UNIVERSITY PARK -- Sonny Dykes officially was introduced as SMU's new head football coach on Dec. 12, 2017. Immediately after the introductory press conference, he was in a tornado of learning the ropes around the Hilltop, meeting new faces, preparing his new team for a bowl game and finalizing a recruiting class.

Eight days after his introduction, Dykes was on the sideline with the Mustangs as they took on Louisiana Tech in the Frisco Bowl. It was a bowl game that also coincided with the start of the inaugural early signing period, as college football recruits took advantage of signing national letters of intent in December for the first time, rather than in February.

Everything ran a mile a minute for the new head coach. Yet still, Dykes chose to be with be in Frisco with his new team and continue running the playbook set by former coach Chad Morris. The Mustangs didn't win the bowl game, but if nothing else, the members of the roster immediately gained the trust of their new leader.

Almost exactly two years later, Dykes and the Mustangs will again plan for a bowl appearance, as SMU will face FAU in the Boca Raton Bowl in Florida on Dec. 21. The difference this time: SMU is Dykes' team. His plays, his staff, his philosophies, his style.

"The cool thing is I know their names this time," Dykes joked. "The last bowl experience I had was like, 'Hey, No. 5, come here. What position do you play? Oh, you're our starting tailback? That's cool; don't fumble.'

"This one's different. These are my guys. We know each other, we trust each other, we believe in each other, and I expect them to go play well."

The Mustangs are 10-2 on the year and looking to use the bowl as a programmatic stepping stone. Only two other SMU teams before this one have ever won 11 games.

Dykes wants to win the bowl game obviously for historical reasons, but he'll be the first to admit a win would be special for a senior group that helped change the dynamic of SMU football. This season has been one where people look at SMU football for what it is -- and not what it was, the negative tale of the 1980s and how the program dealt with the NCAA death penalty.

Senior running back Xavier Jones remembers the Frisco Bowl in 2017. He remembers the graduate assistants and players somewhat handling offensive and defensive instruction and organization with most of Morris' staff no longer there.

The result was a 51-10 loss to Louisiana Tech. Jones, however, remembers Dykes being there as a consultant of sorts, someone who offered advice after plays and someone who also evaluated players from start to finish.

Most importantly, Jones remembers Dykes simply being there.

"That meant a lot. He didn't have to do that," Jones said. "We had no coach out there, but Coach Dykes, the man he is, he stood there and took that L with us. We took that into the offseason.

"That showed a lot about Coach Dykes, and we appreciate him for that. You don't have to do that when you're new. I'm glad to have him now."

Dec. 21 will be a different experience for Jones, the rest of the seniors and the entire SMU contingent. All season long, Dykes has told his team to expect greatness if it played with cohesion and heart. He told the returners from the 2017 team that good things would come as long as they believed in the system and believed in each other.

Two seasons later, the Mustangs are rewriting the SMU record books.

"There's been a focus all year," Dykes said. "They show up, they go to work, they do what they're supposed to do. ... It's been a while since we won [a bowl game] here. If we want to be a good football program, you've got to win bowl games."

Dykes has mentioned on multiple occasions that he wants his seniors to have a memorable finish. In turn, the seniors want to be victorious for their coach.

Because of who he was in 2017.

"This is big, kind of like our first bowl game with Coach Dykes," Jones said. "We want to get a win for him."