I am not so sure. Remember friend every realignment has happened when least expected. Nobody saw utamafia and okie leaving for the sec…and that was with the utamafia network.
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February 13, 2025
Dear SMU Community,
Today’s news that SMU has attained Research One status and is now recognized as one of our nation’s top research institutions is a defining moment for our University. Granted by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education (CCIHE), R1 status recognizes an institution’s high level of research activity, the number of research doctorates conferred, and the level of university funding devoted to research.
Reaching this milestone took vision, persistence, and commitment. Strategic investments in key areas – including supercomputing, cyber security, machine learning, bioscience, and more – set us on this path and continue to fuel a vibrant research network across our campus and beyond. Earning this classification is further evidence of the vital role SMU plays in the future of research and discovery in one of the nation’s fastest-growing regions.
Achieving and sustaining R1 status brings significant benefits to SMU. This recognition enhances our national reputation (and hopefully with uhlaw97), helping us attract more top faculty and staff, expand research opportunities for students, foster collaborations with leading research institutions and industry partners, and inspire new funding and grant opportunities.
This feat would not have been possible without the dedication of our faculty, whose efforts fuel SMU’s research enterprise. We are grateful for the support of many others, including SMU Ignited: Boldy Shaping Tomorrow contributors, the Moody School of Graduate and Advanced Studies, and our scholars and administrators. I would also like to recognize the leadership of Elizabeth G. Loboa, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, whose drive and enthusiasm were instrumental on this journey.
We eagerly anticipate how SMU’s expanding influence will empower Mustangs worldwide to make meaningful contributions to their communities.
Sincerely,
R. Gerald Turner
President
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Great…now we have to seriously thro in SMU for that coveted B1G TEN Texas spot IF they go to 24 schools (2 x 12) and want a Texas school in their footprint.
So, now our competition is
Texas Tech
SMU
TCU
Their ACC move was pure genius…will go down as one of the most savy business moves in recent history
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I don’t consider SMU or TCU competition. And realistically, I don’t see us as a candidate either. The only school in the B1G to ever have a similar profile to us is U. Chicago and they were a charter member. The B1G has one private school, Northwestern, also a charter member.
And who knew that the president of SMU held @uhlaw97 in such high regard?
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The good news is that SMU and TCU would ultimately cancel each other out and since they are both small private schools in the Metroplex, they will be deemed too risky…I think it will be Texas Tech vs Houston for that spot as they value large public schools.
Luckily, for us, this will not happen any time soon so we still have time to A) build our brand B)improve our facilities C) prove success in the sports that matter D) obtain AAU status.
IF the 2 x 24= 48 P2 happens and it is a big IF…it will not happen until around the time the ACC contract expires in 2036
Baylor is also R1 but TCU is not. Baylor is also larger than both SMU and TCU.
I don’t see the B1G going after a Baptist school.
TCU and SMU are religious, in name only.
The only “real” religious school they’d add is Notre Dame
The conference that cared about R1 was the PAC. Until SMU starts sniffing AAU status, they’re not likely to be a realistic candidate for the B1G.
Uh…….you might wanna look up UChicago, because you may very well be the first person to say they’re similar to UH, lmfao.
Even Chicago’s profile is NOTHING like ours.
They are private and AAU. We are public and not.
As non-AAU schools, and R2, neither SMU nor TCU are candidates, even if their brands were bigger, which they are not.
Because ND fits their profile: AAU and big brand.
As a non-AAU school and an insufficiently big brand, Baylor, like UH, is NOT a B1G candidate.
This is unrelated to realignment at this point, but just adding on, saying UChicago is AAU is pretty drastically understating how good they are. They’re Ivy+. One of the best schools in the world.
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I grew up in Chicago. I’m very familiar with them. I know their make up and their academics
The similarities is they’re not THE big state school, or even the second biggest. They barely get mentioned for anything athletically in Chicago. They don’t carry their own TV market. The city is inundated with alumni from other schools. Sound familiar?
They wouldn’t get a sniff today. Academically, they’re on par with Rice, Stanford, Harvard, etc. They prioritize academics over athletics which is why they dropped out of the B1G for sports.
Oh of course.
They are a member of the University Athletic Association, the so called “Egghead Eight.”
The only conference in the NCAA other than the Ivy League in which ALL members are AAU.
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I mean, they’re not a state school at all. By those standards, we’re like Northwestern, too.
(They were also mentioned for Athletics a lot more back before they deliberately defunded all of their Athletic programs and dropped to DIII.)
Correct, they’re a private school stated by John Rockefeller. They have academics we can only dream of. The first Heisman trophy winner, Jay Berwanger, went to U. Chicago. They also split the atom. But they decided to emphasize academics over athletics. If you asked most Chicagoans what the mascot for the University of Chicago is, most couldn’t tell you (it’s the Maroons.)
In terms of coverage locally, we are similar to Northwestern.
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They seriously reduced the R1 requirements. Any school can be R1 these days which is how SMU got it.
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yeah…but they are still NOW equal to UH and TT now and this is a race to be superior, nor equal
I just saw an article today that SMU has finally attained R1 status.
That said, the same article shows their research budget, and it’s less than ONE-FOURTH that of UH.
Given that, I’d say that their R designation is as undeserving as their playoff spot.
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