Canzano: Honks at SMU pony up again
Money talks in college football.
I spent a lot of time quoting oilmen and petroleum entrepreneurs when Southern Methodist University was flirting with the Pac-12 a few years ago. I miss the good ol’ boys of the Boulevard Collective.
On Friday, four couples who are SMU megadonors sneezed and raised $50 million for the school’s athletes. They’ve created a spinoff gift-giving organization — the Boulevard Society — and plan to raise another $50 million to share with SMU athletes by the end of the year.
Will they reach that goal?
Billionaire and SMU trustee David Miller told The Dallas News, “Hell, yeah, we’ll meet it… We just put our foot on the gas. Man, we’re just getting up there. We’re about 60 miles an hour right now. We’re trying to get to 120.”
Indiana just won the college football national title. The window is open for the Oregon Ducks next season. Miami and the top SEC schools have piles of money and are well-equipped to compete, too. Ohio State and Michigan will always matter. But be sure, SMU’s time is coming.