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The Pony Express 2-21

New DeSoto coach talks Mathis
by Tyler Sweet
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The HillTopics caught up with Todd Peterman, new head coach at DeSoto High School. Peterman replaces Claude Mathis, who recently joined Chad Morris' staff at SMU as the new running backs coach and a massive recruiting weapon.
Peterman coached for eight years under Mathis and had nothing but great things to say about one of his biggest influences. "Claude (Mathis) has been a great influence on me. You know, we meshed perfectly from the very beginning of the time we began coaching with one another," Peterman said. "He has such passion and enthusiasm and he treats his coaching staff great.
"He makes people want to work hard for him and themselves," Peterman went on about Mathis. "He's just got that thing, I don't know what it is, but he's got it. Everything we have here at DeSoto started with Claude. It's somewhat hard to explain, but Claude makes people want to work and play for him. He demands loyalty and the way he does it, is just natural. He's been a great influence on me and he's going to do an amazing job in college, without question."
Peterman continued to rave about Mathis' potential at the next level in his new position.
"Coach Morris got a great coach in Claude who knows how to talk to anyone," Peterman said. "You know, he can be in the living room from Highland Park to Midland, Texas to DeSoto and those families are going to be comfortable with him. And Claude is going to be comfortable, because that's the type of guy he is to be around. He's true to what he is and he's going to knock it out of the park at SMU, without a question."
There is no doubt that Mathis was a smart hire as part of the new coaching staff and with Mathis came along two three-star wide receivers, James Proche and Kevin Thomas, who may be making a name for themselves as early as next year.
"I think they're (Proche and Thomas) going to be great, they're going to perform great. And they're both great kids," said Peterman.
James Proche, a 5-foot-11 wide out who DeSoto coaches said to be "one of the most coachable kids they've ever been around" was Chad Morris' first stop in making sure Proche would stay committed to SMU. Proche was with SMU all along since he was offered by the previous coaching staff.
"James was committed with the last staff at SMU and never wavered at any time," exclaimed Peterman. "He signed with Coach Morris and talked to him there, but he has always been excited about their business school. When other colleges came in to talk with him, he said he wasn't interested, and he was with SMU the whole time."
Kevin Thomas, the other wideout from DeSoto, stands at 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds and the DeSoto staff bragged about Thomas "absolutely loving the spotlight and playing for the big moments".
Thomas was originally committed to Kansas, but opted to join his high school teammate and coach in going to SMU just a couple of weeks before Signing Day.
"Kevin looked at SMU academically as well and he is a dynamic receiver and is a playmaker," said Peterman. "We are excited for both of them, they are great kids who know how to work and know how to work fast. They haven't quite learned the tempo that Morris brings to SMU but these kids do know how to go fast."
Peterman goes into his first year as head coach in an outstanding position himself, as DeSoto just may very well be the team to beat in 2015 Texas high school football.
Cuffee talks new SMU offer
by Nathan Baldwin
Waco cornerback Eric Cuffee is coming to SMU this Saturday for Junior Day. The class of 2016 defensive back has the physical attributes to succeed against big receivers and become a top target for Chad Morris.
At six feet tall and 188 pounds, Cuffee has the size to really disrupt offenses. He combines that with the skill that earned him the number 50 spot in Rivals' class of 2016 player rankings for Texas. He has an offer from SMU, and he likes the new direction of the football program under Morris.
"Chad Morris is a phenomenal coach," he said.
Cuffee has spoken with defensive backs coach Van Malone, who Cuffee also praised.
"Coach Malone, he's a great coach as well," Cuffee said. "They have a pretty good staff."
He is excited about coming up to SMU, which he has not yet visited. "I have them high in my consideration," he said.
However, Cuffee assured that he is keeping all of his options open. "Right now I'm just taking it easy, checking every school out, and experiencing it," he said.
Cuffee said he is looking for a school with great academics and a "good family environment."
He claimed he has no top schools right now. But what Cuffee is doing currently is studying the offenses of his opponents for next year. He has frequently been watching film and learning what to expect from each team. Cuffee is a true student of the game. He said his best skills as a cornerback are "playing the ball and being physical off the line with the receiver," but his preparation mentally is just as important.
Cuffee will surely take the same studious approach when picking a school.
Hawkins talks new SMU offer
by Tyler Sweet
We hear it time and time again these days, "speed kills."
You do not have to remind Arlington Bowie wide receiver Anthony Hawkins of that. Hawkins, a 5-foot-11, 182-pound junior is a two-sport athlete in the midst of juggling both football and track. Hawkins will be attending Junior Day this Saturday at SMU but will have to leave early in order to get over to his meets in the 4 X 1 and 4 X 2 events.
"The coaches at SMU told me that I would be able to leave Junior Day a little early to make a couple of my track events at Sam Houston," explained Hawkins, "I usually do long jump too, along with the open one, but I will have to miss those. My high school coaches told me not to be in a rush though because they understand that I really want to be interested and that I want to see everything while I'm on campus."
Hawkins was recently offered by SMU.
"Coach (Claude) Mathis was the one who told me about my offer," Hawkins said. "Coach (Joe) Craddock has touched base with me quite a few times too and followed up with the offer."
SMU's Mathis is all too familiar with Hawkins' speed and abilities as he coached against him in the track meets at DeSoto prior to joining Chad Morris' staff, and his speed alone led to his first scholarship offer.
"Coach Mathis just wanted me to come in, meet the coaching staff, see the campus and let me know how everything rolls at SMU," Hawkins said. "The coaching staff has reached out to me about how they will have the same offense that we run here (Arlington Bowie High School).
"They have a spread offense also and run the jet sweep, which is my role at Bowie. I play as an inside/slot receiver and we do a lot of motion across, jet sweep, and a variety of vertical seem routes. Similar to what SMU will be running," Hawkins went on to explain.
Hawkins has become familiar with SMU and its campus for more than just the reason that he goes to high school nearby.
"I've been to SMU before because I have a family member who is actually one of the football trainers," Hawkins said. "I've been to a couple of their home games, when they played TCU. I've got to see their football stadium and campus a little bit.
"I was talking to my cousin, who is the athletic trainer there at SMU, and he was explaining to me that if you graduate from SMU, you're pretty much guaranteed a job because the education there is real big."
Hawkins will turn his focus to his sprinting events knowing how beneficial it will be carrying over to the football field in running sharper routes and getting behind defenses.
"In high school, you know, most of the time there's a track around the football field, and my high school coach always taught me that in order to get to the football field, you have to step on the track first. And that's just the way I was taught, and you know, speed kills. You have to have speed to make defenders miss."
When Hawkins was asked if it would hurt SMU's chances in recruiting him because they don't have a track team to offer along with football, he simply responded, "It doesn't. SMU picks up the slack with their academic program."
Hawkins also just received an offer from Texas State this past week.
Barton gets to SMU before Junior Day
by Nikki Chavanelle
Like many other excited 2016s, Harrison Barton from Houston Christian will be attending SMU's Junior Day this weekend. Barton is six feet, three inches and 280 pounds; he plays at the offensive tackle position and is currently unranked. Barton had a chance to stroll around SMU a few weeks ago and is excited for his trip back to the Hilltop.
"The campus was beautiful and I loved the Boulevard where people tailgate before games. It was just me and my dad walking around and getting a feel for the campus," Barton said.
SMU reached out to Barton after seeing his film that was tweeted out from a recruiting website.
"Coach Craddock got in touch with me because he saw my film and he liked it a lot. We started developing a relationship and then he and Coach Fry called me on Signing Day. It was kind of like a conference call, they passed the phone around to all the coaches and they were just talking to me about how excited they were about their new signing class and about how they are hopeful about the class that they'll be signing a year from now," Barton said.
When the coaches called Barton on Signing Day he already knew a lot about the new commits that SMU was signing.
"The new class is really awesome and it really speaks to how great kids think the new staff is because they are buying into the new program," Barton said. "I think I'd fit in really well into the up-tempo offense because that's what we do at Houston Christian so I think it would be a good transition for me."
Apart from football, Barton sees many other advantages to attending a school like SMU.
"SMU is one of the best academic schools in Texas and I know that if I get injured or anything, I need a school that can support me academically as well as athletically," Barton said. "Staying in state sounds great to me but there are other things that are more important to me. Besides SMU, right now I'm mostly hearing from Rice, TCU, UH, and a lot of Ivy League schools. I really value the academic prestige of schools and the relationships I can develop with the coaching staff."
Barton is a classic example of how the new coaching staff is taking the time and putting in the work to get players invested in their new image of SMU football.
"The new coaching staff has really shown me a lot of love and I can't wait to get up to SMU and spend more time with them and continue to develop our relationship," Barton said.
2017 Woodrow Wilson product coming for Junior Day
by Nikki Chavanelle
Among the 2016 players coming to SMU for Junior Day will be 2017 Woodrow Wilson football player Darrion Speedy Green. Green suffers from a hearing impediment but it hasn't stopped him from receiving interest from college coaching staffs.
"I had hearing loss at around 2-years-old but that didn't stop me from playing football and it's not going to stop me from playing in college because some schools are already watching," Green said.
The new SMU coaching staff reached out to Green and his high school coach about attending Junior Day.
"The new coaching staff is great and the team is going to improve. I have a better relationship with them than I did with the old staff," Green said. "My favorite coach is coach (Claude) Mathis. He's really cool and nice. He shows confidence and he respects me like I respect him. He gives me great advice and he will always help me out when I ask and I can't wait to come to Junior Day and talk more seriously about recruiting."
As a sophomore, Green has plenty of time to determine what things are most important to him in a college.
"Size doesn't really matter as long as they have good academics and I prefer to stay in Texas," Green said. "I haven't decided what I want to study yet but the campus is beautiful and the buildings are nice."
Green thinks he has some of the key attributes that will make him a successful college football player.
"My strengths are definitely speed, ability to learn, and hard work," Green said.
SMU showing early interest in Cedar Hill DB
by Adam Grosbard
SMU coaches have been checking in with the staff over at local powerhouse Cedar Hill to talk about 2016 cornerback Eric Sutton.
While the junior has not yet spoken with the Mustang staff himself, his high school coaches have filled him in on some of the conversations.
"They just talk about how they like my film, from the film they can tell they like way I play," Sutton told the HillTopics. "They can tell how hard I go. Most likely I'm going in April (to SMU's second Junior Day)."
Sutton was not able to be at SMU for its first Junior Day due to a track meet but has seen the campus before, when Cedar Hill faced off against South Lake Carroll in the playoffs.
"I like all the facilities. It's a real nice school," Sutton said. "I like how it's in Dallas, and not only in Dallas but so close to downtown."
Sutton has yet to receive an official offer but is getting interest from Baylor, Fresno State, Ohio State, Eastern Michigan and UNT. The Fresno State coaches have promised Sutton an offer in the spring.
Sutton says he has learned about his position from his father, former-NFL player Eric Sutton.
"My biggest strength is my knowledge of my position. My dad played CB at San Diego State and in the NFL; everything about the way I play is coming off what he used to do."
Over the summer, the 5-foot-10, 165-pound Sutton is working on a weight gain program, while working on improving his strength and speed. He is monitoring his calorie in-take and working out daily to hit his goal weight of 185 by the time two-a-days start in August.
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