you for being frustrated. but i want to give you something to think about.my son came to smu with the belief that he could help turn it around along with a lot of other kids just like him some of the finest young men you will ever meet.I sit in section 120 and as i stand on 3rd or 4th down to cheer on the defense i look around and am sad to say not many others are standing,except towards the end of the tcu game, isn't it something that we didn't tire at the end of that game.we cuss the players for quitting but as fans we quit on the team rather quickly.i havent been here as long as alot of you but i understand your frustration.i dont believe this team has or will ever quit and can guarantee my son will never quit on you the fan or his team.somebody on a post questioned there off season. well as my son got up at 2 am to eat another meal and than got up to go to work out almost every day this summer ,played last year with a mild concussionand tried to play[deep snapped] broken foot.This year has tried to play extremely sick durning a@m game, has pretty much given the last 4 years of his life to help this team. he was lucky enough to of won 2 state championships in high school,i can guarantee the loosing on him and his teammates and coaches is much tougher than you can imagine.it is his life to help turn this around,and he's not alone.so i ask you as students and fans do something. we're either all gonna be part of the problem or part of the solution.so if you feel its right not to come to a game than don't or if you feel something else needs to happen than give 100% to make it.I for one still beleive in this team and will give 100% to it.I will not quit on this team i will continue to support my son and his teammates.I will not leave early i will stand on 3rd ,4th down still believing i can make a difference i will be part of the solution not part of the problem and if you don't think that makes a difference than your just flat wrong.

[Nacho]

Good post.

What you are witnessing is pent up frustration dating back to 1987 (year of the DP). That's a pretty long time to be frustrated. What bothers me most is that in many ways I think we were a better and certainly a more fun team to watch in the early to mid-90s. Do not take anything personally.

[jtstang]

You are a good father. But you are not a lifelong SMU follower like some of us, so excuse us if your pleas not to "quit on this team" fall on deaf ears, because whether the team has "quit" or not, it is yet again clear that they do not possess the talent to compete at this level of college football. This has been a problem year after year since 1989, so don't take what I say as a specific criticism of your son or this team. We do appreciate that they try, but the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

[mrydel]

Justin has been one of the high points for the Mustangs this year. Please tell him to keep his head up and continue as he has. Hopefully the others will follow his lead. As a former player myself who had problems gaining size please let Justin know that when he reaches 40 he will have no problem putting on the weight he needs. Seriously, he is a great asset to the team and I look forward to watching his play the rest of the year. I will be there supporting him at the home games and listening on the away games. Be proud of your son. Also, please try and understand some of the frustration that has built up over the years. It is not directed at the players but rather at the administration that has hamstrung us for years.

[huntnfish]

We all support the kids and players on this SMU team, BUT JIM COPELAND MUST GO- we are a worse team now than we were in the early and mid 90's and JIM has been allowed to hire and fire without any consequences- the frustration is not at the kids but the administration

[EastStang]

I will be taking a 10 hour train ride to get to Huntington WV to see the Stangs play this weekend despite their uninspired play last weekend. I haven't and won't quit on the players. The problem for many of us is that this is the script we see every year - two steps back, one forward. I watched the A&M game on television 2000 miles away and was also sick to my stomach. But you could see our effort in that game and our exhaustion. Then when we ought to come out spitting nails against Tulane, we don't show up. You don't have losing seasons in 16 out of 17 years with four different head coaches without root systemic causes. Remember some of us were here when Jerry Levias was running wild; when Louie Kelcher was making 21 tackles in one game; when Dickerson and James were the Pony Express. And we were competing year in and year out with UT, A&M, Arkansas, Baylor, and Tech. Now, we can't play with any of them for four quarters. So, we respect the effort of the players, but we want to see some "W's" at the end of the season. For our players 110% is not enough to do that. They have to give 1000%. For many of us, the idea that we are not favored against Marshall is nauseating. They are a good team and a solid program, but they're not UT. So, I'll be cheering loudly throughout the game. But I want to see some green helmets on the carpet this Saturday.

[stangdad 40]

appreciate the nice remarks but save em i know its not personal. i beg to differ on the talent level but thats your opinion.I understand your bent up frustration do you think we choose to go their not knowing these things.you guys are real fans if you think it will make a better program by not coming dont come.I think it will be better if i get on my feet and cheer so i will.I teach my children never judge a man in the good times because its easy always judge a man in the bad times and you'll find out what kind of man he really is.

[jtstang]

I teach my children never judge a man in the good times because its easy always judge a man in the bad times and you'll find out what kind of man he really is.

Well I must be a pretty great man because I've been putting up with this BS for the last 16 years!!! Make the bad times stop somebody!!!!!

[Nacho]

I stay until the very end of every game. I have not left early in over 4 years and only rarely before that. I lost my voice at the TCU game. If they give us something to cheer about we can be pretty loud. The problem is that those moments don't come around very often. My wife and younger son now refuse to come to games. She asks me why I go. I tell her, "It's what I do." I sat with my older son who just graduated from SMU last spring. He gets very emotional. We care and I guess we always will. My younger son will go to school at Purdue next year. That is a different world compared to SMU. I looked at the Purdue schedule and couldn't believe who they were playing this year (and that's just their conference). I have gotten so used to losing to the lower rungs of d-1 that it is hard to relate. We used to be better than Purdue. I remember those days vividly. What has happended to this program is like watching a once very nice house slowly crumble before your eyes.

[SoCal_Pony]

Hey Stangdad,

I drove nearly 10 hours round-trip to see the SMU / Fresno State game last year. I met some friends of yours who went to the game to support your son. They were extremely nice people who stayed for the entire game. I was impressed.

You should be rightfully proud of your son...and remember, there are more important things in life than SMU football....like Justin getting his degree and using his contacts here to advance his career.

We here at Ponyfans are simply frustrated at 16 years of futility...

[that's great raplh]

i was raised a gator (and got an mba from michigan) and myold man likes to remind me how the gators used to suck - before Spurrier, the gators were just like the ponies

my love of the mustagns began when I was in college over 15yrs ago - and has grown deeper every season. and although i moved away from dallas, i listened to every internet broadcast there ever was and stayed to the very end - even when it was 3 am EST and we were losing horribly





we need to win - that is all there is to it - if TCU can do it, so can we!!!

[Charleston Pony]

StangDad: we on this board understand your frustration as this group, despite our complaining, represents about the most loyal SMU fans that remain. We aren't the ones who have quit and most of us will NEVER quit no matter how tough it gets. We all have a whole bunch of classmates and former classmates who have quit and I'm afraid your son has some teammates who are giving less than 100%. Not everyone is passionate enough about what they do, whether it's playing ball, supporting your team or doing your job every day. That's just fact. I wish we had a roster full of number 40s on this team. We've got some very talented guys and some very dedicated guys...but we clearly don't have enough of them. Just like we don't have enough hard core fans to help our teams muster more energy when the going gets tough. You hang in there, though. Maybe your enthusiasm will rub off on a pony fan or two.

[RGV Pony]

Mr. Rogers I agree with you. SMU is fortunate to have Justin Rogers line up at DE. I think it's unfortunate that the impression from the DMN is "..the players are (were) a step slow" when at the same time our DE is clearly busting his a** every play regardless of his physical condition at the time. People with the heart and soul like Justin DESERVE to win...similarly it kills me to know Craig Swann has to sit through every play of each and every loss. That's not to say other players don't deserve to win, but it's particularly painful when one knows there are 'good guys.'

I think most of us think similarly...we hold on in these times for whatever glimmer of hope there might be that at some point we'll look back at this as the time when it turned around. I meant what I said when I told you my two year old has no choice but to be a Pony, even if his mom wants him to be a Bayou Bengal. A lot of people on this board, however, I think are concerned as I am that in 16 years if the pendulum of w's and l's doesn't swing our way at least once in awhile there might not be a fan base by then. We all hope it's not true, and we're on the outside looking in, but I think by our nature of being men (mostly) it's in our nature to want to offer solutions to something perceived as broken or dysfunctional.

I'll end by saying I'm not sure it's a good idea for a HC to air a team's dirty laundry, like saying his team's a step slow because it's too hot. I think I'd prefer to hear we need to work harder, make plays, give 110%, etc.

[Hoop Fan]

everybody here has made good points. One thing I would say is that you never hear "boos" at Ford Stadium either. Other places are much more cruel when things go bad and a lot less patient. As a fan base, we have forgotten how to cheer though. Sad, but true. Most people who have suffered for awhile arent feeling much hope and thats the real problem. I didnt feel like cheering at the Tulane game. Some days I lose my voice before the end of the first half. We were so thoroughly outmatched from the beginning, it was obviously futile. I felt like screaming, but not cheering. Screaming at Mr. Turner, Mr Hunt, anybody who had power but allowed us to be so outmatched. Tulane should never come into our stadium and do that to SMU, never.

Mr. Rogers, unfortunately, the spark is going to have to come from the field at this point. I wish it could come from the stands, but thats not where it came from when other programs turned it around either. It always starts with a spark on the field and then the fans do what fans do, rally around the team. The TCU night showed how much people care, even though you cant play your rival every week.

[me@smu]

Mr. Rogers, I thank you for your note on this board and believe that your point is well deserved. I want to clarify however, a difference in opinion. Despite my annoyance at games like the Tulane one, I will continue to be there every home game cheering loud to support our players and their efforts. I will go with the knowledge that we most likely will lose but the athletes efforts deserve our support and recognition.
My anger instead is reserved for the coaches who do not seem to be preparing our players for the challenges they will face. Also I am angry at an AD who offers an extension to a coach with a 6-28 record. I am tired of our boys being put on the field underprepared by a poor coaching staff.
In short, I appreciate the sacrifices that your son has made for our alma mater but feel that the program has failed him and will continue to fail him and his peers until a rededication to winning takes place.