Few college football programs have endured the same rollercoaster ride as the SMU Mustangs. The program has endured both incredible highs and terrible lows. Through it all, the Mustangs have come out of it a solid mid-major program, making cheap SMU football tickets tough to find. In the football-rich state of Texas, the Mustangs are not a program that should be overlooked. As one of the biggest college football draws in the Dallas area, last-minute SMU football tickets are usually in high demand.

The Rise

For a long time, SMU was a mostly obscure program in the Southwest Conference, best known as the place where legendary running back Doak Walker played college football. But the arrival of Ron Meyer in 1976 changed everything. By the end of his tenure in 1981, he had built the Mustangs into a national power, with the Mustangs going 10-1 and claiming a national title that season. Meyer left things to Bobby Collins, who led SMU to a 31-4-1 record over the next three seasons, including another claimed national title in 1982 and SMU’s third Southwest Conference title in four years during the 1984 season.

The Fall

In 1987, SMU became the first college football program to ever be given the “death penalty” by the NCAA because of violations committed under both Meyer and Collins. The program was terminated for two seasons, causing the Mustangs to lose virtually all of their players and start from scratch. During their first three years back on the field, the Mustangs would go 4-29, becoming the laughingstock of the college football world.

Rebuilding

Fortunately for the Mustangs, the dark days wouldn’t last forever. It took a long time, but June Jones finally became the coach to put SMU back on the map. Jones took over in 2008 and went 1-11 in his first season. But in his second season, Jones led the Mustangs to their first bowl game since 1984. It would become the first of four consecutive bowl games for the Mustangs under Jones. After that, a series of coaches, most notably Sonny Dykes, helped to turn SMU into a perennial bowl contender and one of the top programs in the American Athletic Conference.