No. 4 SMU (8-1-1, 3-0-0 AAC) vs. No. 25 FIU (6-6-2, 4-0-0 AAC)

Sunday, Oct. 8 | 7:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. CT

FIU Soccer Stadium – Miami, Florida

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SMU Notes | FIU | American

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SETTING THE SCENE

The Mustangs are undefeated in conference play and sit in the top five in three separate polls: No. 4 - United Soccer Coaches, No. 5 - Top Drawer Soccer and No. 3 - College Soccer News and are ranked No. 8 in RPI.

Three Mustangs earned Top Drawer Preseason All-American honors: Jelldrik Dallman - Second Team, Mads Westergren - Third Team and Jaylinn Mitchell - Freshman

This will be SMU's second time competing agaainst a ranked opponent this season, with the first being a 1-0 win against Oral Roberts at home on Friday, Sept. 8.

SMU is 7-0-1 at home this season and 15-1-2 at Washburne Stadium overall. The Mustangs most recently beat Charlotte 1-0 at home for their third conference contest, with the Mustangs remaining undefeated in AAC play.

Dallmann is one of just 37 players on the watch list for the nation's highest individual honor - The Hermann Trophy.

For the Week ending on Oct. 1, Jelldrik Dallman earned an AAC Honor Roll nod.

 

SERIES HISTORY

Oct. 8, 2023 will be the 21st time the two programs have faced off.

In 2022, SMU won 6-4 in last season's game against the Panthers.

SMU is 7-0 at FIU, 7-2 in Dallas and 3-1 at neutral sites.

Going into the match, SMU currently sits at No. 4, with FIU tied with UIC for No. 25.

 

SUCCESS UNDER HUDDY

Hudson - SMU 97-39-16 (.691) is approaching his 100th win as head coach for the Mustangs.

As a result of his eight wins in the 2023 so far, he now sits just three wins away from notching the coveted 100.

Under Hudson as head coach, SMU has five NCAA Tournament appearances, including 3 Elite Eights. Hudson has been with the team since 2007 and was promoted to head coach in 2015.

The last coach to reach 100 wins with the Mustangs was head coach Schellas Hyndman.

 

PRESEASON AND SEASON HONORS

Sophomore forward Alexander Petraeus earned All-AAC Offensive Preseason Player of the Year honors.

Junior defender Mads Westergren earned All-AAC Defensive Preseason Player of the Year honors. 

Three Mustangs earned Top Drawer Preseason All-American honors: Jelldrik Dallman - Second Team, Mads Westergren - Third Team and Jaylinn Mitchell – Freshman

So far this season, SMU has had 14 Weekly honor roll accolades.

Most recently for the Week ending on Oct. 1, Jelldrik Dallman earned an AAC Honor Roll nod.

 

BIG SEASON FROM JOHNSON

Just ten games into the 2023 season, Johnson has already recorded five shutouts and 26 saves in 810 minutes in goal.

Three of Johnson's five shutouts so far were earned consecutively: 1-0 against then-No. 25 Oral Roberts on Sept. 4, 1-0 against Saint Louis on Sept. 8 and 1-0 against Yale on Sept. 11.

For his efforts, Johnson has since earned AAC Goalkeeper of the Week three times, which were earned consecutively following play against Oral Roberts up until the week after the Mustangs' 2-1 win over Memphis

Johnson also earned the AAC Goalkeeper of the Week accolade after posting six saves, including a penalty kick, at USF on Sept. 22.

 

FILLING THE STATS WITH JELLY

Dallmann has been named to the Hermann Trophy Watch List, the most prestigious award in NCAA soccer prior to logging his hat trick against UCA.

He is first in the AAC in goals scored with eight.

He has been named AAC Conference Player of the Week two times so far this season.

Dallmann is also ranked in the top 100 national players by Top Drawer Soccer, coming in at No. 19.

He was named AAC Offensive Player of the Week for the weeks ending on Sept. 25 and Oct. 1, the later of which was earned after securing the tie against Grand Canyon, 1-1.

 

ASSISTING ON POINT

Bailey Sparks is first in the conference in most assists scored on the season, with four.

As just a sophomore, Sparks' teammate Petraeus has eight total assists so far on his career.

SMU's all time leader in assists is Diego Walsh with 39, he played for the Mustangs from 1999-2002.

 

WASHBURNE'S DOMINANCE

The Mustangs are currently undefeated at home in the 2023 season, 7-0,-1 including one win so far over a top 25 team.

SMU's record at Washburne is 15-1-2 since the start of last season.

 

NEW ADDITIONS

The Mustangs have added a 13-player 2023 recruiting class.

This group of newcomers ranks among the top 25 in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer. In addition, this marks SMU's fifth consecutive ranked recruiting class.

Lamar Bynum, Jelldrik Dallmann, Martin Dominguez, Richie Garcia and Oliver Hald bring additional experience to the Hilltop as transfers.

The remaining 8 new faces are highly-touted incoming freshmen who make their way to Dallas from California, Illinois, as well as overseas. Three hail from the metroplex.

 

CASH ME OUT

In his time off the pitch, senior midfielder Harvey Castro competed in a field of 1,026 Main Event entries to earn his first WSOP Circuit Ring at the ripe age of 21.

He cashed out with over $275,000.

 

SENIOR STANGS

This year's senior class includes Cole Johnson, Nathan Ashley, Harvey Castro, Jose Ortiz, Cody Black along with graduate transfer Jelldrik Dallmann.

Dallmann joins the Mustangs as the former ASUN Player of the Year and was also named first-team all-region by United Soccer Coaches.

 

PONY UP DALLAS

In just seven days after it was announced that the Mustangs will be moving to the Atlantic Coast Conference, SMU has raised $100 million to support the transition to the ACC.

The generous early commitments from a group of thirty donors that includes trustees and key donors  will enable SMU to align and compete with an elite group of national institutions with powerhouse athletic programs, benefitting both SMU Athletics and the entire University community.

 

ESPN+ COVERAGE

This season, all of SMU's home games will be featured on ESPN+ along with a select few away games. Stay up-to-date on coverage information on SMUMustangs.com.

 

UP NEXT

The Mustangs continue their conference slate and return back to Washburne with play against FAU. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. and the game will be livestreamed on ESPN+.