Is SMU more incompetent or unlucky?

[Water Pony]

Patience, Grasshoppers

We are trending up and are justified in having greater confidence in the future than expressed in many of these posts.

We have earned serious consideration from recruits and the media. Despite modest enthusiasm by students, alums, Dallas fans, and some on Ponyfans, SMU is emerging from more than 30 years in a self-imposed desert.

Many thanks are due to donors and recent coaching staffs for generating greater optimism. Even the Administration is due credit by finding generous donors, who have committed more than $250m in the last decade to raise the profile of our athletic facilities. This last point may be an important factor if we are invited to a P5 Conference soon.

In spite of past history on the field, my optimism is not misplaced.

[Blvd_Stang]

Unless you know something we don't about conference re-alignment, we are most assuredly trending down.

Football is slightly above average, about to enter the new CUSA 2.0, with much of the Sonny momentum gone (and TCU now in the playoff). Under Sonny we were a Top 20 team and the stands were starting to fill up.

Basketball is outright horrible, about to enter the new CUSA 2.0, with all momentum from Larry and Jank 100% gone. Moody has gone from a top 10 arena to Doh era ghost town.

Sure donor / NIL / infrastructure wins are nice, but they don't mean [deleted] if we are playing against no name opponents in empty stadiums.

My expectation is for SMU to be in a power conference, competing for conference championships and tournament bids. That seems farther away today than it did 1-2 years ago.

[Insane_Pony_Posse]

My expectation is for SMU to be in a power conference, competing for conference championships and tournament bids. That seems farther away today than it did 1-2 years ago.

AGREED! Of course we are farther away, but then we have Water Pony saying "Patience, Grasshoppers".

We've been waiting over 30 years, but hey "have patience grasshopper"....lol

Just like we heard all these characters say basically the same thing: Cavan, Orsini, Bennett, June, LiL Ricky, Morris, Sonny.

It's always "have patience", "in the next couple of years we'll be competing for a conference title", "just wait until so and so has his own players", "P5 invite should come as soon as we____", now it's "just wait for the NIL to really kick in". Blah Blah Blah

Blvd Stang I am telling you it is less stress to just accept: "If SMU wins 7+ games a year, and every few years wins 9+ games, that's enough to make it fun. After-all don't most teams in college football win about 6-8 games a year"? Accepting who we really are is liberating. Go Mustangs! Beat BYU!

[mtrout]

Pac12 preview tonight. Arizona State vs SMU men's basketball in Moody.

[Charleston Pony]

Choose a bandwagon Team - live large - love the Pony …

Have to admit that both my kids having gone to Clemson gave me a "2nd team" that has been a nice bandwagon team to pull for in recent years. After leaving Dallas the year we got the death penalty and having lived in Durham (Duke's 4 consecutive Final Four years with Laettner & Hurley), OKC (OSU over OU in Bedlam series for OSU neighbors), Charleston (John Kresse NCAA Tourney bids annually at C of C) and Columbia, SC (where we adopted South Carolina before kids went to Clemson and now enjoy a rivalry where we can't lose) and now Charlotte (where at least I can see SMU play if we are relegated to the American 2.0), we've had plenty of "fall back" teams to root for when SMU hits our low points. Good survival tactic for a sports junkie, for sure.

[geezerdonk]

My expectation is for SMU to be in a power conference, competing for conference championships and tournament bids. That seems farther away today than it did 1-2 years ago.

If by farther away, you mean never in a million years, you are 100% right.

[Water Pony]

Thanks for confirming my point. I saw little future or reason for optimism, e.g. a path forward, a half dozen years ago. We are in a different place now. Read this post again in January

[hiphopfroggy]

I think SMU and Tulane have a shot at the ACC when they lose Clemson FSU UVA and UNC.
Love the new stadium addition, go dominate the AAC with Tulane and get that ACC invite.

[Blvd_Stang]

Blvd Stang I am telling you it is less stress to just accept: "If SMU wins 7+ games a year, and every few years wins 9+ games, that's enough to make it fun. After-all don't most teams in college football win about 6-8 games a year"? Accepting who we really are is liberating. Go Mustangs! Beat BYU!

I won't ever have fun cheering on a team with nothing on the line, playing crap teams.

I'll always enjoy homecoming, the boulevard and the memories that go along with that. And I'll always cherish my time at SMU. Quite honestly I am just tired. And I can't put anymore energy into taking the hopium.

[JasonB]

If Turner and other accepted a $100M donation for new facilities without being confident in our path to P5, it would be almost criminal.

Alternatively, it is probably reasonable to expect that we have a path to P5 because they accepted those donations.

Again, if you see RL attitude change, then that should show up all kinds of warning signs... but I think the alumni are putting pressure on leadership to push forward, and that is a big difference.

[Water Pony]

If Turner and other accepted a $100M donation for new facilities without being confident in our path to P5, it would be almost criminal.

Alternatively, it is probably reasonable to expect that we have a path to P5 because they accepted those donations.

Again, if you see RL attitude change, then that should show up all kinds of warning signs... but I think the alumni are putting pressure on leadership to push forward, and that is a big difference.

JasonB, I share your cautious optimism, based on recent events, and the higher expectations from the donors, who are writing checks to support P5 level facilities and our national brand.

[Mustangs_Maroons]

Thanks for confirming my point. I saw little future or reason for optimism, e.g. a path forward, a half dozen years ago. We are in a different place now. Read this post again in January

I hope for the future of SMU athletics, you know something most of the rest of us do not.

[SoCal_Pony]

Thanks for confirming my point. I saw little future or reason for optimism, e.g. a path forward, a half dozen years ago. We are in a different place now. Read this post again in January

I hope for the future of SMU athletics, you know something most of the rest of us do not.

Not really Maroons.

The PAC will most likely expand and we are definitely a candidate, everyone accepts that fact.

What makes me especially optimistic :

Plan to expand Ford - Optimism Level Low
$50M Weber Donation - Optimism Level Low to Moderate
$15 BOT Donation - Optimism Level Moderate
Actual Ground Breaking - Optimism Moderate to High

Posters saying they are now abandoning SMU athletics is crazy talk. The PAC will most likely finalize their media deal next month, i can wait.

Until then, there is always BB to followΓǪΓǪWomen’s BB, that is

[mustangxc]

I won't abandon SMU, but I will ignore SMU Men's Basketball this season for my personal health and happiness. As a Houston resident, I will cheer the #1 team in the nation this season.

[mtrout]

Somny just got walter camp national coach of the year.

What’s the chance Rick Hart gets a big atta boy for this and it ends up on his CV?