The Pony Express 8-28

Larry Brown planning in-home visit to Clevon Brown

by Nikki Chavanelle

SMU recently made the cut on 2016 power forward Clevon Brown's top-10 school list. Brown, the 6-foot-8, 215-pound senior, is entering his final year at Churchill High School in San Antonio and has a few things to mull over before making any decisions.

"I cut my list down to my top 10 and now I'm just looking at those schools and seeing what they have to offer me," Brown said. "SMU made the list mainly because they've had a lot of success in the past and Larry Brown is a great coach."

With 10 schools still on Brown's list, he has a lot of relationships to make and he's currently working on getting to know Larry Brown and the rest of the Mustangs' staff.

"I actually just talked to him two days ago," Brown said. "He's a great guy and his history in the NBA is awesome. Coach K.T. Turner is a good guy too. He tells me about how he can develop me and how coach Brown has developed guys in my position before."

Brown has yet to take a trip to visit the Hilltop but might receive a home visit from the great Larry Brown himself before that happens.

"I haven't visited yet but coach Brown said he was going to try and get a home visit with me to talk to me and then we'll see about me coming up to SMU for an official visit," Brown said. "He didn't specifically say when he was going to come visit."

Signing day is still a ways away for Brown so he still has a lot of research to do on the colleges that are showing him interest.

"My relationship and feelings about the other schools in my top 10 are about the same," Brown said. "They're just showing me interest and trying to inform me about the school."

With a few months still left in the offseason before his senior season, Brown is working on some parts of his game and starting to take visits.

"Right now I'm really trying to get confident in my jumper and trying to put the ball on the floor more," Brown said. "I plan to take more visits before basketball season and I'm visiting Vanderbilt, Rice, and Texas in September."

Brown's key focus is becoming a better ball player and he thinks he needs to search around for the right program to help him do that so he won't rush anything.

"It doesn't matter to me really if I stay close to home or how big the school is," Brown said. "The most important things to me are the academics and how the program can develop me as a playing."

One thing that is important to Brown is getting a chance to play early and make a splash on the roster.

"I would kind of want to come in and make an impact right away. It's not like I'd want to start immediately and get a lot of minutes but it's not like you're going to really get that much better on the bench."

Coach expects great things from Badejo at SMU

by Adam Grosbard

SMU commit Michael Badejo is bringing a lot to SMU when he arrives in the summer of 2016 and his head coach at Mansfield Timberview, James Brown, was willing to share exactly what type of guy SMU is getting.

"He's a special one," Brown told the HillTopics with a little grin on his face. "He's a freak. He's going to be able to play up or down; he's that kind of guy."

What separates Badejo in Brown's mind is his mental toughness.

"He plays with a real tough mentality; he's one of those guys who is non-stop," Badejo said.

The pony commit was unable to play in Timberview's final scrimmage before the season opener but Brown said that was no reason for concern.

"He had some nicks and bruises and stuff so he didn't get a whole bunch of playing time but we know what they're capable of doing," Brown said.

With the addition of Badejo and Myron Gailliard in the 2015 class, Brown already has a good idea of what Chad Morris is building at SMU.

"They got Myron, they'll get Mike, they got my daughter who is the assistant recruiting director up there for Chad so we're in good shape," Brown said.

The coach had one word to describe the job Morris is doing at SMU.

"Phenomenal," Brown said. "I'm lucky to have some ins-and-outs of what's going on inside the offices so I think he's really on the right track. He's going to blow it out of the water soon. It's going to be a struggle early; that Baylor game is going to be tough. If they get through that I think they'll be in good shape."

Mathis checking in on Cedar Hill DB

by Conor Lane

The Mustang backfield could use a serious boost right about now, and it appears as though Chad Morris and his new coaching staff have been attempting to add much needed depth to the position.

As a sophomore at Cedar Hill last season, four-star running back Kaegun Williams picked up more than 2,100 yards from the line of scrimmage and accounted for 24 total touchdowns. He rushed for just over 1,200 yards and 14 TD's, and he exhibited his versatility with 54 receptions, 859 yards and 10 scores.

"I know that I can help my team in a variety of ways," said Williams, "whether it be running with the ball or catching passes from out of the backfield."

That would be a welcome addition to a lacking SMU running attack. While being shifty and quick enough to bounce a run to the outside, Williams is also able to get the job done between the tackles.

"I'm pretty good at breaking through weak tackles, I have the explosion necessary to be a power back and just go hat to hat with the other guy."

Running backs coach Claude Mathis has continued to relay SMU's serious interest for one of the class of 2017's most highly touted backs.

"Coach Mathis has been checking in on me, making sure I'm getting everything done," says Williams. "He calls in and makes sure I'm on top of my schoolwork and to see how I'm handling the recruiting process. My head is kind of spinning because I have been getting so many offers that I thought I wouldn't get, I'm still weighing my options."

Williams has generated interest from top programs from around the country, but he has made it clear that staying healthy and having a good 2015 season are his number one and two priorities.

"I just want be as fast possible and as strong as I can be, so come play one on opening day I know I'm at 100 percent."

With that being said, Williams still has a lot of interest in SMU and will be making it out to a game this season to see the action from the sideline.

"I'm going to come out for the Baylor game, and they're going to be really tough so it'll be cool to see how SMU does in their first season with a new staff."

2017 DT talks SMU offer

by Nikki Chavanelle

Joshua Croslen, a 2017 defensive tackle, is excited and pleased to be on the Mustang's offer list. Croslen is 6-foot and 255 pounds from Steele High School in Cibolo, Texas.

"I was offered by SMU last school year during the spring," Croslen said.

Croslen described a dream come true when he discussed his offer with Hilltopics.

"The head coach, Scott Lehnhoff, called me down to his office. He told me he was going to put me on the phone with the SMU coaches and they told me they really like the way I play and they wanted to extend an offer to me," Croslen said. "I was very excited. It was something that I had wanted to happen soon and when it did I felt relieved."

As a 2017, Croslen isn't able to talk to the coaches as much as the 2016s who are still receiving much of the staff's attention.

"The last time I talked to the coaches was this summer when I attended their football camp," Croslen said. "I was told I did very well by the coaches."

Croslen was able to check out SMU's campus while on his camp visit but wants another chance to come on the Hilltop again next season.

"The campus was beautiful," Croslen said. "I enjoyed being there very much. I hope I can find time to go to a game next season with my family."

SMU is Croslen's only offer right now, but he's open to any and all interest.

"I've also received interest from UTSA," Croslen said. "I don't have a top choice at the moment though."

As a potential future Mustang, Croslen wants to see SMU improve next season as if it was his team already.

"I'm hoping they'll do very well next season and I expect big things."