Casey Horny is in his third season with SMU in 2026 as the assistant special teams coordinator.
The special teams unit posted a strong performance in the 2025 season, ranking 12th nationally in punt return defense after only allowing 3.75 yards per punt.
Redshirt freshman kicker Sam Keltner recorded a breakout year in 2025, going 36-for-38 in PATs and making 14 field goals. The Texas native nabbed ACC Specialist of the Week honors after playing a critical role in the Mustangs’ 35-24 victory over Clemson on Oct. 18. Keltner went 3-for-3 in field goals against the Tigers, including a career-long 51-yarder.
Punter Wade McSparron also garnered weekly honors, earning a spot on the Ray Guy Award’s “Ray’s 8” list after his collegiate debut in the 42-13 win over East Texas A&M. McSparron notched 55 punts for 2,337 yards on the season, tying for second in the ACC with five touchbacks. Junior Yamir Knight was also a key player on special teams, ranking 24th in FBS for return yards per punt (9.9).
In 2024, the Mustangs reached historic heights, making the ACC Championship game and the College Football Playoff.
SMU became the first team to go 8-0 in conference play after moving to a Power 4/5 conference from a Group of Five conference. The 2024 season also marked the first time the Mustangs went undefeated and untied in conference play in conference play in back-to-back seasons.
The special teams’ unit was a strong suit for the Mustangs during their historic campaign in 2024. SMU finished in the top-25 nationally in Punt Returns (13th), Kickoff Returns (15th) and Kickoff Return Defense (22nd). The Mustangs also finished ranked in the top 20 (19th) in the FEI Special Teams Ratings by BC Toys.
Kicker Collin Rogers also shined in his junior season, earning a spot at the top of the Mustangs record book for points scored with 356. Rogers also nailed seven field goals of 50-or-more yards, one shy of the NCAA record for a single season.
For his success, Rogers earned First Team All-America honors by the FWAA and Sports Illustrated as well as All-America Honorable Mention by Phil Steele. The junior was also named First Team All-Texas by Dave Campbell’s Texas Football publication as well. His 124 points scored ranked 12th in FBS on the year and was the third most in program history for a single season.
Horny spent the 2023 year as the defensive coordinator at Westwood High School.
He spent nine seasons on the Baylor staff as the assistant director of football operations in charge of defensive quality control.
Horny joined the Baylor staff from Texas State, where he served as the Bobcats’ co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach in 2007. Prior to that, he spent two seasons (2005 and 2006) as defensive backs coach at Trinity University in San Antonio and two as cornerbacks coach (2003 and 2004) at Sam Houston State.
A native of Goliad, Texas, Horny spent three seasons as a graduate assistant at Texas, where he worked with the Longhorns’ defensive backs. Texas posted a 31-7 record during his three seasons at school, twice finished among the nation’s top 10 and won two bowl games. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Texas in 2000 and 2002, respectively.
