SMU’s defense is edgier heading into 2023, and likely better than its been in some time

9:02 AM on Aug 8, 2023
UNIVERSITY PARK – A college football team is filled with a cast of characters. Starting safety Bryan Massey makes no secret about the role he’d like to play.
On Saturday, in front of plenty of viewers for SMU’s fan fest practice, Massey delivered a hit that smeared the line between necessary and unnecessary. He sent tight end Micah Hilts – who owns a six-inch and 60-pound advantage on Massey – flying. Hilts didn’t appreciate the hit.
Massey, meanwhile, shared the video on his Twitter account seemingly with pride. The post had a short caption: “Every team needs a villain.”
Edgy, and perhaps music to SMU defensive coordinator Scott Symons’ ears.
The 2023 season has yet to begin, and yet, there’s been a different feeling around the hilltop. A program known for its offense, described by its head coach as “TDU” upon his hiring, has been led by its defense so far. Head coach Rhett Lashlee said as much last week.
It began in spring and continued into fall camp, signaling the likelihood that’ll continue once the season begins, too.
“Going to a school like SMU, all you hear about is the points and the touchdowns, all those certain types of things,” said safety Jonathan McGill, who transferred after starting four years at Stanford, “but defense wins championships.”
McGill hasn’t been at SMU long. That hasn’t stopped him from knowing Mustangs history. He knew that the last time SMU won a conference championship was the 1984 Southwest Conference title. He also knew that was the last year SMU had a top 25 defense, in terms of points allowed.
“These are all things we want to get to, obviously,” McGill said, “but you’ve got to put in the work daily, and what that work looks like daily is iron sharpening iron and going against the offense – making the best for each other, practicing smart, practicing safe, but also competing and getting after it every day.”
Let’s go back to Saturday’s fan fest as an example. McGill had an interception that day and quickly went up to SMU quarterback Preston Stone to let him know. Later on, Stone completed a touchdown pass and made sure to return the trash talking fire.
“It’s a blast,” Stone said, regarding the competition on days like that.
It’s also something that didn’t really exist last year. The SMU offense, in Lashlee’s first year as a head coach, excelled. The Mustangs scored the 12th most points per game (37.2) on average. The defense, meanwhile, was a hindrance, allowing 33.8 points per game. That ranked the SMU defense 119th out of 131 teams.
To fix the issue, SMU went out and added a lot of talent via the transfer portal. The Mustangs added 13 defensive transfers, including plenty of players with starting experience. The SMU staring defense could have could have more transfers than returners.
The influx of transfers has not only led to more talent, but more competitiveness for a defensive group that aspires to be more than an afterthought this season.
“I think there’s a completely different edge,” said Symons, who is in his second year as defensive coordinator, “and I think that starts with leadership. The best teams are player led. Coaches set the expectations, but the players have to take ownership, and I think this year, from this time last year to where we are now, it’s night and day.”
Of course, no games have been played yet. SMU’s defense struggled with tackling a year ago. While that was a big emphasis this offseason, SMU still has to show it can translate from practice drills to games.
That’s something that was on the mind of Massey, who is one of the handful of returning starters. He said the defense has been motivated to not only be better tacklers, but to be better entirely.
“We definitely saw last year that we could’ve been better,” Massey said, “especially at both safety spots. Coach Symons always says ‘tip of the spear,’ [meaning] be the ones that lead. So for us at safety, we’re definitely trying to have that edge. We don’t want to leave any doubt that we’re the best position on the team.”