Social media posts with many emotions, reactions, and compelling stats after No. 19 SMU’s 27-24 win over Florida State on Labor Day night. — Ben Stevens (@BenScottStevens) September 7, 2026A stadium-wide power outage at Doak Campbell Stadium delayed the start by nearly two hours before kickoff. Fans laughed endlessly about the “chaos” before the game even started, creating a viral, anxious environment.1-0 ‼️@DriveSewell pic.twitter.com/QAtp0qI1Uj— SMU Football (@SMUFB) September 8, 2026The main and most important aspect of the game is that SMU went on the road to begin the season 1-0 on the season and in ACC play.SMU BATTLED THROUGH THE CHAOS AND STILL GOT THE WIN 💪It's the Mustangs' first program win in Tallahassee 🐴 pic.twitter.com/HkDwHrV18s— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) September 8, 2026Even though there was a delay to the game and that SMU turned the ball over four times, the Mustangs found a way to pull off a three-point victory against Florida State.SMU is the only FBS or NFL team in the last 30 years to have:-3 or worse turnover margintwice as many penalties as their opponentfewer rushing yards than their opponentlower TOP than their opponentmore missed FG than their opponent...and yet still win the game.— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) September 8, 2026Some media posts pointed out the unlikely probability of SMU winning this game due to their turnovers, penalties, lack of rushing yards, and a missed field goal over the past 30 years and is the only FBS or NFL team to win the game but overcome those obstacles.This is a mean graphic. pic.twitter.com/JNd76Pn7ob— Tom Fornelli (@TomFornelli) September 8, 2026Other social media posts showed the irony of SMU having the best ACC record of the past sixteen conference games and Florida State having the worst record.SMU has been a FORCE in the ACC since joining the conference two years ago 😤 pic.twitter.com/6zJPThSFb8— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) September 8, 2026Not only has SMU been a consistently strong football team since they joined the ACC, but they have also dominated conference opponents with a 15-2 record.Strength of Record (ESPN)1. SMU2. Ole Miss3. Memphis4. Colorado5. UNC6. Oregon7. Auburn8. LSU9. Notre Dame10. UCLA11. Miami FL12. *13. Virginia14. Duke15. USC16. Tulsa17. UMass18. Alabama19. Michigan State20. Washington21. Cincinnati22. Northwestern— CFB Home (@CFBHome) September 8, 2026The graphic should say "strength of schedule" instead of "record," but it shows that the Mustangs are not taking any shortcuts in their quest to reach the college football playoffs this season.In December 2023, the Florida State University Board of Trustees filed a legal complaint against the ACCPart of the complaint stated that adding SMU would diminish the ACC's football media profile and undermine its strength of scheduleSMU is 2-0 vs. Florida State since… pic.twitter.com/CEI2v5pk1h— Steve Helwick (@s_helwick) September 8, 2026The post discusses the lengths that Florida State went to in their attempt to prevent SMU from joining the ACC. The irony is that the Seminoles may have preferred them not to join because they knew they might go 0-2 against the Mustangs in football.I like that SMU has gone back to using its "SMU" brand and less of the "Dallas" brand. It's a winning program now that should sell itself. pic.twitter.com/4PwVnTNFxH— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) September 8, 2026Branding is huge in college football with the NIL era, and social media helps schools like SMU reach larger audiences, and it has been pointed out that the Mustangs are changing the way they promote the SMU brand. pic.twitter.com/aNrQSvkGjM— no context college football (@nocontextcfb) September 8, 2026SMU Heisman hopeful quarterback Kevin Jennings threw for 430 yards and three touchdowns and did the tomahawk chop at the end of the game.— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) September 8, 2026College football media personalities gave SMU their props for overcoming adversity and winning the game.SMASH IT GRIZ https://t.co/4JZIJXotQD pic.twitter.com/ZebyfKvSlY— SMU Football (@SMUFB) September 8, 2026After an SMU football game, there is a ritual called "Break the Rock," in which the team breaks up a real stone in the locker room. It was head strength and conditioning coach Shawn Griswold who brought this after-game victory tradition to SMU. A different rock is made for each game on the schedule. Often, the team paints or adds the logo or colors of that week's opponent, in this case Florida State, to the rock. As they did after the Seminoles' win, the head coach or staff will pick someone and hit them with a sledgehammer in front of the whole team. This time, Coach Griswold used the hammer on the FSU-themed rock while his coworkers cheered him on.Great SMU Mustang content found hereStay up-to-date on SMU athletics by bookmarking SMU on SI and following us on X/Twitter.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow