Four seasons after taking over the program, Sam Erger has SMU entering the biggest match in school history with one of the nation's deepest rosters.
DALLAS - Coach Sam Erger joined WFAA Channel 8's Daybreak on Tuesday to discuss Spikes Under the Lights, and the timing could not have been better. July 7 was World Volleyball Day, and Erger has become one of college volleyball's fastest-rising coaches over the past four years.
She took over SMU in February 2022 after eight seasons at Baylor. What followed has been one of the best program turnarounds in the country. She went 22-10 in her first season. In 2023, she earned AAC Coach of the Year after leading the Mustangs to a 26-7 record and a conference championship.
When SMU moved to the ACC in 2024, many programs would have expected a transition year. Instead, the Mustangs defeated No. 1 Pittsburgh and No. 2 Nebraska, earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament and hosted first and second-round matches for the first time in program history. Erger earned AVCA Southwest Region Coach of the Year honors. She won the award again in 2025 after SMU finished 27-6 and reached the Sweet 16 for the first time in school history.
She knows why volleyball continues to grow.
"Women's sports are taking off, and if you have a great product, people want to watch it," Erger told Daybreak.
She also understands North Texas' place in the sport.
"It is the most popular sport in Dallas and in Texas for girls," she said.
The 2026 roster is shaping up to be the most talented of Erger's tenure.
Outside hitter Naya Shime, the program's first AVCA All-American, returns after earning first-team All-ACC honors in 2025.Favor Anyanwu returns after winning three gold medals with USA Volleyball, including the 2023 FIVB Girls U19 World Championship and the 2024 and 2025 Women's U21 Pan American Cups. Anyanwu was also named to the 2026 U.S. Women's U21 National Team alongside incoming transfer Suli Davis.
Davis arrives from BYU after recording 541 kills as a freshman, the third-most in a rally-scoring era season in program history. SMU also added opposite hitter Gabi Placide from Ole Miss, setter Ava Sarafa from Kentucky and libero Victoria Harris from South Carolina.
The incoming recruiting class ranks No.4 in the ACC, according to VBAdrenaline.com, and includes 6-foot-5 middle blocker Elle Vandeweghe and outside hitter Levariya Pinder from Haslet, Texas.
Erger has built the deepest roster of her time at SMU, and Spikes Under the Lights on Aug. 27 will provide the first major test.
On Aug. 27 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, SMU will face its biggest stage yet. Spikes Under the Lights features Florida, Nebraska and Penn State in a nationally televised event with a $1 million prize pool, the largest in women's college volleyball history.
Erger was direct about what the event means.
"We are talking a million bucks, but pride is at stake," she said. "We want to represent. We are Dallas's hometown team, and we want to put on our show for all of our friends here."
