Spring football is ongoing across the state of Texas now that spring break is over. The 13 FBS programs in the Lone Star State are allowed to participate in 15 on-field practice sessions, including 12 involving contact. Spring games are littered throughout April with most taking place on April 15 or April 22. Houston goes first when the Cougars play their spring game on April 7. 

The 2023 season is one of change. Sam Houston is moving up to Conference USA from the FCS ranks. Houston is now in the Big 12. UTSA, North Texas, and Rice are preparing for their first season in the American Athletic Conference. 

But what is the best and worst case that can happen for each team in 2023? Here’s where we stand on the SMU Mustangs. 

SMU MUSTANGS 

2022 record: 7-6

2023 schedule
Sept. 2 Louisiana Tech
Sept. 9 at Oklahoma
Sept. 16 Prairie View A&M
Sept. 23 at TCU
Sept. 30 Charlotte
Oct. 7 IDLE
Oct. 12 at East Carolina
Oct. 20 at Temple
Oct. 28 Tulsa
Nov. 4 at Rice
Nov. 10 North Texas
Nov. 18 at Memphis
Nov. 25 Navy 

Best case: The Mustangs are poised to pounce on the opportunity to become frontrunners in the new-look AAC after the departures of Houston, Cincinnati, and UCF.  The 2023 schedule doesn’t include fellow AAC favorites Tulane or UTSA. A 10-win season isn’t out of the question on the Hilltop. That’s an accomplishment the program has only reached once since the Death Penalty and that was in 2019 when current head coach Rhett Lashlee was the offensive coordinator. The non-conference schedule is tough with trips to TCU and Oklahoma, but a perfect run in conference play is more than possible. 

The optimism starts at quarterback with the return of Preston Stone, who looked poised to take over the quarterback spot in the middle of last season before suffering an injury. The addition of 17 transfers also helps. SMU figures that over half of its starters in 2023 wil be new faces, including four of the five starting defensive backs. SMU added impact players at nearly every position and the roster is almost unrecognizable to the one Lashlee inherited 18 months ago. 

Worst case: The fear for a transfer-heavy team such as SMU is cohesion. Building a team-oriented group with 60+ new players over two recruiting cycles is a challenge. A 2-2 start with losses to TCU and Oklahoma could create division behind the scenes if Lashlee & Co. aren’t careful. The expectations are so high that an eight- or nine-win season could feel like a letdown if the Mustangs don’t at least reach the conference title game. Maybe the offense can’t replace the production of wide receiver Rashee Rice and the incoming defensive transfers don’t live up to the hype.  

PREVIOUS EDITIONS 

Texas Longhorns 
Texas A&M Aggies
TCU Horned Frogs
Baylor Bears 
Texas Tech Red Raiders
Houston Cougars