Just returned from the Spring Game...

[Stallion]

whose doing the assuming? We've had bad line play for years-you're assuming that will change-an assumption. I don't care if the line play is good or bad-SMU's future and/or Bennett's eventual tenure will be told in 2006-2007 and Phillips will be the QB that determines whether this program turns the corner. Unless Eckert or Romo are somehow hurt and get a redshirt/hardship year they won't be around in 2006. None of the freshmen QBs will have ANY experience in 2006. Bennett will be making the coaching mistake of his life if he comes into 2006 without an experienced Chris Phillips.Again, the future rides on Chris Phillip's shoulders. Of course, Bennett is a guy that thinks Tate Wallis was a QB.

[AusTxPony]

Of course, Bennett is a guy that thinks Tate Wallis was a QB.
OUCH! (I guess ya haf ta dance with the date what brung ya). The fellow who replaced him (whose name I can't remember) didn't pan out much better. Does anyone know what happened to them after leaving SMU?

[The PonyGrad]

whose doing the assuming? We've had bad line play for years-you're assuming that will change-an assumption. I don't care if the line play is good or bad-SMU's future and/or Bennett's eventual tenure will be told in 2006-2007 and Phillips will be the QB that determines whether this program turns the corner. Unless Eckert or Romo are somehow hurt and get a redshirt/hardship year they won't be around in 2006. None of the freshmen QBs will have ANY experience in 2006. Bennett will be making the coaching mistake of his life if he comes into 2006 without an experienced Chris Phillips.Again, the future rides on Chris Phillip's shoulders. Of course, Bennett is a guy that thinks Tate Wallis was a QB.

I do assume the line will be better this season with the experience coming back. How good? Not sure.

OK, you have a point if you do not care what we do this season. If everything depends on 06 then, perhaps you play Phillips now. I doubt the fans and people on this board will give Bennett a pass because he is developing the team for 06.

Tate Wallis, that was an easy one to throw out. I did not like the fact that he stuck with Wallis so long but there were not the same kind of choices that he has now.

06 depends on having a complete, deep and mature team and not as much on the back of any one player. Finally we will have many 5th year seniors and a complete program. 06 will be determined by how Bennett has put the program together and not just one player or position.

[Hoss]

.... Of course, Coach Bennett is a guy that thinks Tate Wallis was a QB.

No, Coach Bennett was the guy who lost Page and Luker and suddenly faced the prospect of entering his first season as a head coach with two freshman QBs, and simply concluded that Wallis was less unprepared than Bartel. He has said countless times that because of the inexperience at the position that year, he will continue to recruit QBs so that he never gets put in that position again. That's exactly why he signed two this year, even though he has three coming back in the fall. Personally, I never heard him touting Tate as a great QB. But I do respect the fact he never said "our QBs can't play, so we can't win." Instead, he looked at a pair of unprepared QBs and made the best of it. If he'd had a veteran returning QB on his roster, or an incoming JUCO, I'd guess that Wallis and Bartel never would have seen the field that year. And that's not a statement about their levels of ability, just a commentary about Coach Bennett's view on playing inexperienced QBs. He doesn't like to do it any more than any other coach, but when that's all you have to work with, you do it.

[davidsmu94]

So lets be honest. Bartel's real problem was that he had absolutely nobody to throw the ball too. Comet was ok, but wasn't he the tallest receiver we had. Not that I thought Bartel was all that great, but I'd see the receivers we had and WOW.

JMHO

[Charleston Pony]

anyone who thinks this team has "arrived" is really overly optimistic. The way I see it, we still have only ONE senior in the OL & DL two deep. That's a problem, although at least the two deep won't be dominated by Frosh & RS Frosh as it has been for years. We are still young at the skill positions and I just want to see one of our QBs step up and show that he can lead this team to scoring more than 20 pts per game! At least we finished strong last year (admittedly against some of the weaker WAC programs in Tulsa and Nevada), but I'm still thinking this program is a year away from really being competitive.

[Dement-ed]

Yes, we're still young, and the claims that the "corner has been turned" are premature. However, I feel better than ever in my stance that the "corner is BEING turned." In the past, I had hope. IF this happens, IF that happens, we'd get better. Well, now we have young linemen who are lineman-sized, not guys we have to wait three years on (thereby trading experience for size and strength). We now have some depth at quarterback and running back. We now have some cornerbacks with size and speed (Lindley, Jones, Makinde, Fitzgerald), not to mention Humphrey on the other side. We now have alterations to the list of classes that can translate from junior colleges, etc.

So now, we haven't arrived yet. But the plane has located the airport, and just needs to be guided in. In the past, it was something I hoped for. Now it's something that's legitimately doable.

[MrMustang1965]

I look forward to ya'll's comments after the Baylor, TCU and A$M games. We'll be 2-1 going into our first season in C-USA. GO MUSTANGS!

[Silk]

I'd give anything for you to be right. I don't even care which two we beat (although, living in Fort Worth, nothing would give me more of a strut at work than if we knock off the damn frogs.)