ACC move only beginning to pay off for SMU in recruiting
If SMU’s going to elevate its program on the field, recruiting must take a step up. So far, so good as the Mustangs prepare for their new conference.
Tuesday night was yet another example of the move to the Atlantic Coast Conference paying off for SMU. The Mustangs reeled in another local standout, DeSoto’s Brandon Booker, to stay home and play for the Mustangs.
Thursday came even bigger news as 2025 Duncanville (Tex.) quarterback Keelon Russell became the latest Panther to stay home. The Top 100 prospect committed to the Mustangs over Ole Miss and plenty of other scholarships.
Needless to say, the ACC logo is paying dividends.
SMU kicked off its 2025 class with a pair of four-star East Texas prospects in Rickey Stewart and Demetrius Brisbon, but since then, it’s been Dallas area prospects committing to SMU.
“It’s been huge. It’s a game changer,” SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee said. “I mean, so many guys want to stay home and play here. So many guys want to come to SMU, but they want to play on the biggest stage. Now they’ve got that opportunity. So it’s kind of just eliminated any barriers to coming here that we have versus the people we’re competing with for those same recruits. With the Dallas Metroplex being the best place in the country to recruit high school kids, it’s a big deal for us.”
Locking down Dallas is important in SMU’s recruiting efforts and recruits noticed everything the school has going for it off the field. From the Armstrong Fieldhouse to Garry Weber EndZone Complex to NIL and beyond, there’s buzz around the program.
“Dallas is the recruiting hotbed. It’s where all the elite schools come to recruit their top talent,” SMU running backs coach Khenon Hall said. “The fact that now we’re in the ACC and we’re one of the Power Three conferences, then you’re in Dallas, you have the resources we have financially and then the new stadium. You have the outstanding head coach. Everything is clicking at the right time. It’s time. The kids are starting to see it. They’re believing in us and it’s going to be unbelievable time to be a Mustang, to live in Dallas. It’s just different.”
Despite two losses in non-conference play to No. 14 Oklahoma and rival TCU, there are reasons why SMU’s seeing a recruiting boom. That recruiting boom is expected to elevate the roster even further.
“What the ACC news does is validate the progress we’ve made in all facets,” SMU general manager Alex Brown said. “From the coaching staff coach Lashlee’s put together, to the talented team we’ve assembled and to all the constant improvement on campus from a facilities standpoint. We feel like we can compete with anybody. Who doesn’t want to live in Dallas, get a high end education, have one of the best alumni/donor support groups in country, compete at the highest level, etc.?”
Dallas at the center of SMU’s recruiting pitch
With the city of Dallas producing so much talent, the pitch now includes playing high-level opponents nationally in league play.
“At the end of the day, if you’re an elite player in Dallas, why would you not want to go anywhere else but stay here?,” defensive coordinator Scott Symons said. “Why would you want to go to Lubbock or Baylor when you can go play Miami, Florida State, Clemson and do it right here in Dallas? The facilities we have, the trajectory of this program right now. I think we’ll continue to be able to make headways in recruiting moving forward.”
With multiple recruiters on staff with Dallas ties, the program has staffers that hammer home what staying home can do for players. The two latest commitments show that as well.
“The fact that kids are wanting to stay home more means everything. Being a Dallas kid, from here, knowing what Dallas can do for you, it’s amazing,” Hall said. “Coach Lashlee has done a good job of continuing to bridge that gap between SMU and Dallas and get kids from all around the Dallas metroplex to stay home. It’s huge. It’s going to be game-changing. It’s going to put us in position to play some big-time games as we continue to grow, develop and get guys here.
“Who wouldn’t want to live in Dallas and call it home? It’s a beautiful place. One of the largest cities in the world, so many opportunities, so many resources. Just being in Dallas, you can just change your life.”
Lashlee’s staff gets great response on recruiting trail
The reception’s been even better than expected as the staff gets far more back and forth with prospects. SMU’s more involved with high-level prospects, especially in a 2025 class that has potential to be historic for the Mustangs.
“It’s been awesome, everybody’s excited about it,” SMU pass game coordinator Rickey Hunley said. “I think everybody was just kind of waiting until that moment happened and was really an influx of just calls and guys just extremely excited. The one thing that I think we’ve already done and continue to do is recruit at a high level. So it was like for us, the conference affiliation changes and some of those things may change on the outside, but the inside we’re doing the same thing that we’ve been doing.”
“I mean, literally guys that wouldn’t give you time of day will now respond to you when you reach out so that’s nice,” SMU assistant director of college scouting Jeremiah Wait laughed. “You have the ability to be more national with recruiting, but of course still prioritizing our Texas players because those are our guys.”
With the 2025 class ranking in the Top 10 nationally, there’s buzz around the program. That Group of Five conference affiliation is no longer a roadblock to landing top talent.
“I think it’s been awesome,” offensive coordinator Casey Woods said. “The number of times since we’ve been here in 18 months that we’ve been told, ‘Coach, I love everything, but…’ is no longer a barrier to them in recruiting. We’ve got to go out there in recruiting and embrace the future of what this thing’s going to look like and we’ve got to make sure we do a great job.
“Right now, when you can tell a kid in that class, ‘Hey, we’ve got a Top 10 class in your class’ and we’ve been at the table for less than a month, that resonates, I think. Not just locally, but somewhat nationally, too.”
“It’s been a huge plus,” SMU quarterbacks coach Jonny Brewer added. “I’m not gonna lie, it’s been a boost.”
Ultimately, SMU wants to build a fence around Dallas where top prospects don’t leave. It’s a mindset SMU’s had, but now has the final pieces of ammunition to really execute.
“It ain’t gonna be easy just to pry kids away from Dallas anymore,” Hall said. “They got to deal with us.”
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