Sure, SMU is coming off a 1-11 season. Yes, the Mustangs scored 24 points only three times, were held to single digits in seven games, were shut out twice, never scored more than 28 points and only held opponents to fewer than 35 points twice.
However, they have all the ingredients to become the next Boise State.
Before the disaster that was 2014, June Jones proved SMU could win again after the school was issued the Death Penalty in 1987. Following a 1-11 debut season in 2008, Jones led the Mustangs to four straight bowl games from 2009-12, the first for the program since 1984 and just the second winning season in that time frame. Unfortunately for Jones and SMU, the Mustangs fell to 5-7 in 2013 and the wheels completely fell off in 2014.
Following Jones’ departure the Mustangs made a home run hire in Chad Morris, who was Clemson’s offensive coordinator from 2011 to 2014. Morris helped the Tigers win 41 games and set 127 school offensive records.
He is a high-energy coach with a hurry-up, no-huddle offensive system and an overall program philosophy to move at “break-neck speed. Fast as you can possibly move.”
It’s exactly the kind of philosophy needed to give the program a jolt. Plus, there’s a renewed commitment to make SMU relevant on the national stage again, as Morris described recently on SiriusXM College Sports Nation:
"“When they came out to Clemson on a Wednesday in late November, they all came out and brought a lot of the big boosters,” Morris said. “They sat in my living room. We had about a three-hour meeting one night and really talked about what SMU has been, where they foresee it going, what Larry (Brown) has done with the basketball, and it’s ripe for the taking. The one thing I kept coming back to was, I’m from that state. I know SMU inside and out. I grew up as a kid coming to football games watching SMU when they were kicking everybody’s tail. The passion, watching the Pony Express days. That’s what came out of that meeting. “With President Turner and AD Rick Hart, look, ‘We want to build on what Larry’s done, the excitement level, our students are heavily involved. We want to have a well-rounded athletic program, and in order to do that, we have to get football going right.’ We’re committed to doing that.”"
To become the next Boise State, a program needs a head coach to buy in not only to build the program, but also to stay around long enough to make it successful for a long period of time. Chris Petersen didn’t build the Boise State program (Houston Nutt, Dirk Koetter and Dan Hawkins all made an impact), but the program’s biggest success came while Peterson was on the sidelines – where he stayed for eight seasons despite many overtures from bigger programs.
It’s very possible that Chad Morris could be the kind of coach at SMU. He’s a Texas native, and unless he is eventually considered at one of the more prestigious programs in the state, he’s found a perfect fit in Dallas.
"“Since then, I took the job because I felt like there was a great commitment,” he said. “We’re looking at new facilities on the horizon coming soon. We’re in the final phases of getting the drawings together for an indoor complex. It’s a beautiful campus and a great area of Dallas. To put a standalone facility, it’s a great opportunity of a young man to come to Dallas.”"
Furthermore, Morris spent 16 years making important connections throughout the state as a high school coach that will pay big dividends in recruiting.
Also, SMU will have plenty of opportunities to play well-known programs both at home and on the road. The Mustangs are scheduled to play TCU every year until 2018, with the 2016 and 2018 games at home. SMU will also host Baylor next season and travel to Waco in 2016.
Beating one of those in-state rivals will prove difficult over the next two years, but if Morris can inject the SMU roster with talented Texans that fit the mold he is looking for, the Mustangs will be very dangerous in a few years. Perhaps just in time for a major non-conference upset – Morris and the Mustangs are scheduled to play Michigan in the Big House in 2018.
And, if everything goes according to plan and SMU emerges as one of the AAC’s best programs, they could conceivably appeal to the Big 12 should expansion and realignment prove necessary.
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