One reason SMU never made sense in the ACC is that its facilities and history pale compared to what a major conference technically has to offer.
Those fears became realized as the Mustangs opened their first-ever conference matchup in a less-than-capacity crowd that only seats 32,000 people. For an entrance, Eric Dickerson rode in on the back of a Mustang sports car as a pony, which looked like a stuffed animal, sprinted onto the field in front. It was little league and tacky, but it made sense for a desperate team that came into the conference for free.