SMU's Bennett to receive contract extension

RE Tycoon · Post by **RE Tycoon** » Sun Jan 15, 2006 3:03 pm

Copeland strikes again. This is not a good move. I do like Bennett and I wish him all the success in the world, but why another extension? All this does is cost us big time if/when we win 2-3 games a year. There is no reason to give an extension when he just got one. Yeah, it will look like a bargain if SMU has three straight bowl season and we crash the BCS, but let's be honest, this is SMU and that will never happen. I hope I have to eat crow, but I doubt it.

KnuckleStang · Post by **KnuckleStang** » Sun Jan 15, 2006 3:54 pm

I'm no Bennett Hater, but how can they justify a raise?

Spaz · Post by **Spaz** » Sun Jan 15, 2006 4:02 pm

ARE YOU ALL INSANE?!?!??

How can you be singing this man's praises?? Is this entire board so starved for wins that you'll accept mediocrity?

My god, people. Most of our wins this season were due to flukes and lucky plays at the end of games. That's not a coaching decision, that's dumb luck and, at most, talent by the players.

Everytime this man "wins" a game, we pat him on the head and tell him good job, like he just won third place in the special olympics.

GIVE ME A BREAK! If Copeland thinks this is the road to bowl games for SMU he is sorely mistaken. If we win one championship or go to any bowl game with this guy, I'll eat my beanie. At best, we'll have to make up our own bowl game, like the froggies, and send ourselves there.

This is horrible news...

Corso · Post by **Corso** » Sun Jan 15, 2006 4:07 pm

Couldn't disagree with you more. I'm not saying this was needed (my hunch is that the one-year extension was done so he can tell recruits he'll be here for four years), but it's certainly not a bad thing at all. He inherited a team with minimal talent, and this year guided the Ponies to wins over four bowl-eligible teams. I'm not going to be satisfied until we're in a big bowl game, either, but the program has come miles since he arrived. The progress has been slower than any of us would have liked (thanks to the uneven playing field), but the progress is being made. I don't know that we needed to do this now, other than for recruiting purposes, but it's definitely not a bad move at all.
Congratulations, Coach.

RE Tycoon · Post by **RE Tycoon** » Sun Jan 15, 2006 5:46 pm

When we were looking for a coach the last time people were saying, "what coach in their right mind would take the SMU job?"... I say what coach wouldn't? Mediocrity is accepted and then rewarded, you make half a mil. a year and you're guaranteed that pay day for at least 5 years, if not more. Dement did just that and now Bennett is riding the gravy train. Copeland is the absolute worst Athletic director in the world. And I know you Copeland apologists are saying, "It's not his fault, it's the model", even if it is "the model", why should Copeland be rewarded for the absolute non competitiveness in the only two sports that matter. Sometimes you need to make a change for change sake. He can't retire soon enough for me, in fact I'm starting a fund to pay for his retirement home in Florida, it's not as if he hasn't bilked SMU enough over the last decade.

ALEX LIFESON · Post by **ALEX LIFESON** » Sun Jan 15, 2006 7:17 pm

Congratulations Phil! Now get this team in a bowl next season!!! Go Mustangs!

that's great raplh · Post by **that's great raplh** » Sun Jan 15, 2006 9:53 pm

y'all should go read the recruting board

read burley commits

Spaz · Post by **Spaz** » Sun Jan 15, 2006 10:55 pm

Ok 1) We have not seen VAST improvement. As I recall, Cavan did about this well, even when he knew he was finished. Did they hire him back and up his salary? NO

2) You can yell "RECUIRTMENT!" at me until you're blue in the face. A team that suck with great recruits still sucks.

With this model, every student with a D+ average should be getting scholarships...

MustangSally · Post by **MustangSally** » Sun Jan 15, 2006 11:45 pm

Cavan's win total went down every year (although I think he went 3 to 4 wins his last two years), and by the time he left, we had some of the most bare bottom Div 1a talent there is. In the past 3 years, Bennett has gone from 0 wins to 3 wins to 5 (less than 10 points away from 7) wins, and is pulling in more and more talent as we speak, look over at the recruitment board. Cavan ran off McCown, and what, 3-4 other QB's in his last 3 years here? That killed.

One more thing:

2000 SMU vs TCU (Cavan) 62-7 loss
2005 SMU vs TCU (Bennett) 21-10 win...and TCU won every other game to a top 15 ranking.

smupony94 · Post by **smupony94** » Mon Jan 16, 2006 12:30 am

MustangSally wrote:Cavan's win total went down every year (although I think he went 3 to 4 wins his last two years), and by the time he left, we had some of the most bare bottom Div 1a talent there is. In the past 3 years, Bennett has gone from 0 wins to 3 wins to 5 (less than 10 points away from 7) wins, and is pulling in more and more talent as we speak, look over at the recruitment board. Cavan ran off McCown, and what, 3-4 other QB's in his last 3 years here? That killed.

One more thing:

2000 SMU vs TCU (Cavan) 62-7 loss
2005 SMU vs TCU (Bennett) 21-10 win...and TCU won every other game to a top 15 ranking.

Hey MustangSally, according to USA Today, TCU finished #9 in their poll

PK · Post by PK » Mon Jan 16, 2006 12:57 am

smupony94 wrote:Hey MustangSally, according to USA Today, TCU finished #9 in their poll

Isn't that a "top 15" ranking"?

smupony94 · Post by **smupony94** » Mon Jan 16, 2006 1:05 am

PK wrote:
smupony94 wrote:Hey MustangSally, according to USA Today, TCU finished #9 in their poll
Isn't that a "top 15" ranking"?

Yeah, but my brother is a TCU troll lurker and #9 sounds so much better than top 15

Scoops · Post by **Scoops** » Mon Jan 16, 2006 1:09 am

Spaz wrote:Ok 1) We have not seen VAST improvement. As I recall, Cavan did about this well, even when he knew he was finished. Did they hire him back and up his salary? ....

No, because under Cavan -- whether it was his fault or not -- a team that had gotten to the cusp of bowl eligibility during the Rossley regime got worse and worse. He turned over a roster with a handful of D-IA players and a lot of non-players and Coach Bennett suffered. If Coach Bennett had gone to Kansas State, the next guy would have looked like a genius. There's more talent here now than there has been in 16 years, and the number of players with both talent and maturity is going up. I wish the season started tomorrow.

ponyboy · Post by **ponyboy** » Mon Jan 16, 2006 8:55 am

For the record, Cavan was a great recruiter for two full years -- arguably as good as Bennett -- until the Malin incident occurred. But there's no arguing that the cupboard was bare when Phil arrived.

This is a good show of support for Coach Bennett. I like it.

BUS · Post by **BUS** » Mon Jan 16, 2006 10:17 am

I like it. So the contract is extended another year. I am sure that there are some fine points that we do not know about. Give the man a raise, keep the recruits coming and lets go to a Bowl Game.

PB is a nice man, you do not hear stories about him or his players getting into trouble. The team is bigger, faster and smart. Hell, when he got here the bench had 25 guys the weighed 185. Again I point out that ONLY 7 players weighed 270 or more. ( I think Lake Highlands has 9 )

Way to go PB and staff. I hope we can find some extra money for the Asst. Coaches as well. It would help if they got another 10 to 20 a year.

Oh, The Morgan Campaign starts today.... Pony Up and lets work hard to put some hay in the barn :wink:

George