Between 1980 and 1984, the SMU Mustangs held the best record in college football, with 49 wins, 9 losses, and one tie. The team was on top of the world, until 1987 when the NCAA slammed them with the "death penalty," terminating their program for the next 20 years. SMU (the first and only team to ever get the "death penalty") was punished for violating several NCAA rules, the most severe being a slush fund, used to bribe and coerce players, coaches, and boosters in order to get to the top. Pony Excess shows how corruption and greed often bleeds into the world of sports, and how in just a short time, they can completely destroy it.