Houston opens next year at OU?

[smupony94]

Any truth we aren't doing the full 10 deal with UNT?

[Charleston Pony]

I got an idea-keep natural rivals on schedule and recruit players that can beat them. Those are only game SMU fans give a damn about. Even scheduling Division 1AA has been a disaster

You don't recruit 100 top 100 players in 1 year. You have to build the talent level first. And SMU fans care about winning. Look at basketball - we don't play our "natural rivals" there at all. SMU fans don't show up to see us play Texas A&M, that stadium was 2/3 Aggies. Win and the fans and recruits will come and THEN you play the A&Ms and Baylors and OUs and beat them.

See TCU

And don't schedule from the freaking 1-AA Top 25. Play crappy 1-AA only. See Houston scheduling Tennessee Tech

And don't try to bring Moody & bball into our attendance issues for football. We had to remodel and shrink Moody by 2,500 seats...and still don't fill the place every game. The reality of our football situation is that we've had really [deleted] poor fan support for a long, long time and that has been yet another impediment to rebuilding this program.

[CalallenStang]

I got an idea-keep natural rivals on schedule and recruit players that can beat them. Those are only game SMU fans give a damn about. Even scheduling Division 1AA has been a disaster

You don't recruit 100 top 100 players in 1 year. You have to build the talent level first. And SMU fans care about winning. Look at basketball - we don't play our "natural rivals" there at all. SMU fans don't show up to see us play Texas A&M, that stadium was 2/3 Aggies. Win and the fans and recruits will come and THEN you play the A&Ms and Baylors and OUs and beat them.

See TCU

And don't schedule from the freaking 1-AA Top 25. Play crappy 1-AA only. See Houston scheduling Tennessee Tech

And don't try to bring Moody & bball into our attendance issues for football. We had to remodel and shrink Moody by 2,500 seats...and still don't fill the place every game. The reality of our football situation is that we've had really [deleted] poor fan support for a long, long time and that has been yet another impediment to rebuilding this program.

Real attendance for SMU basketball against a nobody 5 years ago - about 1,000 if we were lucky.

Real attendance for SMU basketball against a nobody this year - 4.5-5K.

Real attendance for SMU basketball against a decent program 5 years ago - 4.5-5K including many Memphis fans.

Real attendance for SMU basketball against a decent program this year - 7K and demand for more.

[CalallenStang]

The reality is that SMU fans don't show for football games against ANYONE so it's time to build wins, use WINS as the sales pitch in recruiting (because relationships get you in the door but you need to have a method to close the deal as well) and get the talent level higher.

[RGV Pony]

Yall should follow @EmptySeatsPics on Twitter

[CalallenStang]

And to say that we are more like Rice circa 2005 than TCU circa
1998...I can't formulate a response to an assertion that so blatantly disregards institution size and profile.

[Charleston Pony]

O.K. Cal...you miss my point. Maybe we should shrink Ford to about 25k and be excited if/when we start averaging 22-23k. Then we will be "big time". Now if we had a 45k seat bowl and could put 35k in the place playing Podunk U so we can pad our W-L record, that might be a different story.

[CalallenStang]

O.K. Cal...you miss my point. Maybe we should shrink Ford to about 25k and be excited if/when we start averaging 22-23k. Then we will be "big time". Now if we had a 45k seat bowl and could put 35k in the place playing Podunk U so we can pad our W-L record, that might be a different story.

I think there is something to be said for changing Ford to introduce both more premium seating areas and a more "big-time" feel. If we had built the stadium without an interior concourse and a small gap between the 100s and 200s it might feel a little more big time feeling even if it takes seats out (appearance of a two-deck stadium versus a single-deck stadium). Further we have no need for a lot of the seats in the Northeast and Northwest corners so why not have some sort of premium experience there.

[LA_Mustang]

I think the fact that Ford looks small time hurts the program. Hopefully, one day we get to the point where we can add a second deck. Cart before the horse, I know.

[gostangs]

His point is that our attendance exploded in basketball once we started winning. When we get some wins rolling in football it is easy to see Dallas adopting our team. Fact is it hasn't happened since 1987 in any meaningful way. Losing the first 4 and then limping across the 6 game bowl requirement does not get it done in this town.

If you don't think winning is going to eventually get our stadium full i don't know why you would hang in there as an SMU fan - if we can't do that we will never get off the JV team.

[CoxMustangFan]

Any truth we aren't doing the full 10 deal with UNT?

Yes please.

[LA_Mustang]

I was told Morris wants out of it.

[gostangs]

Have heard we have an opt out option that we will be taking.

[ALEX LIFESON]

Most of our fans have stopped showing up for the "big names", when we are 45 point underdogs and 1-5....they stay away.

[tristatecoog]

Vandy at home in 2015 instead of VA Tech.

2009 was at top 5 Ok State and hosted TX Tech.

Playing TCU and another top 25 is very tough but need a system (check) and good QB (Hicks or recruit?). Sometimes just takes some close wins, momentum and favorable schedule.