REPORT: Hal Mumme to Join June Jones at SMU
By Kyle Kensing
Nov 12, 2011; Dallas, TX, USA; A general view of a Southern Methodist Mustangs helmet during the game with the Navy Midshipmen at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. The Midshipmen defeated the Mustangs 24-17. The Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Mike Barber of The Richmond Times tweeted late Friday night that air raid offensive guru Hal Mumme is set to join June Jones at SMU next season.
Mumme was offered the offensive coordinator position at FCS James Madison last month, but balked amid rumors he was considering joining a BCS conference staff. SMU is moving into the Big East, which, for one more year, is an automatic qualifier into the Bowl Championship Series.
Roots of the en vogue air raid spread prevalent around the college game stem from Mumme’s playbook. He introduced the system at Kentucky in 1997 with mixed results, though protege Tim Couch became a No. 1 overall pick in the 1999 NFL draft after earning All-America designation with the Wildcats.
After brief runs with Southeast Louisiana and New Mexico State, Mumme went to McMurry and returned to the Division II ranks where he made as name as head coach at Valdosta State in the mid-1990s. Mumme built VSU into the powerhouse it is today — the Blazers won the D-II national championship in 2012.
McMurry went 8-3 and won the Heart of Texas Bowl. The Warhawks’ losses came against Division I opponents McNeese State and Lamar, and D-II powerhouse Abilene Christian. Quarterback Jake Mullin was among the most productive passers in D-II, completing over 69 percent of his attempts for 3478 yards with 25 touchdowns.
A Jones-Mumme pairing seems like destiny. Jones is famous for the run-and-shoot offense, which facilitated the productivity of NCAA record-setting quarterbacks Timmy Chang and Colt Brennan at Hawai’i. Jones has coached SMU to four straight bowl appearances for the most successful run since the program was hit with the NCAA sanctioned death penalty in the late 1980s, but none of his Mustang passers have matched the output of his Hawai’i play callers.