No. 15 SMU falls at Memphis for 1st loss of season
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Brady White threw for 350 yards and three touchdowns, Antonio Gibson had a school-record 386 all-purpose yards with three scores and No. 24 Memphis held off No. 15 SMU 54-48 on Saturday night to cap the biggest day yet in Tigers’ football history.
The Tigers (8-1, 4-1) handed SMU its first loss of the season and moved atop the American Athletic Conference’s Western Division to improve their case to represent the Group of Five in the New Year’s Six.
SMU (8-1, 4-1) came in with its best start to a season since winning 1982 when the Mustangs won their first 10 games. They left having lost their sixth straight in Memphis in a series dominated by the Tigers.
The teams combined for 1,067 yards total offense, and SMU had its chance after scoring three touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Shane Buechele threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to James Proche with 2:06 left and went for two after each, converting all three.
But Preston Brady recovered SMU’s onside kick, and Memphis ran out the clock for the victory.
NORTH TEXAS 52, UTEP 26
Mason Fine threw a career-high seven touchdown passes to lead the Mean Green to a victory over the Miners in Denton.
North Texas (4-5, 3-2 Conference USA) scored on the first play from scrimmage on a 33-yard touchdown pass from Fine to Deonte Simpson as the Mean Green built a 38-14 halftime lead.
Treyvon Hughes’s 42yard touchdown run pulled UTEP (1-7, 0-5) to 38-20 late in the third quarter.
GRAMBLING ST. 55 TEXAS SOUTHERN 20
Geremy Hickbottom threw for two touchdowns and ran for three more as Grambling State defeated Texas Southern 55-20 to celebrate homecoming.
Hickbottom scored on first-half runs of 73, 67 and 1 yard and threw two touchdown passes to Lyndon Rash as Grambling (4-4, 2-2 Southwestern Athletic Conference) built a 41-14 halftime lead.
Texas Southern (0-9, 0-5) had 637 yards of offense, with DeAndre Johnson passing for 351 yards and the ground game netting 280.
LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE 31 TEXAS ST. 3
Elijah Mitchell ran 13 times for 126 yards and a touchdown, and the Ragin’ Cajuns beat the Bobcats in Lafayette, La.
Raymond Calais added 21 carries for 83 yards for Louisiana-Lafayette (6-2,
3-1 Sun Belt Conference).
Tyler Vitt was 24-of-34 passing for 206 yards and two interceptions for Texas State (2-6, 1-3).
CENTRAL ARKANSAS 45 LAMAR 17
Breylin Smith threw for a career-best 434 yards and four touchdowns as the Bears walked over the Cardinals in Southland Conference action at Beaumont.
Central Arkansas (7-2, 5-1) remains atop the conference standings with
Sam Houston State and Incarnate Word tied for second.
Jermaine Givens Jr. had 73 yards rushing with one touchdown for Lamar (4-5, 2-4).
NICHOLLS ST. 27 INCARNATE WORD 23
Julien Gums danced his way into the end zone in the final minutes, and the Colonels’ defense held on to give Nicholls State a victory over the Cardinals in San Antonio.
Gums carried the ball six times for 68 yards, with bursts of 28 and 31 yards, on a nine-play, 74-yard drive to help the Colonels (4-4, 3-2 Southland Conference) retake the lead with 3:27 remaining.
That left Incarnate Word (5-4, 4-3) plenty of time to score, and the Cardinals were marching, going 59 yards in 14 plays with a first down on Nicholl’s 26 when Sully Laiche blew through the protection to sack Jon Copeland. The Cardinals had time for just one more play after Laiche’s sack. Incarnate
Word came up short as Copeland completed a pass to Brady Rogers at the 14 as time expired.
SE LOUISIANA 47 STEPHEN F. AUSTIN 30
Cole Kelley threw for a touchdown and ran for two more scores as the Lions (5-3, 4-2 Southland Conference) moved ahead early and led all the way to beat the Lumberjacks (1-8, 1-5) in Hammond, La.