25 Years of Hope

Tomorrow, we celebrate the hope that comes with the promises contained within the Christmas story.  I will also celebrate the hope that comes with remaining a fan of a team, even through the toughest of times.

Since my earliest memories, I have been a fan of SMU football. As a child, this was easy. The Mustangs fielded one of the most successful programs of the early 80′s. The NCAA will tell you that SMU “cheated” in their pursuit to be the best during this time period and they flexed their muscles on the SMU program to prove a point. In their eyes, the only small private school who should be allowed to pay and play with the “big boys” is and was Notre Dame and if any small private school tried to play by the same rules they would make an example of them and in 1987 this is exactly what they did, handing down the “death penalty” to the SMU football program.

Since the SMU “death penalty,” the NCAA has continued to show their hypocrisy. Several big name, outlaw programs have committed several violations and filled their rosters with players engaged in all kinds of criminal activities, but not one program has been threatened with the “death penalty.” It appears that the NCAA fears student athletes making money more than they do student athletes involved in criminal or otherwise nefarious activities.

The NCAA’s plan worked. The SMU football program has never fully recovered and other tainted programs have won national titles. Tomorrow, SMU makes their first bowl appearance in 25 years as they take on Nevada in the Hawai’i Bowl, but they still have miles to go before they return to the greatness of the glory days. However, for this Mustang fan, it feels like my faith and hope in this program has finally been rewarded. Win or lose, June Jones has laid the foundation for this program to continue to excel. It may be decades before SMU returns to the Top 10, but at least for now I have some tangible proof that hope eventually pays off.