We’re a top 10 G5 Program

[SMUstang]

54,51,35,20,52

True but you could have said 48,59,28,37,28 if you wanted to be more positive.

[footballdad]

54,51,35,20,52

True but you could have said 48,59,28,37,28 if you wanted to be more positive.

Not sure there is anything positive about 2-3, and giving up 50+ points 3x. Offense is cool, Morris improved the offense as well, big deal. Kane is an obvious upgrade from Malone, but the numbers don't lie. Oklahoma is fun to watch as well, but nobody takes them seriously as a Championship contender with that defense.

Hopefully Dykes can focus and get more playmakers on that side of the ball.

[SMUstang]

We all need to tap the brakes on our visions of being a top 25 program...
We have certainly come a long way from the dumpster fire Tiki left us with but we have a ways to go to be considered a top 25 program....
I would consider the following G5 programs to be in our peer group:
Memphis
UCF
CINCINNATI
UH
Navy
Boise State
FAU
SDSU
We have come a long way...we really have...no longer a laughingstock as Tiki left us but still a program that is trying to build confidence that comes with sustained success.
When the playoff goes to 8 teams and the G5 “winner”gets one slot we will see the P5 and the top
of the G5 come much closer. SMU will be one of those G5 programs that can compete for the playoff spot. ......But the top 10 P5 programs will separate more from the rest of the P5.
Eventually it’ll be the top 10 - 15 P5 programs and everybody else.

The Sagarin Ratings as of Dec. 23, 2019 have us number 8 including App State ahead of us but UH and SDSU and BYU behind us.

Memphis 83.55
UCF 81.31
Appalachian State 80.56
Navy 79.52
Boise State 78.66
Cincinnati 77.82
FAU 74.79
SMU 74.31
SDSU 71.83
BYU 70.24
UH 67.93
Perhaps Air Force at 77.85 and Louisiana at 74.09 should be in our peer group too.

[peruna81]

This is roughly the equivalent of being "one of the best hockey players in Ecuador".

Our aim is higher. Our team got a taste of that this year. Our bowl experience showed we have "some learnin' " left to do.

We'll find out this time next year if there was change in 2019, or if it was just an anomaly.

I vote the former.

[SMUstang]

I believe that Sonny Dykes is the real deal and that he is worthy of his new contract and will have us back next year. In his time at TCU he apparently picked up some pointers from Patterson.

[Pony81]

The point of the thread was to give some perspective as to our true position in CFB.... a good G5 team...which is certainly an improvement from years past when we were an awful G5 team...
Hopefully our defense can improve to the point that it makes our offense proud!

[mrydel]

Memphis was our whipping boy just a few short years ago. They turned their program around quickly. There is no reason we cannot do the same with the right leadership, which I am cautiously optimistic that we now have.

[Pony81]

I’m optimistic too...we finally have a coach who wants to be here, can attract a good staff, and has the ability to recruit HS and transfer players. As important, we finally have facilities that are upper tier against our conference mates....

I’m hopeful that sustained success - which I define as consistently winning 7-8 games per year - is upon us.

[SMUstang]

I remember Spike Dykes, he was a great coach, and I think that Sonny has a chance to be the best coach in SMU history.

[PonySnob]

Memphis was our whipping boy just a few short years ago. They turned their program around quickly. There is no reason we cannot do the same with the right leadership, which I am cautiously optimistic that we now have.

We did beat them badly twice, but they own the series.

[mtrout]

Does smu athletics have goals? Seems to me like we have far better goals for our fundraising efforts than our athletics programs.

[SMUstang]

How many of those Memphis victories were in the post death penalty period? SMU has been rebuilding it's football program since 1986, when it was wrecked. What other program has had to do that?

[SMUstang]

Does smu athletics have goals? Seems to me like we have far better goals for our fundraising efforts than our athletics programs.

Yes!

Getting the Dallas community to support us

Graduate students to be assets to their community

Win conference championships (there are other sports besides football)

We have built first class facilities for our students and athletes

just to name a few

And yes we are very good at fundraising for the school at large. Anything wrong with that?

[Charleston Pony]

Memphis was our whipping boy just a few short years ago. They turned their program around quickly. There is no reason we cannot do the same with the right leadership, which I am cautiously optimistic that we now have.

We did beat them badly twice, but they own the series.

SMU football has a lot of work to do against several of our larger public school conference foes

[mrydel]

Memphis was our whipping boy just a few short years ago. They turned their program around quickly. There is no reason we cannot do the same with the right leadership, which I am cautiously optimistic that we now have.

We did beat them badly twice, but they own the series.

Sure but you can see where we were dominating them for two years then they came close on the third and zoomed past us while we floundered. We need to make the same move they did under Fuente.