SMU’s Preston Stone prepares for ‘big boy’ football in ACC | National

SMU quarterback Preston Stone no longer catches himself accidentally saying his program plays in the American Athletic Conference. “I’m pretty much programmed to think (Atlantic Coast Conference) at this point,” Stone said with a smile Monday at ACC Media Days in Charlotte. Stone and coach Rhett Lashlee are leading the Mustangs back into college football’s power-conference ranks in 2024. SMU joins Cal and Stanford as the ACC’s three new member schools. The program may lack recent football tradition, but SMU played against teams like Texas, Texas A&M and Arkansas in the Southwest Conference until the league disbanded in 1996. “We stood on this stage in the Southwest Conference for many years, won 11-plus conference championships, three national titles, had a rich history and tradition,” Lashlee said Monday. “Having had that and lost it, and now having it back. I don’t think there’s any doubt that our school, and we believe that our program in the heart of Dallas, belongs on the national stage. We’re humbled and grateful for the opportunity to be back.” The Mustangs haven’t won a bowl game since 2012, but they’re coming off an 11-3 campaign in which they ran the table in the American and won the conference championship game. It was the program’s winningest season since its 1982 national championship campaign. Aside from the chaos of the recent round of conference realignment, Lashlee stressed that he believes SMU has earned the chance to be back on this stage. “We understand that it’s a different opportunity,” Lashlee said. “We’re moving up in weight class. To play 10 consecutive power games, we haven’t done that in almost 30 years as a program. There’s going to be some changes.” One of those changes was beefing up to prepare for the jump in talent. By Lashlee’s count, 13 of SMU’s 20 incoming transfers play on either the offensive or defensive line. Lashlee pointed out that SMU’s first two ACC games are against Florida State and Louisville, the two schools that played in last year’s conference finals. “I feel confident that we have a team that can compete,” Lashlee said. “What that looks like? I don’t know. We’re excited to see where we are.” Stone threw for 3,197 yards, 28 touchdowns and six interceptions in his redshirt second season in 2023. A Dallas native, he often went to SMU games as a kid. “I remember when Baylor came to town and Courtland Sutton was going crazy,” Stone said. “I remember when Johnny Manziel tore us apart in 2012. “Now we have a chance to play big-boy football in the ACC. I feel incredibly fortunate to be the quarterback of this school. That’s something I don’t take lightly.” –Field Level Media