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1980S
football program. Forrest Gregg returned to accept what he called “the ultimate challenge” when he was named as the Ponies’ head coach Jan. 14, 1988, after having coached the Green Bay Packers since 1984. He was given the responsibility of guiding a team consisting of 74 freshmen, 16 of whom were starters. One of those freshmen was quarterback Mike Romo who, on Feb. 10, 1988, became the Mustangs’ first signee since 1985. Romo engineered one of the most exciting wins in Mustang history when he led SMU from a 17-point deficit in the final five minutes to defeat Connecticut, 31-30, in just the second game of the 1989 season. He completed a four-yard pass to Michael Bowen on the game’s final play to give the Ponies their first win since 1986 in a game that came to be known as the "Miracle on Mockingbird." • One of the most memorable plays in SMU football history took place Nov. 13, 1982, when Bobby Leach took a cross-field lateral on a kickoff with 17 seconds left and raced untouched for a 91-yard touchdown to give the Mustangs a 34-27 win over Texas Tech. The play helped preserve the Ponies’ undefeated season and forever branded Leach with the nickname of “Miracle Man.” • As a freshman in 1989, Mike Romo broke four school passing records which had stood for over 20 years. Romo set SMU records for yards passing in a game (450), passes completed in a game (40), passes completed in a season (282) and passes attempted in a season (503). • Jason Wolf set an NCAA freshman record when he caught 61 passes in 1989. • After playing their home games in Ownby Stadium from 1926-48, the Mustangs returned their home games to the on-campus facility in 1989. SMU hosted Rice in the season opener on Sept. 2, marking the return of Mustang football to Ownby exactly 40 years and 11 months after SMU’s last game there. Record for the decade: 63-28-1
There was a great deal of optimism surrounding the SMU football program in 1980. Eric Dickerson and Craig James gave the Mustangs one of the nation’s top backfield duos and Mike Ford returned to the team after a knee injury limited him to just two starts in 1979. Leading the defense were future All-Americans John Simmons and Harvey Armstrong. The Mustangs parlayed their talent into an 8-4 record and the school’s first national ranking (20th) since 1968. A 10-1 record the following season vaulted the Ponies to their second National Championship and their first conference title in 16 years, as a new quarterback took the reigns of the Pony Express. Lance McIlhenny was the perfect leader for SMU’s option attack, using his running ability and leadership capabilities to guide the Mustangs to a 34-5-1 record after becoming the starting quarterback in the seventh game of his freshman season in 1980. After Ron Meyer was named head coach of the New England Patriots prior to the 1982 season, Southern Mississippi coach Bobby Collins was named the Mustangs’ new head coach. Dickerson, James and McIlhenny led SMU to an 11-0-1 record and its second-consecutive National Championship in 1982, highlighted by a victory over Pittsburgh and its star quarterback, Dan Marino, in the Cotton Bowl. With the loss of Dickerson and James to the National Football League in 1983, the Mustangs found a capable replacement in Reggie Dupard, a tailback from New Orleans whose blazing speed made him the first SMU running back to gain over 1,000 yards in three consecutive seasons. Dupard was the nation’s eighth-leading rusher in 1985 with 1,278 yards, and he became a first-round draft choice by the New England Patriots the following spring. After NCAA sanctions forced the cancellation of the 1987 season and University officials cancelled the 1988 campaign, SMU welcomed one of its former gridiron greats back to lead the resurrection of the Mustang
Forrest Gregg assumed the role of athletic director April 11, 1990, while announcing that he would relinquish his coaching duties following the 1990 season. Tom Rossley, who served as offensive coordinator at SMU from 1988-89, became the 13th head coach in Mustang history in December 1991. The orchestrator of the Mustangs’ run-and-shoot offense, Rossley returned to the Hilltop after one season as the quarterbacks coach of the Atlanta Falcons. The Mustangs went 5-6 in 1992 and Rossley was named Southwest Conference Co-Coach of the Year. Another significant accomplishment occurred that season when Jason Wolf ended his career with 235 receptions, making him the Southwest Conference’s career leader in that category. Mick Rossley then emerged as the Mustangs’ top receiving threat. A sure-handed receiver, Rossley broke Jerry LeVias’ school record for receptions in a season when he hauled in 83 passes in 1994. The winds of change swept across the Hilltop following the 1994 season as SMU prepared to begin its 77th and final season of play in the Southwest Conference after announcing that it would accept an invitation to join the Western Athletic Conference beginning in 1996. Coinciding with the final SWC season was the return of SMU football to the Cotton Bowl. After playing most of its home games the previous six seasons at Ownby Stadium, SMU made “The House That Doak Built” its home stadium in 1995. The Mustangs made their return a memorable one when, in the 1995 season opener against eventual SEC Western Division champion Arkansas, Wilbert Mitchell recovered a Razorback fumble on the SMU two-yard line in the game’s final minute to preserve a 17-14 win.
Eric Dickerson (pictured) and Craig James teamed to form the "Pony Express" from 1979 to 1982
1990S
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