Pony Stampede: An SMU Athletics podcast · 247Sports, SMU, SMU Mustangs, SMU football, College Football

SMU football ready for TCU, Iron Skillet

·27 min·1 clip

Make Chandler Morris a pocket passer, make him uncomfortable, and make him doubt his decision-making on every snap.

1. Pony Stampede previews SMU's Saturday-morning game at TCU, the 102nd Battle for the Iron Skillet, after TCU said it will not renew the series beyond the 2025 game. 2. Host Jordan Hoffaditz, who also runs the Pony Stampede website and message board, returns after a stretch away and includes interview clips from running back Tyler Levine and RJ Maryland, plus comments from Coach Lashley. 3. Hoffaditz says he is unsure how he feels about the game, believing SMU has a better chance at TCU than it had at Oklahoma while TCU may be the stronger team. 4. He says the run game must be more consistent, since only LJ Johnson's long run against Louisiana Tech and Jalen Knighton's fumbled breakaway at Oklahoma stand out through three games, and he warns against having Preston Stone drop back 40 to 60 times against Joe Gillespie's drop-eight defense. 5. He notes that Velton Gardner and Knighton were suspended against Prairie View A&M for missing class and Johnson was hurt on the first drive, which made Kamar Wheaton the featured back, and he says the line is best with Justin Osborne healthy. 6. On defense, he says the unit can contain but not stop a TCU offense led by Chandler Morris, and he credits Jahari Rogers, corners coach Ricky Hunley, Crossley and Jonathan McGill for better edge-setting and tackling. 7. He recounts Oklahoma, where SMU trailed 14-11 before falling behind 28-11, and says 13 players remain from the earlier win at TCU while Lashley called TCU's roster possibly more talented than the national-championship team. 8. He suggests SMU study how Colorado scored on TCU in week one and find similar plays, but says teams should not "change who you are" for one opponent. 9. He points to personal stakes, including players who faced each other in high school and Jordan Hudson's move from TCU to SMU, and notes the line opened at TCU -4.5 before reaching -9 while he predicts a one-score game. 10. College football fans following SMU, TCU and the Iron Skillet rivalry.

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Pony Stampede: An SMU Athletics podcast