Inside The Mustangs

How SMU Going to the ACC has Worked Out and Why

It will soon be two years and two full seasons since SMU became a member of the ACC, and a strong case can be made that its performance has exceeded expectations.
Ryan Kay|
SMU Mustangs and ACC logo. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
SMU Mustangs and ACC logo. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

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On July 1st, 2024, Southern Methodist University athletic teams officially joined the Atlantic Coast Conference.

First, a look back at some of the negative social media posts that had initially criticized or had poked fun at SMU for joining the ACC.

Negative social media posts primarily targeted Cal and Stanford, but SMU, a Texas school joining a conference primarily along the Atlantic Coast, also faced significant criticism.

Fast forward to March of 2026, and despite all the criticisms the university faced for making the move to the ACC, the Mustangs have enjoyed significant successes since joining the conference.

Then there was the argument and, more importantly, the question of whether it made sense for SMU to be in the ACC and the answer has been a profound yes.

While it seemed that SMU might incur financial losses by joining the ACC, this isn't the complete story. The university and its supporters were able to fundraise millions of dollars, and they have not stopped the momentum of financially supporting the athletic department.

Now, let's look at why SMU going to the ACC was the right move and the success and benefits of being a member of a Power Four conference.

Many people believe that SMU's decision to join the Atlantic Coast Conference was one of the most risk-taking decisions in the history of college sports that paid off in a big way. Even though they gave up tier-one media revenue for nine years, the "Mustang Momentum" has paid off with many sports team successes, record-breaking fundraising, and a rise in the school's renown.

Here is why the move has been so good for them overall. First of all, it immediately gave the athletic department and its teams credibility nationally. Many programs have trouble when they move from a "Group of Five" to a "Power Four" conference, but SMU showed they belonged on the first day of conference competition among many of the sports teams.

It all started with a remarkable football debut for the Mustangs. In their first season in the ACC in 2024, the Mustangs went 8-0 in conference play and 11-1 overall, with their only loss in regular season play being a three-point loss to BYU, it was the best record ever for a football team going from a Group of Five conference to a Power Four conference in season one.

After that, they did well in the postseason, making it to the ACC Championship game in their debut year and getting a position in the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff. Last season, they finished tied for second place with Miami, a team they defeated by six in conference play, which advanced to the championship game for college football. The Mustangs also won their game against Arizona in the Holiday Bowl as well.

Last year, Rhett Lashlee, the head coach of the Mustangs, was voted ACC Coach of the Year. The program has also been able to use its location in Dallas, recent success, which has led to back season with nine or more wins, to attract top players who might not have looked at a school in a non-Power Four conference but do now, as SMU is a member of a Power Four conference.

Donors at SMU provided a substantial "war chest" that enabled the school to forgo media revenue, estimated to be at least $30 million annually. The "First Week" Society was able to generate $100 million for SMU from just 30 donors within a week of getting the ACC invitation. This was all before SMU had a fantastic first season for football in the ACC.

The sports department has received more money than ever before, in part because of how well their football team has done since joining the ACC. In the 2025 fiscal year, the Mustang Club raised more than $65 million, the most ever in a single year for the institution. SMU has also raised money to speed up projects like the $100 million Garry Weber End Zone Complex, which will make sure that SMU's infrastructure is on par with the best in the ACC.

It has not only been the football team that has had success in the ACC for SMU. The men’s soccer team holds the distinction of being the first Mustang program to win an ACC championship. The women's volleyball team is in its first two ACC seasons, and they have already managed to beat every single team in the ACC at least once. The men's basketball team finished with 24 wins and a tie for 4th place in the ACC in their first season, and this season has wins over Texas A&M, Mississippi State, North Carolina, and Louisville.

The transfer to the ACC also worked with their academic and institutional identity. The ACC is home to some of the best schools in the country, such as Duke, North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Virginia, Cal, and Stanford. Joining this "academic Ivy" group from the Power Four conference has also raised SMU's status outside of sports.

The proof of the athletic team's success in academics can be seen in the rise in applications. Applications from first-year undergraduates for Fall 2025 surged to about 25,000, a 50% increase in just one year. This is directly because SMU is now a member of the ACC.

After years of being absent from the national conversation following the 1980s "Death Penalty" scandal, some may argue that SMU "bought" its way back by joining the ACC. SMU is now on ESPN and the ACC Network in prime time, which gives the school millions of dollars in "earned media" that it never got in the American Athletic Conference (AAC). Lastly, Ford Stadium had the most people ever attend a game in 2024–2025, and ticket sales for football games were up by 157%.

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Ryan Kay
RYAN KAY

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