0-12
Imperfection is a reality for the Mustang football team. Despitea well-played game against TCU, the Mustangs finished the seasonwinless for the first time in SMU history.
The Mustangs’ first set of downs on offense provedeffective as they drove 77 yards boosted by Chris Phillips’rush of 34 yards. Chris McMurtray kicked a 33-yard field goal toput the Mustangs up 3-0 with 7:42 remaining in the firstquarter.
TCU responded with a rushing touchdown by Brandon Hassell tocomplete an 80-yard drive that put the Horned Frogs up 7-3 with4:23 left in the quarter. The next drive resulted in a Mustangpunt, giving TCU the ball on its own 32.
Starting on their 47, the Horned Frogs faced a fourth and twoand successfully converted with a 7-yard rush by TCU running backRobert Merrill. Nick Browne made a 33-yard field goal to put theHorned Frogs up by seven.
After another unsuccessful set of downs for the Mustang’s,TCU got the ball back on its own 33, but on the first play of itsdrive, linebacker D.D. Lee picked off Hassell’s pass to givethe Mustangs the ball on TCU’s 35.
Keylon Kincade and Chris Phillips rushed for a total of 48 yardsto even the score 10-10 with 2:07 left in the half.
After fumbling and recovering on the kickoff return, TCUthreatened to go ahead before halftime, but Browne missed anotherfield goal, holding the score at 10-10 heading into halftime.
The Mustangs’ first drive of the second half wasunsuccessful, but Ryan Mentzel’s punt forced the Horned Frogsto start from their own 11.
As the third quarter was coming to a close TCU found itself deepin Mustang territory. A pass interference call gave them the ballon the SMU 27. The Horned Frogs were forced to settle for a 42-yardfield goal at the start of the fourth quarter to go up 13-10 with14:51 left in the game.
Starting on their own 31, Phillips connected with Kincade whotook the ball 44 yards down field. The Mustangs opted to tie thescore with a McMurtray 22-yarder with 11:09 left.
TCU quickly answered with a drive finished off by a Merrill20-yard run to give the Horned Frogs a 20-13 lead. The Mustangsmoved the ball to midfield, but a sack against Phillips forced theMustangs into fourth and 14 with 3:43 left.
The Mustangs hoped to get the ball back, but an offsides andface mask penalty on a third and long for the Horned Frogs gavethem enough time to run out the clock and shatter SMU’s hopesof a lone win for the season.
This season is the first time the Mustangs have lost every gamethey played, but SMU has had two other winless seasons.
In 1916, the Mustangs finished 0-8-2, and in 1960 the teamfinished 0-9-1.
In his last game as a Mustang, Kincade rushed 70 yards, boostinghis career yardage to 3,038. Phillips passed 7-for-16 and 116 yardsand added 53 yards of his own on the ground. Defensively, D.D. Leehad 11 stops and the interception that led to a Phillipstouchdown.
The TCU victory is the fifth straight in the rivalry for theIron Skillet. TCU now leads the contest 39-38-7.
Before the game, the seniors on the team were honored.
Those graduating in the spring include cornerback JonasRutledge, cornerback Ruben Moodley, backup quarterback Chuck Zars,wide receiver Chris Cunningham, running back Kincade, linebackerD.D. Johnson, linebacker Brian Bischoff, tight end Trent Hrncir,center Steve Reindl, offensive tackle Sterling Harris andlinebacker Jarrian James.
“I’m sad to be leaving, but it was a fun game toplay in,” James said. “It’s a shame wecouldn’t win a game.”
