Once a perennial national title contender, SMU has all but literally died under the "death penalty" imposed in 1987. Since fielding a new team in 1989, SMU has gone 58-153-3 with only one winning season (6-5 a decade ago). The latest failure as head coach, Phil Bennett, managed a couple seasons around .500, but the boosters apparently still believe greater things are possible. With at least 20 boosters willing to pay $100,000 a year for a better coach, June Jones and the Run & Shoot are coming to help the Mustangs. The boosters had to pay so much for Jones because SMU has fallen out of the great Southwestern Conference (when it was mostly absorbed into the Big 12) and then out of the WAC, leaving it in C-USA playing the likes of Tulsa, UCF, and Marshall. Hawaii was fully established under Jones, with multiple bowls and a BCS appearance in the last 6 years, along with a conference title in the WAC.
Can June Jones turn it around at SMU? I don't think so. Most high school seniors were not alive when SMU was hit with the death penalty, much less when they had Dickerson and James in 1982. Heisman winner Doak Walker? Who's that? Will he be able to get decent players when so many other schools recruit Texas and all of the other schools play in better conferences? Mike Leach at Texas Tech already has a wide open offense in Texas and they play in the Big 12 and win a lot. I do think Jones' record will be better than Bennett's 18-52 mark, but I don't even foresee a C-USA title.
ESPN story here.
January 7, 2008
June Jones the Latest to Try to Resurrect SMU
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5 Responses:
I'm very surprised. I thought June was leveraging for a little more Hawaii money.
Hard to figure out why you wouldn't want to continue to dominate the WAC in the islands where you're loved. But, whatever.
I agree, I thought the love from the islanders along with paradise would keep him there, but I guess in this case, money is everything. I'm pretty sure $2 million a year is a lot more than what Hawaii was paying, and the facilities are somehow a lot nicer.
He probably saw all those championships Texas Tech won with a pass-happy NFL-style offense.
Oh, wait...
I also am a little surprised by this. Hawaii dove have horrible facilities but SMU sucks too. I doubt June Jones makes the headlines anymore, not that I really care.
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