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Coach Dykes: American Athletic Conference Weekly Media Availability

SETTING THE SCENE
•     The Mustangs hit the road to take on American Athletic Conference east division foe Connecticut on Saturday at 12 p.m. ET/11 a.m. CT on ESPN3.

•     SMU is coming off a 45-31 victory over then-No. 17 Houston at home. Ben Hicks threw for 318 yards and four touchdowns en route to AAC Offensive Player of the Week accolades, while Kyran Mitchell registered seven tackles, 3.0 for loss and 2.0 sacks, and two fumble recoveries for co-Defensive Player of the Week honors. Ke'Mon Freeman ran for 107 yards and two scores, and Reggie Roberson, Jr. added 134 yards off nine receptions and a TD.

•     The Mustangs produced season highs against an FBS opponent for scoring (45), total offense (514), rushing yards (196), first downs (25) in Saturday's win. SMU also held the Cougars to a season-low 31 points and 365 yards.

•     SMU currently sits second in the AAC's west division at 3-2, a game back from Houston (4-1). 

•     The match-up with Houston marked the fourth for the Mustangs against a ranked opponent this season. ([16/16] TCU, at [19/22] Michigan, at [12/13] UCF, [17/17] Houston). The win was the first over a ranked opponent since SMU defeated then-No. 11 Houston 38-16 in 2016. SMU has played the 22nd toughest schedule, per NCAA rankings.

•     SMU is one of five FBS teams to have three 1,000+-yard career rushers (Braeden West (2,462), Xavier Jones (2,019) and Ke'Mon Freeman (1,349)). The Mustangs join Ball State, Clemson, Georgia Tech and Syracuse on the list.

THE SERIES
SMU and UConn will meet for just the fifth time this Saturday, with the Mustangs holding the 4-0 advantage all-time. SMU won the 2017 meeting 49-28 in Dallas, and closed out 2014 with a 27-20 road win. The teams first met  in 1989, with SMU wining 31-30 at home.

ABOUT THE HUSKIES
UConn enters Saturday's match-up 1-8 overall and 0-5 in American Athletic Conference play. David Pindell has thrown for 1,502 yards and 11 touchdowns, while also leading the Huskies on the ground with 934 yards and eight TDs. Tyler Coyle leads UConn's defense with 80 tackles, and Kevon Jones has 2.5 sacks this season.

THE COACHES
•    Sonny Dykes is in his first season on the Hilltop after serving head coaching stints at Cal (2013-16) and Louisiana Tech (2010-12). Dykes spent 2017 at TCU as an offensive analyst. In his eighth season as a head coach, Dykes holds a career record of 45-51. 
•    Randy Edsall is in his second season of his second stint as head coach at UConn. Edsall led the Huskies from 1999-2010, before returning in 2017. From 2011-2015 Edsall served as head coach at Maryland. He is 78-87 with the Huskies. 

LAST TIME VS. CONNECTICUT
DALLAS -- Ben Hicks passed for 280 yards and four touchdowns on Sept. 30, 2017, and SMU pulled away with three fourth-quarter touchdowns to beat Connecticut 49-28.

The Mustangs (4-1, 1-0 American) took the lead for good at 35-28 on Hicks' 34-yard touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton with 11:46 left. SMU's Ryan Becker blocked Brett Graham's punt on UConn's next possession and Ke'Mon Freeman's 3-yard run made it 42-28. The Huskies (1-3, 0-2) then turned it over on downs deep in their own territory and Braeden West's 25-yard run capped the scoring on the next play.

Trey Quinn caught 15 passes for 116 yards and two TDs and Sutton finished with seven catches for 112 yards and two scores for SMU.

UConn trailed 21-10 at halftime but cut the deficit to one with 10-straight third-quarter points and tied it at 28 early in the fourth.

Bryant Shirreffs passed for 408 yards and two TDs for the Huskies but was sacked eight times.    

MIRACLE ON MOCKINGBIRD
The 1989 meeting holds significance in SMU football history as the "Miracle on Mockingbird". When SMU returned to the football field in 1989, critics claimed that it was going to take a miracle for Forrest Gregg and the Mustangs to win a game. UConn came to town in the second week of the season. After trailing 30-14 late in the fourth quarter, the Mustangs scored 17 points in the final five minutes to win the game, 31-30.

QUICK HITS
• Ben Hicks was named the American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week, while Kyran Mitchell earned Defensive honors after the win over Houston.

• Jake Hall's three fumble recoveries are tied for second most in the FBS. 

• James Proche is eighth nationally and first in The American with nine receiving TDs in 2018.

• The Mustangs produced season highs against an FBS opponent for scoring (45), total offense (514), rushing yards (196), first downs (25) in Saturday's win.

•  SMU is the only team to have passed for more than 200 yards against Michigan (209), and the 319 yards of total offense were the most surrendered by UM as well.

•  The 653 yards of total offense against HBU rank second all-time at SMU, while the 63 points are fifth.

• Forty-one student-athletes have played their first game in a Mustang uniform this season. 

BIG BEN
Ben Hicks led the Mustangs to a 45-31 win over then-No. 17 Houston in week 10 and earned AAC Offensive Player of the Week honors and an ESPN Helmet Sticker. Hicks registered 318 yards and four TDs. His four TDs tied a career high and gave him six career games of at least four TD passes. 

Hicks opened 2018 with a pair of touchdowns at North Texas, and went on to set the SMU career TD record with a 50-yard TD pass to James Proche at No. 19/22 Michigan in week three.

Hicks went 3-for-3 for 16 yards and threw the game-winning touchdown in overtime against Navy in week four.

In the win at Tulane, Hicks threw for 291 yards and three TDs en route to AAC weekly honors. The next week against Cincinnati, he turned in a season-high, 328-yard performance with two TDs.

His 67 passing TDs, 8,142 career passing yards, 644 completions and 8,036 yards of total offense are the most all-time for a Mustang. Hicks also leads SMU with 10 300+ yard games in his career.

He sits eighth among FBS active leaders in career passing TDs and 12th for career passing yards. He leads active AAC quarterbacks in yards, completions and TDs.

Hicks is one of 30 candidates on the Manning Award Watch List, and is also a member of the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Watch List and was named a Player to Watch by the Touchdown Club of Columbus. 

BIG GAME JAMES
Biletnikoff Watch List member James Proche leads The American in receiving TDs (9), eighth nationally, and receptions per game (7.1), ninth nationally. His 781 receiving yards are fourth in the AAC. He has six career 100+ yard games and is sixth all-time at SMU with 21 career receiving touchdowns (T1st AAC active, T13th FBS active). Proche has 2,306 career receiving yards (8th at SMU), and 13 games with 100+ all-purpose yards (6 in 2018).

Proche opened 2018 with a pair of catches for 77 yards, including a 59-yard touchdown at UNT, and led Mustang receivers with six catches for 50 yards against No. 16 TCU. In the win over Navy, Proche posted 64 yards and a TD off nine receptions. He had three receptions for 69 yards and a TD against HBU.

Proche had a massive day against No. 19/22 Michigan in Ann Arbor, posting a career-high 11 receptions for 166 yards and two TDs. He also added 23 KOR yards and 16 PR yards for 214 all-purpose yards. 

Against No. 12/13 UCF, Proche added 100 yards off 12 catches and two TDs to go with a career-high 229 all-purpose yards.   

Proche caught the winning TD in SMU's victory over Tulane on Oct. 20, giving him his fifth straight contest with a reception TD. He finished the outing with six catches for 93 yards.    

In the upset of Houston on Nov. 3, Proche added nine catches for 90 yards and a TD. He finished the outing with 110 all-purpose yards.

GO WEST, YOUNG MAN
Paul Hornung Watch List member Braeden West became the ninth Mustang to post 4,000 career all-purpose yards, reaching the mark after notching 84 at UCF on Oct. 6. He also cracked the top 10 in rushing yards.

He showed his versatility in week one versus North Texas with a rushing and receiving touchdown. His 71-yard TD catch is the longest by an SMU running back since a 57-yard reception by Derron Brown in 2003. He finished the outing with 112 all-purpose yards.

Against No. 16 TCU, West had a 51-yard touchdown run, giving him his second 50+ yard touchdown of the season. He went on to post 185 all-purpose yards and 145 rushing yards off 26 carries in the win over Navy in week four, and had two touchdowns in the win over HBU.

West has seven 100+ yards rushing games and is one of only eight FBS players to post both a 50+ yard rushing and receiving TD this season. West is seventh on SMU's all-time all-purpose yards list (4,274) and his rushing yards (2,462) are 10th for a Mustang.
    
BACK AT IT
Jordan Wyatt ranks atop SMU's all-time lists with five defensive return touchdowns and four career interception return touchdowns. He finished 2017 with 288 career interception return yards, also the most for a Mustang, and became just the sixth player in FBS history to record an interception return and fumble recovery for touchdowns in the same game 2017 week one against Stephen F. Austin.

Wyatt registered his first takeaway of 2018 against Cincinnati, an interception on the Mustangs' 3-yard line.

Among national active leaders, Wyatt tops the list for career interception return TDs (4), career defensive return TDs (5) and career interception return yards (289). He is fourth for active career fumbles forced (8). His 11 career interceptions place him tied for eighth on SMU's all-time list (T-2 active nationally). 

Wyatt is a member of the Wuerffel Trophy Watch List, as well as a nominee for the AFCA Good Works Team and Senior CLASS Award. He has also picked up preseason accolades from College Football News, Athlon Sports and Dave Campbell's Texas Football.    

TRIBUTE 23
Since 2009, the SMU coaching staff has chosen a deserving student-athlete to wear the number 23 to honor Jerry LeVias.

LeVias was the first African-American to receive an athletic scholarship in the Southwest Conference. While at SMU, LeVias made athletic and academic All-America teams and, in 1966, contributed to the Mustangs' first SWC title in 18 years. He was an All-American in 1968 and was chosen All-SWC in 1966, 1967 and 1968.

Senior Jordan Wyatt has been awarded the number for 2018.

Players To Wear #23 In Honor of Jerry LeVias
Jordan Wyatt, CB, 2018
Nick Horton, DE, 2016-17
Jeremiah Gaines, TE, 2015
Stephon Sanders, LB, 2012-14
Chris Banjo, DB, 2009-11

STAY ACTIVE
Graduate transfer CJ Sanders joined the Mustangs after three seasons at Notre Dame and is second among active FBS players in kickoff return yards (2,217), and is third in both combined return yards (2,524) and combined kick return TDs (4). He is the only active player in the country with three kick return TDs and a punt return TD.

X GON' GIVE IT TO YA
Preseason Maxwell and Doak Walker Award candidate Xavier Jones is back for his junior season after a successful 2017 campaign. Jones led the team with 1,075 yards on 182 carries, including a career-high 175 yards at Memphis on Nov. 18, and posted nine rushing touchdowns (10th AAC). He also added 14 receptions for 84 yards.

Jones has five career games of 100+ yards rushing, including games of 175, 146 and 106 in 2017, 20 career rushing TDs and 2,019 yards off 406 carries. 

In addition to the Maxwell and Doak Walker Watch List selections, Jones is a member of the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Watch List and earned preseason accolades from Dave Campbell's Texas Football and Athlon Sports.

C'MON  KE'MON
Ke'Mon Freeman had a standout game against No. 17 Houston after being limited with a shoulder injury this season. Freeman registered 107 yards off 20 carries and a pair of TDs to lead SMU's run game. It was his second career 100-yard game and second career two TD game. 

Freeman led the Mustangs with 11 rushing touchdowns (4th AAC) in 2017, including multiple TDs in three games (at TCU, Arkansas State, Tulane). Starting with the TCU game on Sept. 16, 2017, Freeman posted a stretch of six straight games with a rushing TD, the longest for a Mustang since Reggie Dupard's streak of 13 straight (last 6 1984, first 7 1985).

Freeman has 1,349 career yards on 320 carries and 17 rushing TDs.   

WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR SMU?
Freshman quarterback William Brown got his first collegiate start in the 31-30 overtime win against Navy in week four. Brown went 21-of-29 passing with 150 yards and 2 TDs. In the 63-27 win over HBU, brown completed 12-of-20 passes for 309 yards and two TDs en route to American Athletic Conference Weekly Honor Roll accolades.

He is 53-of-85 passing on the season with 625 passing yards and seven TDs, and is second for most games with multiple passing TDs as a true freshman (3).

GETTING DEFENSIVE
Senior linebacker Kyran Mitchell leads the Mustangs after nine games with 61 tackles (39 solo) and 11.5 tackles for loss. His 4.0 sacks are also a team best with fellow linebacker Richard Moore. Seven different Mustangs have recorded an interception this season, while 22 players have registered a tackle for loss. Jake Hall's three fumble recoveries are tied for second best in the FBS. 

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
SMU welcomed eight graduate transfers, three FBS transfers and six junior college transfers who are eligible for the 2018 season. The grad transfer total is among the highest in the nation. Forty-one student-athletes have played their first game in a Mustang uniform this season.  

HONORARY CAPTAINS
Head Coach Sonny Dykes has named Freeman Johns the Mustangs' honorary captain for the final home game against Memphis.

Johns lettered for SMU from 1973-77. The wide receiver registered 44 catches for 930 yards and nine TDs during his career and went on to be selected 288th overall in the 10th round of the 1976 draft by the LA Rams.
    
Tentative Schedule (subject to change)
Sept. 7 Paul Loyd
Sept. 22 Putt Choate
Sept. 29 Randy Allen
Oct. 27 Kris Briggs, David Richards
Nov. 3 Bobby Leach, Jim Johnston
Nov. 16 Freeman Johns

SMU IN THE CLASSROOM
The 2018 SMU roster features 14 student-athletes who have already earned a degree, giving them the fourth highest total in the country. Andrew Adams, Jourdan Blake, Paka Davis, Jake Hall, Ben Hicks, Larry Hughes, William Jeanlys, Nick Natour, Patrick Nelson, Chad Pursley, CJ Sanders, Cole Sterns, Noah Westerfield and Jordan Wyatt have all earned undergraduate degrees. Of those 14, SMU has eight graduate transfers. Twenty-three Mustangs also earned All-AAC academic honors in 2017.

IT'S ALWAYS SONNY
It's Always Sonny on the Hilltop with Head Coach Sonny Dykes airs Mondays at Ozona Grill and Bar, and runs throughout the 2018 campaign. The show is live on KAAM 770 AM from 7-8 p.m. There are food and drink specials, trivia and prizes on site each week.

Fans can also tweet their questions for Coach Dykes using the hashtag #AlwaysSonny, or by clicking the "Ask The Coach" button on SMUMustangs.com. The show will also be available on the TuneIn App by searching "SMU" and on Facebook Live (Facebook.com/SMUMustangs).

PONY UP-GRADES!
SMU has made significant investments in Ford Stadium improvements since 2011, including an upgraded locker room finished in August 2018, a new team meeting room with stadium-style seating and renovated positional meeting rooms, a new playing surface, lighting system, A/V system, new suites and club seating.

SMU recently broke ground on a 67,000-square-foot Indoor Performance Center, which will include a 4,000-square-foot multi-use Boulevard Club, a 2,000-square-foot recruiting lounge and access to a 1,500-square-foot outdoor patio, and a turf field with access to a training room and fitness/rehab area.

Prior to the 2016 season, Paragon Sports Constructors installed a new synthetic turf playing field at Ford Stadium. The new synthetic turf field is PowerBlade Bolt as manufactured by Shaw Sports Turf. The design for the new field remained the same, featuring the Mustang logo at mid-field with 'SMU' and 'Mustangs' in opposing end zones.

In the summer of 2013, SMU added a new 233-seat Hall of Champions Club and seven new suites in time for SMU's move to the American Athletic Conference. Among the great features of the new Club and suites is their indoor/outdoor design which allows fans to enjoy the comfort of indoor amenities as well as the excitement of sitting out in the bowl and hearing the roar of the crowd and the hard-hitting action on the field.

FAST LAYNE    
Paul Layne holds an unrivaled Mustang record, having attended every SMU game for the last 40-plus years, even going to Tokyo.

He had to pull a "fast one" more than once to keep his streak alive – like the time his ex-wife remarried. He persuaded her to schedule her wedding on a Friday within driving distance of SMU's game at Nevada the following day. So the night before the Mustangs tangled with the Wolf Pack in Reno, Layne attended the wedding in California's Sonoma Valley, then drove 200 miles to catch the opening kickoff.

Layne even attended a game dressed in a Halloween costume to disguise his case of adult-onset chicken pox. Starting when Layne attended SMU and was a team cheerleader, he's attended 504 straight games. His 500th was SMU's 63-27 victory over HBU on Sept. 29, 2018.

SMU IN THE AP
SMU is one of only 44 schools that have ever been ranked No. 1 by the Associated Press since 1936. The Mustangs have been ranked No. 1 twice. SMU was No. 55 on the AP's Top 100 Programs list released in 2017 and No. 51 on the College Football News Greatest Teams of All Time list in 2018. 

THE RED CARPET
SMU may need to install a red carpet in the Mustang locker room as SMU has become "the place to be" in Dallas.

Among the celebrities, legends, current and former pros that have attended practice or stopped by the stadium in recent years are: Roger Staubach, Troy Aikman, Terrell Owens, Tim Brown, Michael Irvin and Deion Sanders, as well as former SMU standouts Reggie Dupard, Eric Dickerson, Craig James, Jerry Ball, Russell Carter and Don Meredith.

Former President George W. Bush even visits SMU football practice. Bush has also performed the ceremonial coin toss at games against Navy (2011), Memphis (2012), Texas Tech (2013), Cincinnati (2014), UNT (2015), Memphis (2016) and Navy (2018).

ANNUAL GIVING HITS RECORD HIGH
Donors to SMU Athletics have once again set a new mark for generosity, contributing a record $24.3M to support SMU Athletics and its 424 student-athletes during the last fiscal year. The $24.3M represents a 31% increase in total athletics giving year-over-year and marks the biggest fundraising year for athletics in the history of the university.   

Included in that total are nearly $6.1 million in Mustang Athletic Fund gifts, which provide critical unrestricted support. That total represents an increase of 20% year-over-year and a jump of over 300% during the past decade. These donations provide the foundation for annual support for each of the 17 sports at SMU.

In addition to these gifts, significant investments from donors have been made in SMU Athletics facilities, including new indoor performance center.

WE DON'T TAILGATE, WE BOULEVARD.
The editors at Southern Living posted a roster of the top 20 Southern schools with the greatest pregame celebrations, and SMU's Boulevard made the list.

From the food and drink to the style and traditions, nobody does tailgating quite like the Mustangs. SMU's beautiful Bishop Boulevard is tailgate central for fun and entertainment.

Along The Boulevard, fans can mingle with family and friends and bring a picnic, fire up a grill or visit Mustang Alley vendors.