It looks like the article was in response to someone else's article on the same subject in which SMU was listed #5. It seems like in the 70s and early 80s most of the football powerhouses were buying recruits through the boosters. I think the picture of Bosworth leaning against his Corvette was probably the high water mark. SMU was certainly an offender but I have often wondered if they were just an east target as a private institution that lacked the political protection that a large public university can muster. I also wonder if this stuff ever went away when I hear about the number of Hummers in some schools' player parking lots.
