On The Road Again

SMU’s Rally Falls Short at Tulane; UCF Awaits

DALLAS - At halftime last Thursday in the Superdome SMU trailed the Green Wave, 31-7, and looked bad getting there. Dropped passes, missed tackles and bad reads were rampant. In a game thought to be a valid measuring stick for the Mustangs after being out-manned by Texas Tech and TCU, SMU appeared unable to compete.

It was enough to make a coach blow a gasket, or at least lose his aloha.

So what was SMU head coach June Jones thinking as the half ended? “Well, it’s very frustrating,” he said on Monday. “When you’re coming into these situations, you have to change the culture of losing. And these kids have lost for so long, they don’t believe they can win.”

"Sooner or later, somebody's got to step up and become a man and make some plays," said SMU head coach June Jones on Monday.

“When I got to halftime I told them, ‘We ain’t gonna change, guys. Either you make the plays or, sooner or later, somebody’s got to step up and become a man and make some plays.’”

But Jones said his halftime demeanor was the same as always: no screaming, no chair-throwing, etc. “For the last five or six years,” Jones said, “they’ve probably had that done to them, and it didn’t help.”

Jones’ style certainly worked this night. In the second half, the Mustangs held Tulane to three points, collected two turnovers and scored four times before falling, 34-27.

Cornerback Derrius Bell’s forced fumble and linebacker Justin Smart’s interception led to two Thomas Morstead field goals. Bo Levi Mitchell added touchdown throws to Emmanuel Sanders and Terrance Wilkerson, and the Mustangs darned near pulled it out.

After Wilkerson’s TD catch drew SMU to within seven with 2:03 remaining, Jones elected to kick it deep. “We were playing pretty good defense in the second half,” he said. “We knew that, obviously, they were expecting the on-side kick and we thought if we could just hold them, we had two timeouts, we were going to get the ball at mid-field.”

“But when you lined up incorrectly on the first play and they got eight yards, game over.”

“I thought we played more aggressively [in the second half],” Jones said. “We didn’t hit anybody, really, in the first half.”

“Obviously, you’d like to start the whole game that way,” he said, “but for whatever reason, it seemed like we were up-tight, playing for the Super Bowl, or something. It just wasn’t happening.”

Jones said there were probably eight or nine dropped passes. “And who knows what would have happened early in the game if you catch those and convert first downs?”

“It’s hard to get guys open,” he said. “And we’ve got guys wide open and we don’t catch the ball or we don’t hit them.”

Also frustrating for Jones was getting no points after Morstead’s first-quarter 34-yard run on a fake punt.

“[We’ll] just keep plugging along and eventually the light will come on for everybody and everybody will relax and enjoy playing football,” Jones said.

Mitchell threw for 246 yards and three touchdowns with two picks. “He got better, believe it or not, last week than he was before,” Jones said. “And hopefully he’ll play better this week than last week.”

Sanders and Aldrick Robinson again each had over 100 yards receiving. Robinson had a 45-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter.

SMU’s defense continues to struggle, though strides were made last week. The Mustangs rank last in C-USA against the rush (222 ypg), the pass (297 ypg) and in scoring (43.4).

No. 2 quarterback Logan Turner will miss a second game this week due to suspension for violating team rules. Freshman Braden Smith takes his spot.

This week’s match-up features two of the weakest offenses in C-USA, statistically speaking. UCF rates dead last in total offense (283 ypg) and scoring (15.2 ppg). SMU is one notch up in total offense (312.6 ypg) and ranks ninth in scoring (23 ppg).

The two teams also bring up the rear in turnover margin.

“They’re kind of like us,” Jones said. “Trying to find a way to win a game.”

Also like SMU, UCF rides three-game losing skid. The Knights’ string began with an overtime loss to then No. 17 South Florida at home. Last week they were jolted, 58-13, by UTEP in their league opener.

In that one, Knights’ freshman quarterback Rob Calabrese (6-2, 215) passed for 167 yards and rushed for a game-high 86 yards on 11 carries. Kamar Aiken (6-2,205) caught five passes for 58 yards and one touchdown. Redshirt freshman running back Ronnie Weaver (6-0, 202), UCF’s leading rusher, had 57 yards on ten tries.

Senior cornerback Joe Burnett (5-11, 185) had his 13th career interception, tying the school record.

“They’ve got some players,” Jones said. “And [UCF head coach George O’Leary] does a great job of keeping them from beating themselves. They just haven’t made as many plays, it looks like to me.”

O’Leary, in his fifth year at UCF, owns a 23-31 record. The Knights won last year’s C-USA championship, beating Tulsa in the title game before losing to Mississippi State in the Liberty Bowl. Gone are 19 seniors from that team, leaving four this year.

Quotable Jones:

• On the O-line: “I thought our offensive line the last five weeks has played pretty well, good enough to win, even though they’re very young and new. But they’ve gotten better. When I watched them in practice [Monday], this is the first time I’ve walked away saying, these guys are getting it.”
• On redshirt freshman left tackle Kelvin Beachum, Jr.: [He] has gone light years from the first game to now. I mean, he’s the real deal.”

SMU Football Notes:

• Saturday will mark SMU’s first trip to Orlando.

• No. 2 quarterback Logan Turner will serve the second and final game of his suspension Saturday for violating team rules. Braden Smith, whom the Mustangs still hope to redshirt, will play if necessary. Defensive end Anthony Sowe is also suspended for taking a swing at another player late in the Tulane game.

• Emmanuel Sanders’ 112.2 receiving yards per game ranks fourth nationally.

• Derrius Bell had a career-high nine tackles at Tulane.

• Jones said running back DeMyron Martin has been slowed of late by a shoulder problem.

On Deck: SMU (1-4, 0-2) at UCF (1-3, 0-1), Saturday, October 4, 2008, 2:30 p.m. CT, Bright House Networks Stadium (45,000), Orlando, Fla., Radio: KTCK 1310 AM; TV: CBS College Sports.

Prediction: SMU’s offense is gaining traction and the D stepped up late at Tulane. Also, UCF may be dreaming of next week’s first-ever match-up with Miami: SMU 34 UCF 32. (Send the Mustangs to Disney World, Coach!)

Did You Know? SMU AD Steve Orsini was UCF’s AD from 2002-06. Orsini hired George O’Leary in ‘04.

Article by Rick Atkinson -
CUSA Fans SMU Correspondent