There is a palpable energy on campus on game days at SMU. The university has a storied tradition of athletic excellence in a wide variety of sports. For decades, Mustang fans from Dallas and beyond have joined together to cheer on their home team — including many student-athletes who grew up right here in Texas.
Since 2013, SMU Athletics has invested over $250 million in championship-caliber facilities across campus that attract the best student-athletes and outstanding students looking for a complete university experience. Generous donors and dedicated staff and student-athletes have created a period of unprecedented growth and success. During the same period, 16 of the school’s 17 Division I sports teams have made the postseason, and 12 of them have won at least one conference championship.
“The excellence of SMU Athletics reflects the competitiveness and spirit of Dallas,” said SMU president R. Gerald Turner. “You need to have a competitive program to navigate the current turbulent state of intercollegiate athletics. First-class facilities communicate to student-athletes that we are committed to their success.”
On Friday, December 2, 2022, the university broke ground on the Garry Weber End Zone Complex at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. The 192,500-square-foot facility will anchor the south bowl and connect the stadium’s existing east and west gate entries. The three levels of the new complex will increase the functionality, efficiency and overall experience of all Mustang student-athletes and fans, as well as inspire interest and investments in athletics across SMU’s campus.
“Our commitment to championship-caliber facilities continues as we break ground on the Garry Weber End Zone Complex, expanding Ford Stadium,” said Rick Hart, SMU director of athletics. “This project will impact all 17 sports, all 484 student-athletes and our fans. It is a transformational project and reinforces our expectation to compete at the highest level.”
The new complex is named for Garry A. Weber ‘58, a former Mustang football letterman who served Dallas as both a Dallas County judge and City Council member. He later founded Weber Financial Inc. and became a notable philanthropist to several educational and health organizations in Dallas. In January 2022, he made the largest gift in the history of SMU Athletics, kicking off a $100 million drive for the facility.
“SMU gave me so much. I felt like it was time to give back,” said Weber. “Football is an important ingredient in student life and part of the reason people come to the school. For football players, it helps you prepare for what is going to come after football. To have that background in Dallas and be connected to the alumni base — the impact is immeasurable.”
Other SMU investments in recent years have created several other notable facilities:
- The renovated Moody Coliseum reopened in 2013 with the new Miller Event Center, making it one of the premier collegiate arenas and event centers in the country.
- In 2015, the Styslinger/Altec Tennis Complex, the new home for SMU’s tennis teams was dedicated. In February 2022, the complex hosted the Dallas Open — the only ATP Tour indoor championship in the United States. The tournament marked the return of top-tier men’s tennis to Dallas after more than 30 years.
- The Payne Stewart SMU Golf Training Center opened at Trinity Forest Golf Club in 2017.
- Later that same year, SMU opened the Robson & Lindley Aquatics Center and Barr-McMillion Natatorium, a facility capable of hosting conference and national championship events, like the 2022 American Athletic Conference Championships. Spring 2022 also featured the groundbreaking for the center’s Holt Hickman Outdoor Pool, which will make SMU the only U.S. university with indoor and outdoor Olympic pools.
- In 2019, the Indoor Performance Center, featuring Armstrong Fieldhouse, opened. The multifunctional space benefits visitors from across the SMU campus.
- Washburne Soccer and Track Stadium was dedicated in April 2022, providing a home for top-performing soccer and track and field teams and enabling SMU to attract recruits of the highest level.
“Our Board of Trustees is fully committed to supporting athletics at SMU and competing successfully at the highest level,” said David B. Miller ‘72, ‘73, chair of the SMU Board of Trustees. The former Mustang basketball letterman earned his bachelor’s and MBA degrees while on scholarship at SMU. He later became co-founder and managing partner of the pioneering energy private equity firm EnCap Investments LP. “We recognize the benefits a successful athletic program creates — not just for student-athletes and the fans, but also in attracting outstanding students and encouraging alumni engagement.”
For many people in North Texas, SMU’s athletic facilities are the first places they experience the university, from young children participating in summer sports camps to high school students competing in playoff games to fans of all ages who root for the red and the blue.
“SMU Athletics plays a vital role in the North Texas community, in the experiences of SMU students and in our lives,” said Bill Armstrong ‘82, co-owner and CEO of Armstrong Oil and Gas, SMU Trustee and co-chair of the SMU Ignited Campaign Steering Committee for Athletics. “SMU Athletics brings the highest level of collegiate competition to Dallas and prepares student-athletes to be champions in their pursuits on the field and throughout their lives.”
In addition to facilities, SMU has attracted outstanding coaches for all 17 sports. The university also invests in staff and programs that support the personal and professional development of student-athletes, including training staff, mental health professionals and the Life After Ball Program that helps graduates transition smoothly to the workforce. These offerings have proven fruitful and SMU student-athletes have excelled in the classroom, with two-thirds earning cumulative GPAs of 3.0 or higher, over one-third boasting GPAs of 3.5 or better and 91 percent earning degrees.
“SMU energizes and enriches our city,” wrote Dallas mayor Eric Johnson in The Dallas Morning News in July 2022. “Few viable and available university athletics programs have the rare combination that SMU offers: a rich history, a recent winning track record and a bright future. SMU has the academic chops and high standards that would make any conference proud. I have a message for any major conference looking for a world-class institution and a major media market: It’s time to Pony Up.”