On December 07, 2024, in Charlotte, North Carolina, SMU Mustangs supporters attend the 2024 ACC Football Championship at Bank of America Stadium. (Image courtesy of Getty Images/Grant Halverson))
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The SMU Mustangs will play the Penn State Nittany Lions in the College Football Playoff.
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The school’s first playoff berth marks a return to relevance following the NCAA giving the program the “death penalty” in 1987.
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SMU says they have seen a 50% increase in new student applications.
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The SMU Mustangs will play the Penn State Nittany Lions in the College Football Playoff.
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The school’s first playoff berth marks a return to relevance following the NCAA giving the program the “death penalty” in 1987.
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SMU says they have seen a 50% increase in new student applications.
For the first time ever, Dallas-SMU will participate in the College Football Playoffs.
Later this month, the 11th-seeded Mustangs will play Penn State, ranked sixth.
There was some worry over the playoff berth.
The Mustangs were eliminated for a three-loss Alabama team after SMU’s defeat to Clemson in Saturday night’s ACC Championship Game.
On Sunday morning, SMU and their supporters received the much-anticipated news from the selection committee.
“I belong to the sorority Alpha Delta Pi. We turned on the television and watched the entire event while we were in the sorority home. “It was insane,” Gianna Pugh remarked. “We all screamed.”
The response to SMU qualifying for the College Football Playoff was the same for both new and seasoned supporters.
“Everyone assumed I was sixteen again when I began to hop up and down and yell. I was ecstatic. Reid Ryan stated on Sunday, “I think it is great for Dallas.” “I’ve witnessed both good and horrible. When we had the Pony Express in the 1980s, I was there.
Ryan Reid
In 1985, Ryan was one of nine boosters expelled from the athletic department for engaging in unethical recruiting practices that included providing entertainment and financial support to student athletes.
“It was a full-scale conflict, involving everyone. I believe they were unable to handle it when we began defeating Texas in Austin. The Aggies were severely beaten, and they pursued us,” Ryan remarked.
As a result, the university was the only one to ever earn the “death penalty” from the NCAA.
The Mustangs had to cancel their 1987 season due to the penalty, and the school also had to cancel the 1988 season.
For four years, the institution also lost fifty-five scholarship spots.
“I believe that no one should ever be subjected to the penalty again. It was insane to do it, considering what it did to SMU and what it might do to another university,” Ryan remarked.
The NCAA modified its regulations in 2021 to permit student athletes to make money off of their name, likeness, and image.
“Now all of that is legal,” said Matthew Wilson, SMU’s University Athletic Council head.
This moment is long overdue, he adds.
For a while now, SMU has believed it truly belongs at the highest level of the NCAA. Being a member of the College Football Playoff’s initial 12 teams and participating in athletics in the major sports are truly a testament to that belief and the work made to make it a reality,” Wilson said.
Timoth e Chalamet is an SMU football fan, apparently
SMU was referred to as his “favorite team” by actor Timoth é Chalamet during an appearance on College Gameday Saturday morning.
Wilson claims that football’s return to national prominence is attracting more students to the institution.
“SMU has already seen a significant surge in new student applications this year, with a 50% increase over last year. “The university’s donor base is thrilled,” Wilson added.
For the City of Dallas, that is also a victory.
“Dallas’s team is actually SMU. Naturally, there are a lot of ramifications because this is the top institution in a big American city. “Economically and academically,” Wilson remarked.
The question of whether SMU can defeat Penn State still stands.
“I believe we can. “I don’t know who is going to stop us once our offense is going, but they are a good team and will be difficult to beat,” Reid said.
Bowl Games: Where, when to watch Texas schools play
This season, a number of Texas institutions will participate in bowl games. You can watch at the following time and location.
On Saturday, December 21 at 11 a.m., SMU and Penn State will meet at Beaver Stadium.
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The NCAA, SMU supporters, and Matthew Wilson, the leader of the university’s athletic council, provided the information for this article.
The NCAA, SMU supporters, and Matthew Wilson, the leader of the university’s athletic council, provided the information for this article.
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