23 years of observations ...
Posted: Sun Sep 16, 2012 7:42 pm
I don't post just to post like some, but with season tickets for 23 years plus numerous away games attended, Mustang Club trips to games, extra checks sent for funding programs when asked, bad football from Ownby, to Cotton Bowl, back to Ford, and now yesterday's disgrace here's a few observations:
1. Tom Rossley still best post DP coach - he did more with harder academic requirements, playing tougher competition then we are now, terrible facilities, etc. His undermatched teams played top 10 A & M team to tie in Alamodome, and tough at A & M. Yes, his record was bad at times but his teams were better prepared and at least there was a plan to what he was trying to do. Also, when Cavan won it was Rossley's guys primarily who got him there.
2. Jones will not get us much further then we are now, which is not much. We are in year 5 with seemingly no long term plan, no sense of urgency, no real pressure to win. Lack of accountability translates to the players. It is time for Jones to go.
3. We are at the point now losing long term supporters like me, not just the younger group of fans we have lost last 20 years. Where I sit there are 3 former players in my section who played for us in 70s and 80s. All of them discussed they are sick of Jones' show and throwing good money after bad. All discussed may be last year they will renew tickets unless something done. What is happening now is the core group of us who has stuck thru this mess of SMU football for the last years will finally say enough is enough.
4. NO 5 or 10 year plan to get ship on right track. Jones clearly won't be here in 5 years, and his lack of enthusiasm for the school, its traditions, the "regular" alumni is evident. School needs to think about replacement soon that has 5 or 10 year vision to take us to greener pastures.
5. New hot shot WR coach has not improved our production yet, and actually more dropped balls and out of position players.
6. UTSA is in much better shape than we are -- yes, go ahead and laugh and I know to those in north Texas think they have the monopoly on football but from football standpoint they are 3 and 0 this year, winning easily this weekend in the Georgia dome against Bill Curry's team, and are playing mostly freshman. They won 4 games last year in their first season and have Arizona, Tech, other big school in upcoming schedules. They run multiple offense (not run and shoot) and have already beat us out for 2 recruits. Larry Coker is constantly out in the community, does his live radio show, tells all how great UTSA is and actually wears school colors. He also always talks about the building of a program and that they have a 10 year plan.
On the business side, they set record for attendance for first year program and had 31,000 at their first game this year against a nobody team (about what we could get and we had A & M to draw from). They also have 15,000 or so season ticket holders, easily more than us, and some locked in for multiple years. They also have corporate support who has agreed to join in on their long term vision. We are not even close to this.
7. I still think 5 wins would be stretch with how our group is playing this year, and that we do not win both at UTEP and at Tulane back to back after TCU. TCU will be awful and Patterson apparently already circled that one for revenge. I was at Mustang Club trip to Sun Bowl years ago when we beat UTEP 30 to 0 partly because of special teams return TDs and I think that is our last win in El Paso. I also think winning Tulsa and Rice may be more challenging then thought, and if we are having down year and kids have not much to play for by then it will almost impossible.
I hope the new AD and Turner are developing a short list of replacement coaches to save this program. But I think we are at a crossroads and we need new young energetic coach who actually wants to be here, will RECRUIT and act like he wants to be here, and that has a 5 to 10 year vision to bring us back.
1. Tom Rossley still best post DP coach - he did more with harder academic requirements, playing tougher competition then we are now, terrible facilities, etc. His undermatched teams played top 10 A & M team to tie in Alamodome, and tough at A & M. Yes, his record was bad at times but his teams were better prepared and at least there was a plan to what he was trying to do. Also, when Cavan won it was Rossley's guys primarily who got him there.
2. Jones will not get us much further then we are now, which is not much. We are in year 5 with seemingly no long term plan, no sense of urgency, no real pressure to win. Lack of accountability translates to the players. It is time for Jones to go.
3. We are at the point now losing long term supporters like me, not just the younger group of fans we have lost last 20 years. Where I sit there are 3 former players in my section who played for us in 70s and 80s. All of them discussed they are sick of Jones' show and throwing good money after bad. All discussed may be last year they will renew tickets unless something done. What is happening now is the core group of us who has stuck thru this mess of SMU football for the last years will finally say enough is enough.
4. NO 5 or 10 year plan to get ship on right track. Jones clearly won't be here in 5 years, and his lack of enthusiasm for the school, its traditions, the "regular" alumni is evident. School needs to think about replacement soon that has 5 or 10 year vision to take us to greener pastures.
5. New hot shot WR coach has not improved our production yet, and actually more dropped balls and out of position players.
6. UTSA is in much better shape than we are -- yes, go ahead and laugh and I know to those in north Texas think they have the monopoly on football but from football standpoint they are 3 and 0 this year, winning easily this weekend in the Georgia dome against Bill Curry's team, and are playing mostly freshman. They won 4 games last year in their first season and have Arizona, Tech, other big school in upcoming schedules. They run multiple offense (not run and shoot) and have already beat us out for 2 recruits. Larry Coker is constantly out in the community, does his live radio show, tells all how great UTSA is and actually wears school colors. He also always talks about the building of a program and that they have a 10 year plan.
On the business side, they set record for attendance for first year program and had 31,000 at their first game this year against a nobody team (about what we could get and we had A & M to draw from). They also have 15,000 or so season ticket holders, easily more than us, and some locked in for multiple years. They also have corporate support who has agreed to join in on their long term vision. We are not even close to this.
7. I still think 5 wins would be stretch with how our group is playing this year, and that we do not win both at UTEP and at Tulane back to back after TCU. TCU will be awful and Patterson apparently already circled that one for revenge. I was at Mustang Club trip to Sun Bowl years ago when we beat UTEP 30 to 0 partly because of special teams return TDs and I think that is our last win in El Paso. I also think winning Tulsa and Rice may be more challenging then thought, and if we are having down year and kids have not much to play for by then it will almost impossible.
I hope the new AD and Turner are developing a short list of replacement coaches to save this program. But I think we are at a crossroads and we need new young energetic coach who actually wants to be here, will RECRUIT and act like he wants to be here, and that has a 5 to 10 year vision to bring us back.