The SMU Mustangs moved back above .500 after a 31-17 comeback victory over Tulane on Saturday afternoon in New Orleans.
The Mustangs moved the ball efficiently in their opening drive before Tulane defensive end Austen Jacks recovered a Zach Line fumble inside the Green Wave 10-yard line.
Tulane drove down the field with ease behind big runs by freshman running back Orleans Darkwa, who finished the game with a career high 193 yards rushing.
However, the Green Wave was unable to capitalize on the SMU turnover as Cairo Santos’ 27-yard field goal kick hit the right upright.
Tulane’s defense came up big once again when cornerback Ryan Travis forced Line to cough up the ball yet again, and fellow cornerback Kendrick Washington made the recovery.
This time the Tulane offense did not disappoint and made the Ponies pay. Green Wave quarterback Ryan Griffin connected with tight end Cody Sparks on a 9-yard scoring strike early in the second quarter to give Tulane a 7-0 advantage.
Mustang kicker Matt Szymanski responded with a 25-yard field goal on the ensuing drive to cut the deficit to four.
SMU cornerback Richard Crawford and the Mustang defense created a turnover of their own just before halftime.
Darkwa sprinted 22 yards down the field before Crawford prevented a big play by forcing Darkwa to fumble, allowing SMU linebacker Taylor Reed to make the recovery.
Szymanski failed to pull the Mustangs within one yard before intermission when his 52-yard field goal attempt fell short.
Tulane opened the second half with a 17-play, 68-yard drive that chewed 7:54 off the game clock and culminated with a 25-yard field goal by Santos.
The Mustangs’ fumbling woes continued when SMU quarterback Kyle Padron completed a pass to wide receiver Cole Beasley, who was responsible for the Mustangs’ third turnover of the game.
Tulane defensive end Dezman Moses forced a Beasley fumble and Jacks scooped the ball up and ran 23 yards for a touchdown on his second fumble recovery of the day. The score gave the Green Wave a commanding 17-3 lead.
Line made up for his earlier mistakes by rallying the Mustangs with a big 33-yard run late in the third quarter. After the Mustangs moved deeper into scoring position, Line plunged into the end zone from five yards out.
Line once again energized the Mustangs to begin the fourth quarter after a 34-yard dash into Tulane territory. Later in the drive, the sophomore scored his second touchdown of the game from 7 yards out to tie the game, 17-17.
The Mustangs took their first lead with 8:32 remaining the game when Padron found wide receiver Aldrick Robinson on an 82-yard touchdown bomb.
The Green Wave threatened to tie the game on their next offensive possession, but SMU defensive back Chris Banjo intercepted a Griffin pass in the end zone for a touchback.
The Mustangs put the final nail in the coffin when Padron once again hooked up with Robinson for a spectacular 5-yard completion, which set up a 3-yard touchdown by Padron to make the score 31-17.
Padron completed 18 of 32 passes for 354 yards on the day, and Zach Line rushed ended the game with 177 rushing yards. Beasley (9 rec, 135 yards) and Robinson (5 rec, 182 yards) both eclipsed the 100-yard receiving mark.
Defensively the Mustangs were led by linebacker Youri Yenga, who led the team with a career high 14 tackles including 8 solos.
SMU (5-4, 4-1) will travel to El Paso to take on the UTEP Miners (5-4, 2-4) on Saturday November 6 at 8 p.m.
