DALLAS – For the first time in nearly four decades, SMU Football is starting a season with the national spotlight squarely on them. The Mustangs landed at No. 16 in Monday’s Associated Press preseason poll — their highest preseason ranking since 1985.
The buzz around the Hilltop has been building since last year’s historic run. SMU closed the 2024 campaign ranked No. 12 in the final AP poll, the program’s best finish since the Pony Express era, when they wrapped the 1984 season at No. 8.
This latest nod from the AP mirrors the Mustangs’ placement in the US LBM Coaches Poll released last week, where they also checked in at No. 16. With Texas claiming the top spot and a deep roster of national powerhouses above them, SMU enters 2025 firmly in the conversation as one of college football’s teams to watch.
