PonyFans.com

President Turner,

My name is ..., I am a Cox(BBA)/Dedman(econ) graduate class of 2002. I am writing in regards to the recent developments concerning admission of football recruits.

I recently read the DMN story regarding 2010 recruit Jeremy Hall, who although was cleared through the NCAA clearinghouse was not admitted to SMU. This is a very troubling development for our athletic department.

As a young alumni, 30 in September, I noticed the recent improvement and dedication to winning athletics at SMU. This was a fantastic change from my years on the hilltop when mediocrity was tolerated. I made a decision at this point to contribute as much to the school as the school was willing to contribute to continuing to be a "top 25" program in everything we do. I recently donated at the Horseshoe level to the SMU mustang club, and bought stadium club seats for the upcoming season. Living in Chicago, this is a major commitment on my behalf to make these games with my wife and 2 month old daughter. I made this contribution with the belief that the school was committed to continuing its recent success.

The recent development, concerning Jeremy Hall, Ricky Collins, and other recruits is quickly making me regret my decision to donate to any part of the University. I was told numerous times that A.D. Steve Orsini could get any recruit allowed through the NCAA clearinghouse into the program. This development helps us compete with schools both in our conference, the state of Texas and nationally. I still believe we do not have the academic resources needed for these players, in terms of tutors, athlete friendly majors, and ability to transfer hours, but that is for another discussion.

Our recent success on the football field last year is the immediate cause of an increase in admission applications to the University and an increase in donations to the school. I don't have to tell you that last years' Hawaii bowl increased applications 30% to the school and Mustang Club donations almost doubled. It is athletics that help both students and alumni develop pride in their university and want to continue interaction both personally and financially. Pride and camaraderie among alumni and students is something that has been lacking at SMU since the death penalty years and we finally saw a glimmer of that pride and camaraderie last year. These decisions that SMU has made, to not allow admission to certain athletes, will immediately quash this glimmer and not allow students and alumni to develop a sense of community. Essentially, you guys are going to kill the momentum from last year, which is all we have right now. It is not a coincidence that TCU gets 30% more applicants than SMU.

Ultimately, I just don't want SMU to lie to me. My donation and commitment to flying into home games is a direct result of the hiring of June Jones, the Hawaii Bowl, and the promise from the school that the University was serious in competing. My donation was also based on the promise that SMU would compete on equal footing with all teams in the NCAA. These current developments have made me question my donation and continuing commitment to SMU. If the school wants to be a second tier player in athletics, that is fine, but please do not continue to make empty promises to me and all the other donors that are extraordinarily upset with SMU's direction right now.

With the current path we are on SMU is destined to remain a no-name athletic school...which ultimately means less donations and revenue for the school.

Thank you for your time in advance as I know how busy you are, but I love SMU and want to continue getting better in all areas of the university including athletics.

Sincerely,
...

We will see if I get any response...

Thanks I found that and someone sent me his secr. e-mail as well...

There must be something more to the story. It just seems to me that Pres. Turner would do anything he could to ensure a legacy of improving SMU both academically (Caruth/Simmons) and athletically (JJ/WINNING SEASONS/Hawai'i Bowl).

I dont think turner understands...i dont think he understood ...and i fear he will remain baffled...he did not understand at old miss...his buddy at tulane understands...why would he stand up and say "yes"...polite applause . a smile, but no gut enthusiasm....for me, i dont really like the spanish art at the meadows museum...but i believe that if you want to have spanish art,the meadows museum is the hot game in town....for one, i prefer the western art in fort worth...i also like tcu's commitment....the fact is this young man apparently believed he had done his part...there may be more to this story,but that is not as important as an open and frank discussion about administrative support...dont expect jones or orsini to go against turner... our bb problem proved that the buck stopped at turner,not orsisi..i cant understand why the trustees have not gotten involved...i noticed a couple of years ago that gov. clements had been welcomed back as some sort of emeritus trustee...how about bringing back a bit of mustang mania and forget "pony up" which directly suggests giving up money...enough,i will not again address these issues...

As bad as I feel for the program, letting kids know the week they're supposed to report is cruel...unbelievable. Commitment to mediocrity!

I agree the timing of this is horrible, but without knowing the rest of the story, it's difficult to have an opinion on whether this decision was appropriate or contrary to SMU's athletics interest.

Charleston Pony wrote:... without knowing the rest of the story, it's difficult to have an opinion on whether this decision was appropriate or contrary to SMU's athletics interest.

I've had two main criticisms of SMU over the last 20 years or so since I graduated.
1. For an institution that essentially sells loyalty, they themselves display very little of it.
2. The AD does not understand marketing.

Along the lines of #2, I have always found it true in the corporate world that whenever there's a lack of information, people tend to fill in the blanks in the most unflattering way. Human nature I guess. So when something like this happens, you should always, always, always immediately address it -- at least in some fashion to the degree you can.

For example, if I were Turner, I'd put my vacation on hold for 15 minutes, get on the phone and issue a brief statement to the effect of "we regret the situation, we will reexamine the facts to ensure the right decision was made, and it if wasn't, we will correct the situation." And I'd also give a timeline for doing this. That would immediately mollify most of us, and at least make us feel that the university is listening to us and is willing to do the right thing if warranted.

This is NOT just about Hall, he is the "tip of the iceberg", June and Orsini have to spend WAY to much of their day, fighting Turner and the administration. Any success has come in spite of the administration, but, anytime a camera is present, or a large group is available to speak to, Turner races to the platform! Turner has been great for the university, but, he is a killer for the football program.

Stallion wrote:I"ve searched a legal background check and found nothing on the internet. In fact, its ironic he seems to have won one of the highest honors given Brenham athletes for academic good standing, leadership and athletic performance. Hard to figure this one out.


http://www.brenhambanner.com/articles/2 ... orts01.txt

I googled this

Jeremy Hall Brenham, Texas legal problems

and found Stallion's post on PF's

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&&sa=X&ei=l ... 993194b88d



Also keep in mind not that he has one.

Texas Juvenile Records
The Importance of Sealing
Many people mistakenly believe that Juvenile criminal files and records are generally confidential. This is partly true, but there are some important exceptions. A juvenile record can be viewed by police, sheriff's officers, prosecutors, probation officers, correctional officers, and other criminal and juvenile justice officials in this state and elsewhere. Also, the record may be available to employers, educational institutions, licensing agencies, and other organizations when the person applies for employment or educational programs

ALEX LIFESON wrote:This is NOT just about Hall, he is the "tip of the iceberg", June and Orsini have to spend WAY to much of their day, fighting Turner and the administration. Any success has come in spite of the administration, but, anytime a camera is present, or a large group is available to speak to, Turner races to the platform! Turner has been great for the university, but, he is a killer for the football program.

This goes to show you how bad it is. Here we have a complete athletic department shill, probably on the department's payroll, directly calling out Turner. This is big, and going to get ugly.

couch 'em wrote:

ALEX LIFESON wrote:This is NOT just about Hall, he is the "tip of the iceberg", June and Orsini have to spend WAY to much of their day, fighting Turner and the administration. Any success has come in spite of the administration, but, anytime a camera is present, or a large group is available to speak to, Turner races to the platform! Turner has been great for the university, but, he is a killer for the football program.

This goes to show you how bad it is. Here we have a complete athletic department shill, probably on the department's payroll, directly calling out Turner. This is big, and going to get ugly.

Sorry, but couch 'em is wrong.

Frankly I'm not too concerned with the loss of this kid, but the way he is being treated is total bs!!! I am truly outraged at how poorly this whole situation is being handled. There is no reason that this should ever happen this late unless the kid was a long-shot from the start, which he would have had to know. Otherwise SMU needs to do the right thing, even if it means lowering its admission standards for a middle of the road fb player. You just don't treat people that way. Turner, Jones, and Orsini should be embarrassed even if it is on Turner's behalf.

mustangxc wrote:Frankly I'm not too concerned with the loss of this kid, but the way he is being treated is total bs!!! I am truly outraged at how poorly this whole situation is being handled. There is no reason that this should ever happen this late unless the kid was a long-shot from the start, which he would have had to know. Otherwise SMU needs to do the right thing, even if it means lowering its admission standards for a middle of the road fb player. You just don't treat people that way. Turner, Jones, and Orsini should be embarrassed even if it is on Turner's behalf.

The timing of this event demonstrates that they believe they can treat him however they wish. Not only was the announcement made on a Friday with the hope that the problem would disappear over the weekend, but it was made over an American holiday weekend. For many, this was a three or even four day weekend. The timing is too perfect to be coincidental, and demonstrates that it was simply hoped that people would not care as they have in the past.

Your outrage proves Turner wrong.

I'm curious if any of the emailers to Turner's office (or elsewhere) received any responses other than the usual canned ones.