SMU Mustangs Football Offseason Preview

The 2021 season started very promisingly for SMU, but it ended with a loud thud. The Mustangs started the campaign 7-0 and were in the hunt for a prestigious New Year’s Six bowl bid. Then came a midseason game at Houston in which they fell behind, rallied, and then allowed a long kick return for a touchdown in the final minute to lose, 44-37. That sent them into a tailspin from which they never recovered. SMU lost three of its next four games, two of them to teams which finished below the Mustangs in the AAC standings, Memphis and Tulsa. There were whispers about a possible coaching change late in the season, and players seemed to mentally check out instead of fighting harder for coach Sonny Dykes. Sure enough, changes occurred right after the season ended, giving this program a chance to start fresh.

Incoming transfer Camar Wheaton will provide a spark at running back for an offense which will need to max out in 2022 for this program to reach its potential.

Key Personnel Lost

Receiver Danny Gray was a third-round NFL draft pick. Tight end Grant Calcaterra was an NFL draft selection. Safety Trevor Denbow and receiver Reggie Roberson also pursued NFL careers as undrafted free agents.

In order to replace these and other departing players of note, SMU went into the transfer portal and landed receiver Beau Corrales and offensive tackle Joseph Bissinger. They will be important pieces of the 2022 SMU offense.

The other really big change at SMU from the offseason: Coach Sonny Dykes took the open head coaching job at TCU after Gary Patterson stepped down at the end of a two-decade career in charge of the Horned Frogs. With Dykes out, SMU hired Rhett Lashlee as its new head coach. Lashlee had been Gus Malzahn’s offensive coordinator at Auburn, where he enjoyed a lot of success. Lashlee more recently worked as the offensive coordinator for the Miami Hurricanes. He brings a lot of credentials and experience to his first collegiate head coaching job.

Important Incoming Freshmen

Tight end R.J. Maryland is a four-star recruit. Safety Pierre Goree is a three-star prospect who will provide help on the back line of SMU’s defense.

Key Position Battles

The secondary is where this roster needs to develop, and where Lashlee and his new staff need to identify talent. SMU spent too much time giving up big plays in 2021; that was a problem for the Mustangs last year. Getting a better defense will increase this team’s margin for error in 2022 and enable Lashlee, an offense-first coach, to focus more on developing his offense. He will need a defense which creates fewer headaches.

Biggest Offseason Goal(s)

The secondary certainly needs attention, but the main offseason goal is for Rhett Lashlee to make his offensive players comfortable with his system after the transition from Sonny Dykes. It’s true that Dykes was an offense-first coach just like Lashlee, but the younger head coach has his own way of doing things, and it’s up to him to make players fully understand what he wants to achieve.