Stl.pony: What are the odds we beat Baylor?
Pretty low, if I’m being completely honest. Yes, Shawn Oakman and Orion Stewart are suspended, yes, SMU’s team is far improved from last year. But the talent gap between the two programs is simply too great. Best case scenario, SMU manages to squeak into the second half with a small lead but then what? SMU is not a team that knows how to win big games right now. Chad Morris is a great coach but he cannot teach his team how to do that simply in practice. It needs to be done out on the field and a team like Baylor is not a great one to learn against.
Ft5: Who is on Baylor’s starting DL?
At defensive tackle the Bears rotate through Andrew Billings, Beau Blackshear and Javonte Magee. Blackshear and Magee are the starters and can tear through a pair of guards and a center with ease. Terrance Lloyd will take Oakman’s spot in the starting lineup and Chris McAllister is on the other side of the line and both are capable ends.
CTMustang: Is there a formal injury report issued prior to/after the game with respect to players who do not play at all (DJ?)?
There hasn’t been in the past but it might be something we are told about in the press box before the game today.
JamesPonyIsland: Are you worried recruits will start to jump ship once they see the product?
One thing you have to give credit to the 2016 class about is that it has a strong sense of the big—picture vision Morris has been selling. The class understands that this season will not go well, the class understands that the real rebuild can’t really start until they arrive and provide the reinforcements. So if a player decommits from SMU this season, I would not blame it on the football team’s performance because Morris has told them not to expect greatness in 2015.
That’s not to say SMU will not lose anyone in the 2016 class. Plano OL Kadarius Smith should already be on decommit watch after picking up an offer from Oklahoma State. But if SMU were to lose Smith’s pledge, it should simply reaffirm your belief in Chad Morris’ scouting ability that he picked out P5 talent in players before the P5 could see it. That vision will go a long way towards rebuilding SMU.
Stl.Pony: What’s our record going into the James Madison game?
When the schedule originally came out, I picked SMU to lose to Baylor and TCU and defeat UNT in the opening three games. The only thing that will change my mind about that is if SMU comes out and does not compete or gives up against Baylor. If that happens, then it’s going to take Morris a little longer to teach this crew to win and I’d expect SMU to head into James Madison 0-3. But if SMU shows some fire against Baylor, I’d expect even more out of the Ponies trying to get revenge after being embarrassed by North Texas last year.
Pretty low, if I’m being completely honest. Yes, Shawn Oakman and Orion Stewart are suspended, yes, SMU’s team is far improved from last year. But the talent gap between the two programs is simply too great. Best case scenario, SMU manages to squeak into the second half with a small lead but then what? SMU is not a team that knows how to win big games right now. Chad Morris is a great coach but he cannot teach his team how to do that simply in practice. It needs to be done out on the field and a team like Baylor is not a great one to learn against.
Ft5: Who is on Baylor’s starting DL?
At defensive tackle the Bears rotate through Andrew Billings, Beau Blackshear and Javonte Magee. Blackshear and Magee are the starters and can tear through a pair of guards and a center with ease. Terrance Lloyd will take Oakman’s spot in the starting lineup and Chris McAllister is on the other side of the line and both are capable ends.
CTMustang: Is there a formal injury report issued prior to/after the game with respect to players who do not play at all (DJ?)?
There hasn’t been in the past but it might be something we are told about in the press box before the game today.
JamesPonyIsland: Are you worried recruits will start to jump ship once they see the product?
One thing you have to give credit to the 2016 class about is that it has a strong sense of the big—picture vision Morris has been selling. The class understands that this season will not go well, the class understands that the real rebuild can’t really start until they arrive and provide the reinforcements. So if a player decommits from SMU this season, I would not blame it on the football team’s performance because Morris has told them not to expect greatness in 2015.
That’s not to say SMU will not lose anyone in the 2016 class. Plano OL Kadarius Smith should already be on decommit watch after picking up an offer from Oklahoma State. But if SMU were to lose Smith’s pledge, it should simply reaffirm your belief in Chad Morris’ scouting ability that he picked out P5 talent in players before the P5 could see it. That vision will go a long way towards rebuilding SMU.
Stl.Pony: What’s our record going into the James Madison game?
When the schedule originally came out, I picked SMU to lose to Baylor and TCU and defeat UNT in the opening three games. The only thing that will change my mind about that is if SMU comes out and does not compete or gives up against Baylor. If that happens, then it’s going to take Morris a little longer to teach this crew to win and I’d expect SMU to head into James Madison 0-3. But if SMU shows some fire against Baylor, I’d expect even more out of the Ponies trying to get revenge after being embarrassed by North Texas last year.
