The SMU linebacker room got an overhaul last year and it is back in almost its entirety, along with some new additions, for the 2024 season.

It starts at the top as Maurice Crum Jr. is in his second season leading the room. The leaders on the field are veterans Ahmad Walker and Kobe Wilson along with relative newcomer Alexander Kilgore. Those three are joined by another sophomore in Brandon Miyazono, another transfer in Justin Medlock and a pair of true freshmen in Brandon Booker and Zach Smith.

All tolled, it's a room to be reckoned with.

"That's the thing I do love about the guys, they all have chips on their shoulders. They've got boulders on their shoulders," Crum said. "Going into last year we were an unknown group that no one knew anything about and thought we're probably going to be a weak link of the defense. I think our guys heard that and their makeup did not allow them to do that. They're still made up that way in the sense they're not going to change because they've had some success. They don't pay attention to outside noise. I love showing up and coaching them everyday because they just love football."

It all starts with Walker and Wilson.

They are the veterans who have been through the battles and are still taking that fight to the practice field, game field and opponents. It's not just that, but they are taking the rest of the group with them.

"You've got two veteran guys who have played a ton of football, but they still have a hunger to get better. I can challenge them really hard," Crum said. "Our relationship has grown. We're a lot closer. They've been over my house a few more times. The relationship that we have, like we thrive off each other. If I look flat coming into practice, they'll poke at me to get my juices, my energy up and it goes back and forth. But I think that's where the player-coach relationship, and we have a really good one, that makes it dynamic. They know the expectation because I don't even have to say it. When they walk on the field, they know how I want to see it, how I want it done and they just know to do it. So now I can spend time focusing on the young guys, the new guys who don't know, who are trying to figure out left from right while they're running around the field. Having them makes things a lot easier."

Then there is Kilgore who played in all 14 games with three starts last year as a true freshman. He had 36 tackles, six for loss, including 3.5 sacks, and intercepted a pass in the bowl game. He then came out and said he didn't feel his season was that great this spring.

That says a lot about a young player. So what has he tried to get better at this offseason? 'Everything.'

"Taking it step by step, learning the defense better, like the back of my hand," Kilgore said. "Now, I feel like I have a very good, comprehensive thought on the defense and I know it like the back of my hand. Asking Coach Crum what I can do to improve my game and trying to get better at the stuff that he tells me I need to get better on."

That has included getting him some work at the other linebacker spot. That has helped him understand the defense better and it also gives some versatility to what Crum and Symons can do with the defense.

"He's really confident," Symons said of Kilgore. "His approach is so serious and mature, like I said last year, for a guy at his age. So I think he just continues to get more and more comfortable. Now coach is playing him at Will linebacker too, as well as some Mike. Now you're talking about learning both sides of it, which I think long term is going to make him a better player."

Crum has also had a chance to go deeper into the defense and the linebacker position within the system. He was playing a little bit of catchup last season, all with a player on the roster who had been in the system for two seasons previously. That brought some challenges, but the room developed then and is taking the next step this season.

"I'm definitely more comfortable. I know last year, when I got here, I was just trying to figure out their names and trying to learn the defense," Crum said. "Last year, Ahmad knew the defense better than I did. So, trying to make sure that I could still coach him, but he's not a dumb guy, he knows he knows more than me so trying to balance that relationship. Now I have more to give to him because I understand the inner workings of the defense. I understand how Coach Symons wants to see it and how his mind works so I can make and help the group get better, so I feel a lot better. I feel a lot more comfortable and then they kind of go as I go. I have to set the tempo for the room and they've got to match my energy or exceed my energy. For me, it's a lot more comfortable, it's a lot more relaxed and I'm having a lot more fun."

Even though he had a head start when he got to SMU, Walker has taken the next steps in his development too. Now he is part of a group he feels is prepared to make the move to the ACC and have success.

"I think we've got a really good linebacker group. I feel like we've got a lot of depth," Walker said. "We've got guys that can run, physical guys, big guys. I think we've got a good chance to be a really strong group on defense. … Just knowing the guys around me, being confident in those guys and being confident in myself and my ability."

Wilson did not have the benefit of being in the defense before and felt like he was all over the place at times last season, trying to learn it all and play at a high level. He still finished with a team-high 80 tackles and was an All-AAC Second Team selection. 

But just like the rest of the room, he's not satisfied with what he's done in the past.

"Coming out of season I had, I'm not ever satisfied. I want to get my name out there more," Wilson said. "I feel like I have to work a lot harder, especially with my height. A lot of people don't look at 5-10, 5-11 guys and think, 'Let's put him on our draft board.' Glad that I got a couple eyes (on me), now I've got to get a lot more and the way we do that is by winning games, especially getting on the national level. So a championship and all that is the main goal right now."

Another player looking to take that next step this season is Miyazono. He was a feature on special teams, but after playing all over the field for Frisco High, including quarterback, it took him some time to learn the position at the college level. He was getting there by the end of last season and 

"You start looking at the rest, like Brandon (Miyazono) played a lot of special teams last year, but again, he's following suit to be a linebacker and he's more comfortable there," Crum said. "So he's going to accelerate. It's a good situation."

The two new freshmen are following in Kilgore and Miyazono's footsteps. Smith was on campus and went through spring like Kilgore did, but like Miyazono he did a lot of different things in high school and has to learn some more of the intricacies of the position. 

"I think Zach has developed tremendously. Those 15 practices in the spring, if you want to get in and have a chance to play early, similar to Kilgore before, those spring practices, they're leaps and bounds that they change your game.," Crum said. "… Now he has a centralized focused on playing linebacker, there was a lot of growth that had to happen. I think he's taking that step."

Then there is Booker who is coming off back-to-back state titles.

They will have a chance to get on the field this season.

"Him having that championship pedigree, he's used to winning, he's used to up tempo and upbeat practices," Crum said of Booker. "That's why you want to recruit winners, a guy who's won two championships and, obviously, we're coming off a championship so that's his expectation. That's all he knows. He saw SMU win a championship, he won two championships. So in his mind is like, 'Why would I not win a championship?' He has that mindset already. For him, it's just more so about learning the defense, learning the details of being the Mike backer."

Booker is also making an impression on his new teammates.

"I like Brandon Booker. He's going to be a really good player for the Mustangs," Walker said. "… He's just got it. You can tell whenever a young guy comes in, he's just putting everything together. You start putting it all together towards middle of fall camp. He's just on that path to become a good player for the Mustangs."

It can be tough, though. There are only so many snaps in a game and only so many linebacker positions. 

"It's really good because we all try to compete, we all try to get better," Walker said. "It's just friendly competition. We're just all trying to elevate ourselves."

The Mustangs aren't going to surprise anyone either. Coming off a conference championship and bringing some swagger with them has put teams on their schedule on notice.

"I'm a firm believer on never stay on the past. The past is the past and now we've got to move to the future," Wilson said. "Because we made so much noise last year, people are coming from our heads and we're not being quiet about it, sneaking into the ACC at all. Y'all see the promos, the $159 million facility. People are looking at us like, 'Oh, these guys are just thinking they're coming here and whoop some butt.' We know we've got to step up way bigger. That's what our motto is, 'Raise it.' We're not focusing on the past at all. We need to raise the standard of every every room, not just the linebacker room."

One thing is for sure, the group shows up every day ready to go, ready to get better and ready to win.

"They want to get here to this grass, they want the ball to get put down and they want it snapped," Crum said. "They'll take every rep that they can regardless of the success they had last season, that's just who they are. My guys are just fighting for reps, fighting to practice, fighting to play because they love the game. So you won't see a change from young men like that because they just want to show up and play. They know what got them that, but they want more. … There's enough on the table for them, there's enough on the plate for them to still not be full and satisfied. I think you can continue to see them eat."