SMU Mustangs

The SMU Mustangs are the athletic teams that represent Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, United States. The Mustangs were founded in 1911 and joined the Southwest Conference, competing against Baylor, Rice, Texas, Texas A&M, Arkansas and Oklahoma A&M (which later became Oklahoma State).

SMU Mustangs
UniversitySouthern Methodist University
ConferenceAmerican Athletic Conference
NCAADivision I
Athletic directorRick Hart
LocationDallas, Texas
Varsity teams17
Football stadiumGerald J. Ford Stadium
Basketball arenaMoody Coliseum
Soccer stadiumWestcott Field
MascotPeruna
NicknameMustangs
Fight songPeruna
ColorsRed and Blue[1]
         
Websitewww.smumustangs.com
The American logo in SMU's colors

The football team has participated in various Bowl Games, from the Dixie Classic in 1924 to the Hawaii Bowl in 2012. Football alumni include Heisman winner Doak Walker, All-American Eric Dickerson, and two-time Super Bowl winner Forrest Gregg.

American Athletic Conference

The Mustangs participate in the NCAA Division I (FBS for football) as a member of the American Athletic Conference. SMU was the only private school in the conference when it began operation as The American in 2013, but it was joined by Tulane and Tulsa a year later. From 1918 to 1996, the Mustangs were a member of the Southwest Conference, until it formally disbanded. The Mustangs subsequently joined the Western Athletic Conference and in 2005, SMU accepted an invitation to the Western Division of Conference USA. They accepted an invitation to join the Big East Conference, which split along football lines in 2013, with SMU and the other FBS schools reorganizing as the American Athletic Conference.

Varsity sports
Men's sports Women's sports
BasketballBasketball
FootballCross country
GolfEquestrian
SoccerGolf
Swimming & DivingRowing
TennisSoccer
Swimming & diving
Tennis
Track & field†
Volleyball
† – Track and field includes both indoor and outdoor.

Football
SMU in action versus UTEP in 2009
Main article: SMU Mustangs football
National titles

In 1935, SMU had a magnificent season: a 12–1–0 record, scoring 288 points while only giving up 39. The Mustangs completely dominated their opponents. They shut out eight of their 12 regular season opponents, including conference rivals Texas, Rice, Baylor, and Texas A&M. They were one of the most talented teams in school history. The 1935 Mustangs were crowned national champions by Frank Dickinson,[3] a nationally respected economics professor at the University of Illinois. Although Minnesota was proclaimed the 1935 national champion by the AP and UPI polls, SMU usually claims the 1935 national title without qualification, even though they lost the Rose Bowl, because the Dickinson System was the first to gain widespread national public and media acceptance as a selector of national champions.

SMU played in three National Championships in football, with a win in the 1982 Cotton Bowl Classic and an unofficial championship in the 1982 "Polyester Bowl." All told, the Mustangs have played in 15 Bowl Games, including one appearance in the Rose Bowl, four appearances in the Cotton Bowl Classic, and four straight bowl appearances following the Mustangs' 2009 resurgence in football.

Southwest Conference Championships

* denotes shared title

Bowl Appearances and Results
SeasonBowl GameOpponentW/LPFPA
1924Dixie ClassicWest Virginia WesleyanL79
1935Rose BowlStanfordL07
1947Cotton Bowl ClassicPenn StateT1313
1948Cotton Bowl ClassicOregonW2113
1963Sun BowlOregonL1421
1966Cotton Bowl ClassicGeorgiaL924
1968Bluebonnet BowlOklahomaW2827
1980Holiday BowlBYUL4546
1982Cotton Bowl ClassicPittsburghW73
1983Sun BowlAlabamaL728
1984Aloha BowlNotre DameW2720
2009Hawaii BowlNevadaW4510
2010Armed Forces BowlArmyL1416
2011BBVA Compass BowlPittsburghW286
2012Hawaii BowlFresno StateW4310
2017Frisco BowlLouisiana TechL1051
2019 Boca Raton Bowl Florida Atlantic University L 28 52
  • SMU's closest rival in athletics is Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, Texas. In football, SMU and TCU compete annually (with the exception of 2006) for the Iron Skillet. In 2005, an unranked SMU beat then 24th ranked TCU for SMU's first win against a ranked team in 19 years (since October 1986). TCU had won the previous seven football games played against SMU.
  • SMU also competes annually with Rice University in football for the Battle for the Mayor's Cup. Unofficially, SMU competes with the University of North Texas in the Safeway Bowl.
  • The Doak Walker Award, an annual collegiate award given to the "most outstanding college running back", is named after SMU Heisman Trophy Winner Doak Walker.
  • On November 11, 2006, redshirt freshman quarterback Justin Willis broke the single season touchdown pass record held by Chuck Hixson (21). Willis threw for three touchdowns in a 37–27 loss to the University of Houston, setting the new single season record at 23. At the end of the season, Willis set the new record at 26. He also broke the SMU single season touchdown record accounting for 29 touchdowns. He was named to the Freshman All-American team at quarterback.
  • Starting in December 2014, Chad Morris was named the head football coach. Previously he was the offensive coordinator for Clemson University and the University of Tulsa. The first day after he was announced as head coach he was recruiting the DFW region for new players.

The "death penalty"
Main article: Southern Methodist University football scandal

On February 25, 1987, the Infractions Committee of the NCAA voted unanimously to cancel SMU's entire 1987 football season and all four of SMU's scheduled home games in 1988 in spite of SMU's cooperation and recommended sanctions. On April 11, 1987, SMU formally canceled the 1988 season, in effect, self-imposing a death penalty for a second football season.[4]

The program was terminated for the 1987 season because the university was making approximately $61,000 in booster payments from 1985 to 1986. It later emerged that a "slush fund" had been used to pay players as early as the mid-1970s, and athletic officials had known about it as early as 1981.

SMU was eligible for this penalty because it had already been placed on probation less than five years prior to these violations – specifically, in 1985, for earlier recruiting violations. Since many players were poor, boosters would pay for rent or other bills for the parents of the athletes, and several key boosters and administration officials felt it would be unethical to cut off payments. When the sanctions were handed down, SMU had only three players – all seniors about to graduate – receiving payments.

Not long afterward, SMU announced that its football team would stay shuttered for the 1988 season as well after school officials received indications that they wouldn't have enough experienced players to field a viable team.[5] As it turned out, new coach Forrest Gregg was left with an undersized and underweight lineup. It took the Mustang football program almost a decade to recover from the effects of the scandal, the team not returning to a bowl game until 2009. Since returning from the Death Penalty seasons, SMU has had six non-losing seasons, two of them .500 seasons.

Basketball
Main articles: SMU Mustangs men's basketball and SMU Mustangs women's basketball

In men's basketball, the Mustangs have one Final Four Appearance accompanied by 14 Southwest Conference Championships. In July 2016, SMU hired Tim Jankovich to lead the Mustangs.

SMU's women's basketball team is coached by Coach Travis Mays. The team has advanced to the postseason 12 times since 1993 and is a rising power.

Soccer
Main article: SMU Mustangs men's soccer

The men's soccer team is a consistent national contender, including a recent trip to the Elite Eight, and time spent as number one in the nation, finishing the season at number two, earning the school's sixth conference title in the sport.

  • During the 2006 season, the SMU men's soccer program was ranked No. 1 in the nation for four consecutive weeks. The team sat atop the four national polls with a record of 13–0–2 in the Adidas/NSCA poll, SoccerTimes.com poll, Soccer America Magazine poll, and the CollegeSoccerNews.com poll. Concurrently, the SMU women's soccer program cracked the top 25, at No. 22 in the Adidas/NSCA poll and No. 19 in the SoccerTimes.com poll.
  • The SMU men's soccer team finished the 2006 regular season ranked No. 2 in the nation. Additionally, SMU won the C-USA title game, beating Kentucky 2–0 in Tulsa. This C-USA championship win is the sixth conference title for SMU since 1997.
  • The SMU men's soccer team finished the 2010 season with an overall record of 16–2–2. The Mustangs finished the season with a trip to the quarterfinals where they lost to North Carolina in a penalty kick shootout.

Golf

The men's golf team won the 1954 NCAA Championship. In 2015, Bryson DeChambeau won the NCAA individual championship.

They have won nine conference championships:

In 2006, Golf Digest ranked the SMU men's golf program No. 16 in the nation. On May 1, 2007, SMU senior Colt Knost was named the Conference USA golfer of the year. He earned golfer of the week awards five times during his senior year, and can be recognized for shooting a record setting 64 for an amateur golfer. The 2015 team was given a postseason ban after multiple recruiting violations and unethical conduct under coach Josh Gregory. The decision also meant DeChambeau was not able to defend his title.

SMU's men's golf team has grown to be a national contender. It was named the number 16 golf team in the nation by Golf Digest in 2006, and produced pro golfer Colt Knost.

In 1979 Kyle O'Brian won the AIAW women's national intercollegiate individual golf championship.

Rowing

SMU women's rowing achieved a program-best fourth-place finish at the 2018 American Athletic Conference championship under first year head coach Kim Cupini. The first varsity four won the program's first gold medal and the first varsity eight won bronze.[6] At the 2019 championship, the first varsity eight won gold, breaking University of Central Florida's long winning streak in the event.[7]

Equestrian

The Women's Equestrian Team at SMU competed under the United Equestrian Conference (UEC)[8] until 2019 and now compete under Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC).[9] The Dallas Equestrian Center (DEC) is the official stables where the team practices and hosts meets.[10]

Discontinued sports

SMU discontinued several sports in 1980; the university's financial position led to budget cuts across the university, and the university's athletic department had become too big to support.[11]

Baseball

Southern Methodist University fielded a varsity baseball team from 1919 until it was discontinued after the 1980 season for financial reasons.[12][13] The Mustangs won the 1953 SWC baseball title.[14]

Championships

NCAA team championships

SMU has won four NCAA team national championships and eight overall national championships.[15]

Other national team championships

SMU won the following national championships that are not bestowed by the NCAA:

  • Men's (3)
  • Women's (1)
    • Golf (1): 1979 (AIAW)

Athletic venues

Athletic directors

Notable athletes

The SMU football program has also produced other professional football standouts, such as Don Meredith, Kyle Rote, Jerry Ball, Craig James and more recently Cole Beasley, Sterling Moore, Chris Banjo, Kenneth Acker and Taylor Thompson.

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References
  1. SMU Licensing Guide (PDF). August 1, 2018. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  2. HickokSports.com – History – College Football National Champions Archived February 23, 2002, at the Library of Congress Web Archives
  3. "Frank G. Dickinson Papers, 1932–67 | University of Illinois Archives". Library.illinois.edu. December 8, 1992. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
  4. Vickrey, Sawley (July 25, 2012). "Rodney Erickson: Penn State escaped four-year death penalty". Larry Brown Sports. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
  5. Frank, Peter. "'88 football season canceled by SMU." New York Times, April 11, 1987.
  6. "First Varsity Four Notches SMU's First Gold Medal at American Championship". SMUMustangs.com. SMU Athletics. May 12, 2018. Retrieved September 21, 2018.
  7. "UCF Wins Fifth-Straight American Athletic Conference Women's Rowing Championship". TheAmerican.org. American Athletic Conference. May 17, 2019. Retrieved November 25, 2019. It was SMU that won the V8, knocking off the Knights for the first time in five years.
  8. "United Equestrian Conference". collegiateequestrian.com. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
  9. "EQ Teams". ECAC. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  10. "Facilities". SMU Athletics. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  11. "When There Were No More Games to Play". The Stable. May 2015. Archived from the original on July 4, 2016. Retrieved July 4, 2016.
  12. Sherrington, Kevin (June 4, 2016). "Sherrington: SMU's long-gone baseball team rarely got respect, least of all from its own school". SportsDay. The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved September 11, 2018. And officials pulled the plug on it after the 1980 season, just the same, citing financial concerns.
  13. Capstick, Brian (February 9, 2006). "The NightCap asks, 'Why no baseball at SMU?'". SMU Daily Campus. Retrieved September 11, 2018. The SMU Athletic Department told me that the baseball program was shut down for financial reasons.
  14. "A Look Back at the Southwest Conference". Texas Almanac. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved April 18, 2012.
  15. http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/champs_records_book/Overall.pdf
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