Latest news with #RhettLashlee
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
SMU Football Makes Underrated Hire After Playoff Season
SMU Football Makes Underrated Hire After Playoff Season originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Rhett Lashlee and SMU Football have added a former Texas high school offensive coordinator to his support staff. According to Mike Roach of 247Sports, former North Texas staffer Matthew McHugh has taken over as the Mustangs director of player personnel. Advertisement For SMU, this is an underrated hire in the Lone Star State. McHugh joins the Mustangs at the right time as well. SMU is coming off an 11-3 record in their ACC debut season, where they lost to Clemson in the conference title game. But ultimately took a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff and suffered a 38-10 loss to Penn State in the first round. However, there is a lot to be excited about in Dallas. Lashlee's team has proven to be a contender as the upcoming season approaches. The Mustangs offense rolls through quarterback Kevin Jennings as he enters the season with some preseason Heisman buzz. While he is considered a dark horse, expect the junior passer to turn heads in SMU's 'run it back' year. Related: From death penalty to power play: SMU rebirth in college football The Mustangs also bring back their entire coaching staff with McHugh being the latest addition. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
ESPN analyst has words for SMU Football's playoff credibility
ESPN analyst has words for SMU Football's playoff credibility originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Leave it to Paul Finebaum to stir the pot before the first snap of the college football season. The ESPN analyst, never one to mince words, took aim at SMU football during a recent segment of The Paul Finebaum Show, dismissing the Mustangs' 2024 College Football Playoff berth as unearned. 'Last year, SMU got a third-place ribbon. They had no business being in the CFP,' Finebaum said bluntly. Advertisement The comment has sparked major backlash among Mustangs fans and college football insiders, especially given SMU's standout first year in the ACC. The Mustangs went 11-3, won the ACC Coastal Division, and went undefeated in regular-season conference play before narrowly falling to Clemson 30-27 in the ACC title game. Southern Methodist Mustangs head coach Rhett Lashlee leads his team to the field before the 2024 ACC Championship game against the Clemson Tigers at Bank of America Stadium. :Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images Created: Despite the loss, SMU secured a spot in the expanded 12-team CFP. While their postseason ended with a 38-10 loss to No. 6 Penn State, the selection committee deemed their resume strong enough, especially in a year filled with parity across the Power Four. Finebaum's critique raises a larger question: what does it really take for programs outside the traditional elite to be respected? Advertisement With a 2025 slate that includes matchups against Clemson, Louisville, and Miami, and a non-conference gauntlet featuring Baylor and TCU, SMU has a chance to prove last season wasn't a fluke. The Mustangs aren't just playing for wins this fall, they're playing for national credibility. And thanks to Finebaum, they've got bulletin board material before Week 1. If Finebaum wanted to wake a sleeping giant in Dallas, he may have just succeeded. Related: SMU Football Makes Underrated Hire After Playoff Season Related: SMU Football Faces Backlash After Team GPA Under Rhett Lashlee Surfaces This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 6, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
SMU's Rhett Lashlee Admits the College Football Playoff Made an Error
SMU's Rhett Lashlee Admits the College Football Playoff Made an Error originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The SMU Mustangs made the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff after losing a closely-contested ACC championship against Clemson. However, there was one team Mustangs coach Rhett Lashlee says should've gotten in. Advertisement SMU clinched the last spot over Alabama in the playoff, resulting in weeks of debate across college football. Many wondered if more teams meant a more problematic outcome for the Playoff Committee. Lashlee feels SMU and Alabama should've both been included in the postseason. But if that's the case, who gets left behind? 'Well, I felt like we deserved to be in but after we came up short 12 hours before in that ACC championship game with Clemson," Lashlee said in an interview with The Next Round. "I cannot say I felt great with the way it was shaping up to be either us or Alabama, which I'm not sure that's the way it should've shaped up. I think maybe we both should've been in.' Advertisement SMU ended the regular season with a top ten ranking at 11-1. Their only loss was to BYU in non-conference play. But the loss to Clemson was followed by a 38-10 Playoff defeat to Penn State in Happy Valley. Related: SMU Football Faces Backlash After Team GPA Under Rhett Lashlee Surfaces As for Alabama, they will have another chance to prove themselves as a worthy postseason contender in 2025. At 9-3, the late-season loss to Oklahoma killed off any chance of sneaking into the playoff. Under Kalen DeBoer, the Crimson Tide had three wins against ranked opponents, including No. 2 Georgia. Related: Explosive Edge Rusher Hudson Woods Commits to SMU Football SMU hopes to repeat the magic of last year in a wide open ACC. The game to watch will be a title game rematch at Clemson on Oct. 18. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 11, 2025, where it first appeared.
Miami Herald
10-06-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
SMU Football Preview 2025: The Mustangs Are Built To Do It Again
Well that last season, SMU hadn't won a regular season game against a Power Five-now-Power-Four program against anyone by TCU since an all-time bet-on-yourself move, SMU became a part of the ACC, but without taking a dime of TV revenue until 2032. It was looking to raise the school's profile with a long-term plan, and it helped get the alumni fired up and ready to write and Cal were the higher-profile gets for the ACC, SMU was expected to be a nice scrimmage for the established programs, and then ... probably didn't belong in the expanded College Football Playoff - technically, a case could've been made for BYU instead with an 18-15 win over the Mustangs in Dallas - but let's start with this. If last year at this exact time, you were told SMU would be in the CFP discussion ... X CFN, Fiu | CFN Facebook | Bluesky Fiu, CFN2025 SMU PreviewSMU Offense BreakdownSMU Defense BreakdownSeason Prediction, Win Total, Keys to SeasonSMU almost pulled off a thriller of a comeback in a 34-31 loss to Clemson in the ACC Championship, and it got its shot. In the ten years of the College Football Playoff, no two-loss Power Five/Four program would've been left out of an expanded 12-team model - it had to be done. SMU had to be what that the Mustangs were outplayed and outclassed in a blowout loss at Penn State. They made it. Everything the school could've dreamed of came true. SMU made the (bleep)ing College Football Playoff. Texas A&M hasn't done that. Neither has Baylor, Texas Tech, or Houston. Take it outside of the football-mad state - Wisconsin, Florida, Ole Miss, Auburn, Missouri, USC, Utah, and Iowa have yet to make the last year, Penn State and Tennessee hadn't been in, it wasn't a fluke. Okay, so the ACC was fourth among the Power Four conferences by about a gajillion miles. SMU hung up 66 on TCU, walloped Florida State 42-16, took out a good Louisville squad, and in all, beat six teams that went bowling, and again, almost took out Clemson. All head coach Rhett Lashlee has done is go 22-6 over the last two seasons and 29-12 since taking the job in recruiting class was terrific, the staff kept around everyone important, crushed the transfer portal for key positions, the depth is better, and the starting 22 will be more talented than last year's schedule is tougher - Florida State will likely rebound, Miami is on the slate this time around, and good luck with those road trips to TCU and Clemson - and the team will be the hunted, but after last year, you're insane to think SMU can't do it all again. SMU Offense BreakdownSMU Defense BreakdownSeason Prediction, Win Total, Keys to Season © 2025 The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
LSU Reveals Massive Scheduling News On Monday
LSU football fans have a new date to mark on the calendar — two, actually. On Monday, the school announced it will face off with SMU in a home-and-home series set for 2028 and 2029. The first game will take place in Baton Rouge on Sept. 2, 2028. The return trip to Dallas is scheduled for Sept. 1, 2029. Advertisement It may be a few years out, but this matchup could be sneaky good. SMU, now in the ACC, went 11-3 last season and earned a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff. The Mustangs ultimately lost to Penn State in the opening round, but their rise under head coach Rhett Lashlee has turned heads across the country. They're not the same old SMU — and teams are taking notice that the Mustangs are on the rise nationally thanks to their massive financial backing. For Brian Kelly and the Tigers, adding a team like SMU to the non-conference schedule is a smart play. LSU finished 9-4 last season and narrowly missed the Playoff. By the time 2028 rolls around, resume-building games like this could be critical to punching a postseason ticket. Advertisement Game times and TV details haven't been announced yet, but those will come later. For now, it's clear LSU is continuing its trend of stacking competitive matchups in the new Playoff era. LSU Tigers head coach Brian Lew-Imagn Images And while it might not be Alabama or Clemson, SMU could very well be a top-25 team when these games roll around. That's reason enough to start getting excited — even three years early. Related: Deion Sanders shoots off 3-word message to son following minicamp
