Author: Daniel Durany

The 2009 season was a magical season for Southern Methodist University. The Mustangs went 8-5 and won the Aloha Bowl game against Nevada on Christmas Eve of 45-10. It was the first time for the Mustangs to play in a bowl game since 1984 when they defeated the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 27-20. Since the 1984 Aloha Bowl game, the Mustangs were 6-5 during the 1985 & 1986 season. Then, they were hit with the death penalty by National Collegiate Athletic Association for breaking rules and weren’t allowed to play two seasons (1987 & 1988) of college football.


Before the Mustangs magical season in 2009, their record in the previous twenty seasons had been 59-164-3 while going through five different losing streaks of at least 10 games and achieving only one winning season. What made 2009 season excited for the Mustangs was the success in the Run-&-Shoot Offense by head coach June Jones. The offense averaged 29.2 points per game and 391.8 yards per game while protecting football at a turnover ratio of + 2. During the second half of last season, the Mustangs finished on a high note with a 5-1 record and huge contributor to those wins was Quarterback Kyle Padron from Southlake, TX who replaced injured QB Bo Levi Mitchell. Even though Padron played only seven games last year, he still threw for nearly 2,000 yards with 10 touchdowns. He set a school-record with 460 passing yards against Nevada including over 300 yards passing only in the first half during the Aloha Bowl game.

What Padron will miss this year compared to last year was a supporting cast off running back Shawnbrey McNeal and wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders. When opposing teams didn’t respect the running game of the Mustangs, McNeal took on the responsibility with 1,188 rushing yards at clip of five yards per carry last season and scoring 12 rushing touchdowns. His 1,188 rushing yards ranks him 7th all-time in school history behind only running backs Eric Dickerson, Keylon Kincade, and Reggie Dupard.

When the Mustangs decided to spread opposing team’s defense, they would rely on wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders to make the clutch plays. Sanders had five games of over 100 yards receiving and was ranked 8th in receptions for NCAA Division I with 98 receptions last year. He is the Mustangs career leader with 285 receptions, 34 touchdown receptions, and 3,791 receiving yards. SMU’s key returning starters should be wide receivers Aldrick Robinson, Cole Beasley, and Terrance Wilkerson whom each had over 40 receptions from last year and quarterback Kyle Padron to spread the ball to the receivers.

If the Mustangs are going to have any chance in repeating last year’s successful season, their defense is going to have to improve and take some load off of the offense. Opposing teams scored an average of nearly 28 points per game and giving up to close 400 yards per game with 166.7 yards of those coming from the running game. However, yardage given up might not be as significant factor on the Mustangs success compared to noteworthy factors such as being able to prevent teams on continuing drives through 3rd down conversions and number of turnovers being forced. Opposing teams converted 42.3% of 3rd down conversions for first downs. On the other hand, the Mustangs forced 28 turnovers on defense and returning starter for his junior year is defensive end Taylor Thompson who led the team with 5.5 sacks as a sophomore.

This year’s motivation for the Mustangs is to prove to the nation that last year’s success wasn’t an aberration. Key games for SMU will be September 5th at Texas Tech, September 24 vs. TCU, back-to-back games on October 16th and 23rd against Navy and Houston, and last regular season game on November 26th against Conference USA champion, East Carolina.

09/05/10
at Texas Tech, Lubbock, Texas, 2:30 p.m. CT

09/11/10
vs. UAB, Ford Stadium, 7:00 p.m. CT

09/18/10
vs. Washington State, Ford Stadium, 2:30 p.m. CT

09/24/10
vs. TCU, Ford Stadium, 7:00 p.m. CT

10/02/10
at Rice, Houston, Texas, TBA

10/09/10
vs. Tulsa, Ford Stadium, 7:00 p.m. CT

10/16/10
at Navy, Annapolis, Md., 2:30 p.m. CT

10/23/10
vs. Houston, Ford Stadium, 2:30 p.m. CT

10/30/10
at Tulane, New Orleans, La., 2:30 p.m. CT

11/06/10
at UTEP, El Paso, Texas, 8:05 p.m. CT

11/20/10
vs. Marshall, Ford Stadium, 2:00 p.m. CT

11/26/10
at East Carolina , Greenville, N.C., 1:00 p.m. CT

The 2010 version of college football will kick off the weekend of September 3rd, and if you are an NCAA football betting kind-of-guy, you might be willing to count on the local teams to have an exciting year!

All three of the Dallas-Fort Worth NCAA football teams will kick off their football seasons.  All three games will involved ranked teams, and TCU will headline the DFW football weekend with a game in Arlington at Cowboys Stadium against Oregon State and Jacquizz Rodgers.

The Horned Frogs are ranked number 6 by the pre-season Associated Press poll and the USA Today Coach’s Poll.  Oregon State will be considered a challenger for the Pac 10 Championship.  Their should be an electric atmosphere in Arlington on September 4th.

North Texas will kick off their season on the road against the always-dangerous Clemson Tigers (September 4th).  The Tigers always has exceptional talent, but will be starting over after the career of C. J. Spiller who had 3,547 yards rushing in four years for Clemson.  Could the Mean Green sneak in to Death Valley and pull off the upset?  Who will take the field at quarterback for Todd Dodge and UNT?  The Tigers have snagged a number 24 ranking in the pre-season AP poll.

SMU will start with a road game against Texas Tech and their new head coach Tommy Tuberville (September 5th).  Double T has a new meaning in Lubbock with Tuberville taking over for the departed Mike Leach.  Tech will enter the pre-season ranked 21st.  The quarterback battle is as big of a question in Lubbock as it is settled in Dallas.  Kyle Padron will start his second season as the top QB for June Jones and the Mustangs.  What kind of fireworks will these two teams shoot off  in the Lubbock sky?  Pony Up?  Guns Up?

In just a few short days, all three teams will begin Fall camp.  Of course, there is nothing Fall about the North Texas summers!  Could this be a magical year for DFW teams?  Can TCU return to a BCS bowl?  Can SMU upset Houston and go on to win the Conference USA Championship?  And, is this the breakthrough year for Todd Dodge in Denton?

Stay with Dfwfootball.net to find out!

The New Orleans Saints rallied from a 10-0 and a 17-13 deficit to win their first ever Super Bowl Sunday night 31-17. Helping the Saints win the Super Bowl were four Dallas-Fort Worth area players.

Courtesy of www.sportslogos.net

Southlake Carroll graduate Garrett Hartley became the first kicker in Super Bowl history to hit three 40+ yard field goals.  The former Oklahoma Sooner kicked field goals of 44, 46 and 47 yards.  Hartley was on the money all night keeping the Saints within striking distance.

Former SMU Mustang punter Thomas Morestead punted twice averaging 44 yards and pinning the Colts at the 4 yard line on one of the kicks.  The Saints rolled the dice a couple of times on fourth down choosing to keep Morestead on the sideline.  However, when called upon, the former Mustang was on target with his punts and his kick offs landed in the endzone routinely.

Former South Grand Prairie High Remi Ayodele and former Soutlake Carroll Chase Daniel were reserves for the Saints and will both get Super Bowl rings as well.  The Saints won the first-ever Super Bowl in their first-ever visit to the Super Bowl.  Drew Brees, from Austin, TX, won the Super Bowl MVP.

Don’t look now, but we have a sweep this weekend in local college football. The number 6 ranked TCU Horned Frogs took care of UNLV in their first shutout of the season. The SMU Mustangs won the battle of “Back up QB’s” against Tulsa, and the UNT Mean Green got their second win of the season. Next thing you know, the Cowboys will win too!

TCU 41
UNLV 0
Recap

SMU  27
Tulsa 13
Recap

UNT 68
W KY 49
Recap

Follow The SMU Mustangs On Facebook & Twitter!

Mustang Social Media Network Expands

DALLAS (SMU) – SMU Athletics is continuing to grow its social media network. Since the department and several of its teams and coaches started Twittering back in April, SMU has also created a Facebook page as part of its continuous efforts to further engage and communicate with its fan base. The social media sites work in conjunction with SMUMustangs.com, the official online source for Mustang Athletics.

By becoming a fan of SMU Athletics on Facebook, followers of Mustang teams will have the opportunity to receive score updates, event recaps and notices, video features, special announcements, news on promotions and special ticket offers and much more. The Facebook page is available by searching for “SMU Mustangs” under “Pages” on the site. SMU Athletics on Facebook will provide users the opportunity to connect with the athletics program through social networking, while providing a source for public dialogue on topics that are current and relevant. By signing up for the SMU SMS feed, fans can have the updates sent directly to their cell phones.

Twitter, one of the fastest growing phenomena on the internet, provides fans a means to receive a steady flow of information on all facets of SMU’s athletics through instant messaging.

To become a “fan” of SMU Athletics on Facebook, please click here.
To receive updates (known as “Tweets”) on SMU Athletics via Twitter, please click here. A full listing of SMU’s “Tweeting” programs and coaches is available here.

On-line social-networking utilities, growing increasingly popular worldwide, allow users to connect and communicate information with others like friends, family and co-workers, immediately and unobtrusively. Facebook, with over 150 million users worldwide, and Twitter, boasting an increase of more than 1,400 percent in number of visits since 2008, enable SMU Athletics to post statistics, achievements, and updates about players, coaches and 17 sports teams.

Join the network today!

–SMUMustangs.com–
–Find us on Facebook – SMU Mustangs–
–Follow SMU Athletics on Twitter – Twitter.com/SMUMustangs–

Editor’s Note–Metroplex Monday will now be a part of dfwfootball.net.  It first appeared in the fall of 2008 at Collegefootballtopten.com.

By now, most people have heard about the release of nine players from their scholarships at SMU.  It has raised all kinds of publicity for SMU, much of which they did not want.  Head coach June Jones released a statement which reads in part

A few student-athletes failed to adhere to our department policies and/or team rules, and because of that, they are no longer part of our program,

At first glance, it looks as if Jones got rid of some “bad apples.”  What fan doesn’t want bad apples gone from their team?  Remove the bad apples, and Jones is freed up to do what he was brought to SMU to do which is win.

However, look at the statement a little closer.  Check out the part where it says, “. . . failed to adhere to our department policies and/or team rules.”  That is a key statement based on what has happened since the story came out.

One of the players, Jordan Johnson, has revealed that he was not released based on Jones’ much publicized “three strikes” policy.  Jones received some attention last fall when he suspended 17 players, including 3 starters, for violating his three-strikes policy last season.  Johnson has told anyone who will listen that he didn’t even have one strike, much less three.

Johnson appeared on the Michael Irvin show and stated his case.  He came across as a good kid who often answered with “no sir” and “yes sir.”  Further, Johnson revealed that he wasn’t the only one among the nine who might have gotten a little bit of a bad deal.  This is what he told Dallas Morning News reporter Bobbie Roquemore:

I don’t understand it,” said Johnson, who had six tackles in four games last season. “He told me there were three of us that didn’t deserve to be taken off scholarship, and I was one of the people. I don’t understand what’s going on, and I want my name to be clean.

So what is going on here?  It gets better.  According to Chris Dell of the SMU Daily Campus, as many as three players might appeal their suspension.  Joining Johnson in appealing the decision will be sophomore linebacker Taylor Bon and redshirt freshman linebacker Benjamin Goldthorpe.

Scholarships are renewed yearly, and coaches can fail to renew them for various reasons.  It might not be popular, but it is reality. [As an aside, if you are a high school athlete, and you are getting ready to go to college to play football, read Andy Staples’ article giving advice to incoming recruits.]

SMU Athletic Director Steve Orsini defended Jones’ actions by referring to the scholarship as a contract.  That might be hard to hear, but it is true.  Further, Orsini is right when he says that an athletic department is not run like a company’s HR department.

So, what gives?  Is this Jones’ way of cleaning out former coach Phil Bennett recruits?  No, because there are still Bennett recruits on the team.  What about the number of players released?  They released nine players.  Some have suggested that Jones did it to accommodate the incoming class.  But, Dr. Saturday at Yahoo Sports crunched the numbers and it doesn’t appear that SMU needed to release nine players to meet their scholarship limits.  However, a little extra room does mean that a walk-on or two could pick up a promised scholarship.

Something really seems fishy in Highland Park.  How does Jones justify his actions?  When Jones was brought to SMU, he was supposed to work a miraculous turn-around much like he did in his first year at Hawaii.  But, Jones learned that it wouldn’t be that easy.

He found out that screen passes could be intercepted and that there is good football being played in the DFW area (see TCU), and he also learned there are some pretty good teams in the Conference USA (see Rice).  He also learned he had to have some kind of a running game to keep the pressure off of true freshman quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell.  The Mustangs led in the fourth quarter of more than one game last season, but they were unable to hold the lead because their running game was atrocious.

Jones is in his right to release those players, and it may be that a good kid or two got caught up in a program in transition.  That doesn’t make it any easier for players like Jordan Johnson and Taylor Bon.  However, those young men just learned a valuable lesson a little sooner than some of their teammates.  No, life is not always fair.  Such is the case in the athletic world, but it is seen often in the business world.  One can only hope, that one or more of the players appealing the release can win their appeal and receive a scholarship for the rest of their time at SMU.