SMU Gets 28-17 Win Over UTEP
DALLAS (Sports Network) - Zach Line rushed for 115 yards and two touchdowns and J.J. McDermott added 244 yards passing to lead SMU to a 28-17 win over UTEP.
Line found the end zone twice in the first two quarters to help SMU (1-1) jump out to a 21-10 halftime lead, and McDermott completed 18-of-31 passes, 10 of which went to receiver Cole Beasley for 99 yards.
Nick Lamaison completed 15-of-26 for 142 yards to lead UTEP (1-1), which received two touchdowns on the ground from running back Leilyon Myers. The Miners, who struggled to get anything going offensively in the second half, finished with just 306 yards of total offense and were just 9-of-19 on third down.
Line gave SMU the early 7-0 lead on a one-yard touchdown scamper, but Myers came back on the following drive to rush for a 12-yard touchdown that knotted the score with 9:51 remaining in the first quarter. UTEP extended its lead to 10-7 following a 34-yard field goal late in the first frame.
McDermott engineered a seven play, 80 yard drive that was topped off with a 12 yard touchdown run by former starting quarterback Kyle Padron with 30 seconds left in the first quarter. The Mustangs made it 21-10 on Line's seven yard run in the middle of the second quarter.
Myers pulled the Miners within four at the 6:08 mark of the third quarter, but five of the last six UTEP possessions resulted in three punts and two turnovers.
The final turnover was a fumble in the end zone with just under three minutes to play, which was recovered by SMU's Ja'Gared Davis to make it 28-17 and seal the first win of the season for the Mustangs.
