The Case for Baseball and Softball at SMU

SMU’s inaugural season in the ACC was nothing short of historic; from the football team’s College Football Playoff berth to the success of women’s volleyball, men’s basketball, and many more, the Mustangs proved themselves worthy of a Power 4 berth. At every level, SMU has proven themselves capable of competing in both men’s and women’s sports- yet are missing two wildly popular college sports: baseball and softball. If there was one singular move that new Athletic Director Damon Evans could do to advance SMU Athletics, it would be to add both sports to the Hilltop- and here’s why.

Lights, Camera, ACCtion

While the SEC has dominated the past decade of college baseball, there are still countless high-profile baseball teams in the ACC. At the end of the 2025 season, seven different ballclubs on the Atlantic Coast were in the Top 25: Louisville (7), North Carolina (9), Florida State (10), Duke (15), Miami (16), Clemson (23), and Georgia Tech (24). 61 players from the ACC were selected in the latest MLB draft, and countless proven stars in the MLB have gotten their start in the conference.

On the softball side, five programs from the ACC were in the top-25: Florida State (9), Clemson (11), Virginia Tech (20), Duke (21), and Stanford (22). The OU Sooners are undoubtedly the dominant force in the space of softball, and have been for some time, but softball in the ACC is electric and growing. Adding baseball and softball to SMU is different now that we are in the ACC instead of the AAC. We’re no longer bringing Memphis, Wichita State and Memphis to campus; the ACC is packed with top-of-the-line future MLB and AUSL players that will provide for entertaining, premier collegiate play. 

Everything’s Bigger in Texas

Texas is THE state for baseball, and just as the SMU football and basketball programs have accelerated their growth by recruiting homegrown talent, an SMU baseball team could do the same. In the 2025 class, top national recruits came out of Carrollton, Southlake, Prosper, and McKinney, and D1 talent is common in nearby school districts such as Richardson ISD, Irving ISD, and Dallas ISD. Furthermore, the college talent in Texas is out-of-this-world. The University of Texas, Texas A&M, UTSA, Dallas Baptist University, and most importantly, TCU, have all been mainstays in the top-25 in recent years. Who wouldn’t want to see the Iron Skillet played on the diamond, or for the Mustangs to take on former members of the Southwest Conference in preseason play?

Although the University of Oklahoma has won six of the last nine College World Series, the most recent champ was the University of Texas! Additionally, Texas Tech has risen to prominence behind Najaree Canady, making it to the semifinal round of the playoffs in 2025. The growth of those two programs, and the growth of college softball in general, should result in heightened interest for youth softball in the Lone Star State, and potentially more top prospects available for recruitment in Dallas. 

All About the Views

Across the board, college baseball and softball have both seen a steady rise in viewership and attendance, especially in their respective College World Series events. The full NCAA baseball tournament averaged 537,000 viewers and had its third-highest total viewership ever in 2025. On the women’s side, softball has boomed as a must-watch sporting spectacle, setting attendance and viewership records in 2025. An average of 1.3 million viewers tuned in to watch the 15 games of the Women’s College World Series, and 119,778 total fans attended. 

Comparatively, SMU sports such as soccer, volleyball, golf, and others, despite having great success in recent memory, have not had the same draw on television. Though SMU signed away their media rights with the ACC and ESPN for the next seven years, the potential earnings once SMU can generate revenue from TV viewership are remarkably enticing.

The Mustangs deserve baseball and softball. SMU’s momentum has never been as high, and if there was ever a time to begin the process of adding teams, the Pony Express should start chugging along today.