What was he Thinking: New Year's Eve

The wisdom of Ferris Bueller cannot ever be dismissed. If you don’t recall, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.’’

When you get to this time of the year, you can pause and wonder where the time went. One day, you’re ringing in the new year. The next and you’re trying to get all of your donations taken care of by Dec. 31.

We say farewell forever to 2023 with what we experienced, what brought us joy, what brought us frustration, made memories and endured moments that changed our lives one way or another.

The human experience is based on every moment of time spent and how wisely it is used. Now, we welcome 2024 on Monday.

At On The Pony Express, we wish you all the best for 2024.

Permit us to give you a look at the Top 5 stories that shaped SMU’s athletic 2023 calendar. This was collaborated between yours truly and your publisher Billy Embody.

1.     SMU accepts invite to ACC – A few minutes after 7:00 a.m. on Friday Sept. 1, SMU Board of Trustees Board Chair David Miller received a call from Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner Jim Phillips. NC State said yes. That flip vote forever changed SMU’s athletic future. ACC presidents voted 12-3 to admit SMU, Stanford and Cal to join the conference. Every SMU fan will remember what he or she was doing the moment they learned of the news. SMU’s pursuit of a Power 4/5 home seemed bound for the PAC 12. But when that league collapsed on Aug. 4 with the departures of Washington and Oregon to Big 10, SMU’s hopes seemed dashed. Stanford and Cal were suddenly left without a league. Undaunted, Miller chased the ACC and had been since the spring. Miller’s pursuit came with an unprecedented proposal. SMU would not take a dime of league TV revenue for its first nine years of membership to gain membership. As Miller told Phillips in a meeting, “It’s a couple hundred million dollars. “I’m not losing sleep over it.” It worked. The university formally exits the American Athletic Conference on June 30. It becomes a P4/5 school on July 1.

2.     SMU wins American FB conference title – The internet was barely a thought. Cell phones didn’t exist. The Berlin Wall still marked as the dividing line between the free world (West Germany) and Communism (East Germany). That was 1984. That was also the last time SMU won or shared a conference title. That football team earned a share of the Southwest Conference Title with Houston. With the 2023 American Athletic Conference looking far different with the departures of UCF, Houston and Cincinnati to the Big 12, the Mustangs were considered a favorite for the league crown. But they weren’t the favorite. SMU was picked third in the AAC preseason poll. Still, head coach Rhett Lashlee’s team grew as the fall moved forward. Blowout wins became commonplace. Then SMU won November road tests at Rice and Memphis. It clinched a berth in the AAC title game against defending league champion Tulane. With starting quarterback Preston Stone out for the season with a broken leg, the Mustangs won Dec. 2 in New Orleans, 26-14. The Mustangs didn’t get to play in an NY6 bowl and lost their Fenway Bowl matchup with future ACC opponent, Boston College, 23-14. However, the title drought ended. SMU finished 11-3.

3.     Volleyball wins AAC – Second-year volleyball coach Sam Erger knew she had a team that could compete with the best in the country. Her non-conference schedule included eventual national finalist Nebraska, Auburn, Purdue, a trip to Florida State and home to Baylor, a team SMU beat when the Lady Bears were ranked. Well, all Erger’s team did was put together the greatest season in school history. SMU easily won the AAC title by going 18-1. The .947 winning percentage was also the best. The Mustangs won 15 consecutive matches and rode that streak into the NCAA tournament. It traveled to Austin as the No. 7 seed. On Nov. 30, SMU swept Texas State in the opening round for its second-ever NCAA tournament win. That marked 10 straight sweeps and 19 for the season. The Mustangs then fell to eventual national champion Texas in the second round on Dec. 1. Still, Erger mentored AAC Player of the Year Emma Clothier, Setter of the Year Celia Cullen and Libero of the Year Sina Uluave. Of course, Erger earned league Coach of the Year honors. As a postscript, SMU finished with its best-ever NCAA RPI ranking at No. 24.

4.     Men’s soccer wins AAC, to Sweet 16 – A 14-3-2 record and regular season conference crown – the 21^st in school history – earned head coach Kevin Hudson’s soccer program a No. 6 seed and chance to host in the NCAA tournament. SMU defeated Denver in the first round, 2-1, on Nov. 24 and advanced to the Sweet 16 for 24^th time. However, it turned into a rough night in that round against Oregon State on Nov. 25. The Mustangs fell hard, 7-1, as their 35^th tournament appearance ended. Depending on which poll you valued, SMU was ranked as high as No. 1 by Top Drawer Soccer, No. 2 by United Soccer Coaches and No. 3 by College Soccer News. Postseason honors were kind to the Mustangs from United Soccer Coaches. Mads Westergren earned first-team All-American honors. Cole Johnson, Jelldrik Dallmann and Bailey Sparks were Second Team All-American members.

5.     Equestrian Captures National Title – Before 2023 SMU had won eight national titles. Now, it’s nine. The athletics program earned the ninth when Equestrian reached the top of the mountain on April 15. The nation’s No. 1 program edged No. 2 Auburn, 11-8, in the National Collegiate Equestrian Association National Championship at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, FL. The significance of this title is that it marked the first time a program outside of the Big 12 or SEC had ever won it. In the match, SMU jumped out to a 4-1 lead and kept the Tigers at bay. During its title run, SMU topped Baylor in the quarterfinals, 10-8, then handled TCU in the semifinals, 14-6. SMU finished the season 13-1. SMU finished with nine All-Americans. Junior Hensley Humphreys was named Elite Equestrian. Head Coach Carol Gwin was named NCEA Coach of the Year.

Indeed, 2023 revealed what arguably was one of the most successful athletic years in school annals. Of course, men’s basketball struggled in its first year under Rob Lanier. Toya Wilson led the women’s basketball program back to the WNIT.

Now, the challenge of preparing these programs for life at the highest level of collegiate athletics is ongoing.

Happy New Year!