How huge is this season?

[RednBlue11]

I hope we win them all this season.

what is this??? hope????? from jt?????

clearly we need 4 games but i think we need to go .500 or better to make a significant push in recruiting...and i promise i will go to every home game, even on holidays, my senior year if we have a winning season this year.

[Stallion]

Wow! You promise IF ..... to go to every home game. True Commitment. A TCU fan the other week claimed on their board that he had heard from an SMU source that a computer run of Student Ticket cards at SMU had revealed that only 7 SMU Students had gone to every SMU home game last year. Probably not far off.

[kull]

Stallion, i find that disturbing. Hopefully wins will translate to a greater student showing quickly.

[Cadillac]

The problem is that all the eggs are in one basket at the most important position, QB. If Mitchell goes down the season is probably over which is one of the problems with this type of offense.

I disagree. The play of the Defense will have much more to do with the record than the play of the QB. With Smith in there, I believe he will play better than Bo did last year owing to the fact that he's had a year in the system whereas Bo was a total virgin. Last year Bo played well enough to win some of those games, but the defense wasn't able to keep up. If the defense can recover (and I know that's the BIG if of the off season), Smith could well lead the team to an improved record and the season would most certainly not be over. Hopefully we'll hang a ton of points on the 'jacks in week one and get Braden some playing time.

Now, injuries on the D-line on the other hand... all bets are off lol.

-CoS

[Blvd.Fan]

The problem is that all the eggs are in one basket at the most important position, QB. If Mitchell goes down the season is probably over which is one of the problems with this type of offense.

I disagree. The play of the Defense will have much more to do with the record than the play of the QB. With Smith in there, I believe he will play better than Bo did last year owing to the fact that he's had a year in the system whereas Bo was a total virgin. Last year Bo played well enough to win some of those games, but the defense wasn't able to keep up. If the defense can recover (and I know that's the BIG if of the off season), Smith could well lead the team to an improved record and the season would most certainly not be over. Hopefully we'll hang a ton of points on the 'jacks in week one and get Braden some playing time.

Now, injuries on the D-line on the other hand... all bets are off lol.

Have you been watching Spring practice tapes? Bo is way ahead of Braden, who will be the back-up this year.

-CoS

[Cadillac]

Have you been watching Spring practice tapes? Bo is way ahead of Braden, who will be the back-up this year.

I'm comparing Braden of this year to Bo of last year. It should go without saying that after a year of playing time Bo is way ahead of Braden. That doesn't change anything in my analysis.

-CoS

[RednBlue11]

Wow! You promise IF ..... to go to every home game. True Commitment. A TCU fan the other week claimed on their board that he had heard from an SMU source that a computer run of Student Ticket cards at SMU had revealed that only 7 SMU Students had gone to every SMU home game last year. Probably not far off.

let me clarify...i live in chicago so its not like i hang around for home games at thanksgiving, ill commit to staying, at my own expense mind you, for any home games that fall on holiday next year if what i said happens.

and thats not surprising about the attendance, its not like the alumni are showing a great example.

[Dr Death]

The problem is that all the eggs are in one basket at the most important position, QB. If Mitchell goes down the season is probably over which is one of the problems with this type of offense.

Why would you blame the Run & Shoot for a recruiting limitation? When at Hawaii JJ had Brennan with Tyler Graunke behind him. Graunke was serviceable and came through with one big win in 2007, the year they went 12-0. But if Brennan had been hurt for an extended period the Warriors would have been in serious trouble. That's a reflection of the small school mentality and not the scheme.

If JJ were coaching at USC I'm sure he'd have 5 Blue Chip QB's on the roster... as it is he has coached at two small school's... Hawaii was near the bottom of NCAA football when he took over there and SMU has been in the same boat.

As far as the scheme, you should know that one of the key selling points is that the QB gets rid of the ball quickly. This year, with BLM and the WR's knowing what they're doing, you should see a lot less sacks.

I understand the point your trying to make, but don't blame the scheme...

[Ralph]

You've got a lot of Texans on the roster who have played a lot of football throughout their lives. June Jones will coach this team to at least 6 wins this season and with a break or two SMU will win a few more. You've got to Believe. He has a vision and a plan for this team to succeed and he is well on his way in accomplishing step one-win 6 games and go to a bowl game. He played a lot of freshmen and sophomores his first season and saw what they could do on the field, and he knew what adjustments he needed to make in the Spring, Summer and Fall. That's what good coaching will do for a team. Hopefully as he stated, SMU will play in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl in December. Good luck. June has Cometh, you got to believe.

[RedTapestry]

Has anyone consulted Tiny Elvis on this matter?

[PonyKai]

Wow! You promise IF ..... to go to every home game. True Commitment. A TCU fan the other week claimed on their board that he had heard from an SMU source that a computer run of Student Ticket cards at SMU had revealed that only 7 SMU Students had gone to every SMU home game last year. Probably not far off.

Didn't we have a home game on Thanksgiving break weekend? That always puts a hurtin' on things. I want to say we also had a home game the same day as the Red River Shootout.

[VarsityShop]

I want to say we also had a home game the same day as the Red River Shootout.

Correct and they did that again to us this year.

[rich59]

In some offenses, (not as many as there used to be) on some plays the QB simply hands off to a running back and he and the offensive line do the rest. In the SMU offense the QB has to maybe make adjustments at the line of scrimmage, take the snap, read what the defense is doing and throw accurately to the proper receiver. It is probably the most QB dependent offense there is. If Mitchell was a pro, he probably would be making more money than anyone else on the team. Unless the backup QBs are better than I think they are, SMU is finished if Mitchell goes down. Many on this site talk about how bad the defense was last year. I believe there were at least 23 interceptions thrown by SMU and I don't know how many other turn overs. I will bet that a field position chart would show SMU getting the short end of that stick. If the defense seldom gets a breather because the offense does not control the ball, they are going to have a tough time. I am not saying the defense's poor showing was all the offense's fault but if the offense does not improve on ball control, turnovers and field position and the overall kicking game does not improve, the players that SMU has on defense are not going to look much better.

[RednBlue11]

This season will be HUGE...

I've hearing rumors that this fella will be on the sideline...

[Cadillac]

In some offenses, (not as many as there used to be) on some plays the QB simply hands off to a running back and he and the offensive line do the rest. In the SMU offense the QB has to maybe make adjustments at the line of scrimmage, take the snap, read what the defense is doing and throw accurately to the proper receiver. It is probably the most QB dependent offense there is. If Mitchell was a pro, he probably would be making more money than anyone else on the team. Unless the backup QBs are better than I think they are, SMU is finished if Mitchell goes down. Many on this site talk about how bad the defense was last year. I believe there were at least 23 interceptions thrown by SMU and I don't know how many other turn overs. I will bet that a field position chart would show SMU getting the short end of that stick. If the defense seldom gets a breather because the offense does not control the ball, they are going to have a tough time. I am not saying the defense's poor showing was all the offense's fault but if the offense does not improve on ball control, turnovers and field position and the overall kicking game does not improve, the players that SMU has on defense are not going to look much better.

I would be more inclined to agree with this if opponents scoring on turnovers accounted for more points in close games. But in the three close losses that i was at, they didn't. Granted, Houston and Tulsa have high octane offenses, but turnovers were not the keys to those games, or the Memphis game.

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree, but just for clarification I'll re-assert my position: If Smith has to come in for an Injured Mitchell, he will play better than Mitchel did last season, and will be capable of winning several games provided he gets support for the Defense (which is a tall order I know).

-CoS