UNIVERSITY PARK \u2014 With the expansion of the College Football Playoff to 12 teams, schedule has become one of the most important facets in securing an at-large berth.<\/p>\n
Last year, the college football<\/a> world had a heated debate over whether SMU<\/a> or Alabama deserved the final spot in the 12-team field because of the strength of their schedules.<\/p>\n Athletic directors play a key role in determining nonconference schedules, and SMU has a new AD<\/a> leading that process.<\/p>\n Damon Evans, who took over for longtime athletic director Rick Hart in April, has spent time in college football\u2019s top two conferences, as the athletic director at Maryland in the Big Ten and Georgia in the SEC.<\/p>\n Sports Roundup<\/p>\n Related:New AD Damon Evans\u2019 vision for SMU athletics includes additional upgrades to Ford Stadium<\/a><\/p>\n He sat down with The Dallas Morning News<\/a> earlier this week to discuss an array of topics about SMU athletics<\/a>, including his approach to scheduling that he will now bring to the Hilltop.<\/p>\n \u201cScheduling is an art,\u201d Evans said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to make sure that you position your team to have the best success, and we\u2019re all scheduling to get to the College Football Playoff.\u201d<\/p>\n Evans said he\u2019s discussed his philosophy with SMU head football coach Rhett Lashlee, and that they share the same goal of scheduling one power-conference opponent each year in nonconference play.<\/p>\n While most of SMU\u2019s upcoming nonconference opponents were decided before Evans arrived, the Mustangs are following that philosophy for the most part. <\/p>\n This season, they\u2019ll play two power conference teams in Baylor<\/a> and TCU<\/a> to wrap up the Iron Skillet Rivalry. From 2026-30, they have just one power-conference opponent scheduled each year, including Baylor, Oklahoma<\/a>, LSU and Colorado.<\/p>\n However, in the 2026 season, SMU will also play independent Notre Dame \u2014 a program on a power-conference level that competed in the national championship game last year. <\/p>\n This coming season aligns more closely with the schedule SMU would\u2019ve played during its days in the American Athletic Conference. SMU could again face criticism for an easy nonconference schedule, which features only East Texas A&M, Missouri State, Baylor and TCU. Even though it has two power-conference teams on its schedule, neither is seen as a CFP contender.<\/p>\n But for the next six years after that, the Mustangs will have a chance to earn a marquee win every year in nonconference play.<\/p>\n \u201cWe like to play opponents like LSU or Oklahoma for a variety of reasons,\u201d Evans said. \u201c1) We want to show that we\u2019re willing to play anybody. 2) Those types of opponents really test who you are. And 3) Those are big games. Those will be significant games and could have a huge impact on playoff implications.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to the importance of nonconference scheduling, Evans also shared his philosophy on championship games. ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips has said the conference could consider altering its title game format to instead give its regular-season champion a bye since SMU nearly missed the College Football Playoff last year after playing in the extra game and losing.<\/p>\n Evans said that isn\u2019t his top concern now, and while he and other athletic directors may support a change in the future, he\u2019s trying to best equip his team to make the Playoff again in the current format. <\/p>\n \u201cLet\u2019s figure out what is the best that we can do within that format to be successful and then let the chips fall where they may,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n SMU\u2019s upcoming nonconference opponents<\/p>\n On X\/Twitter: <\/b>@Lassimak<\/b><\/a><\/p>\nYearOpponents<\/tr>\n \n 2025<\/td>\n East Texas A&M, Baylor, Missouri State, TCU<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 2026<\/td>\n UC Davis, Baylor, Missouri State, Notre Dame<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 2027<\/td>\n Oklahoma<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 2028<\/td>\n LSU, Nevada<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 2029<\/td>\n LSU<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 2030<\/td>\n Colorado<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 2031<\/td>\n Colorado, BYU<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n