Cougars fall in I-45 shootout
DALLAS — One last trip to The Hilltop ended just how the University of Houston has come to expect in recent years.
Tanner Mordecai tossed nine touchdowns to set the American Athletic Conference record, and the Mustangs rolled to a record-setting 77-63 victory over the Cougars on Saturday. The combined 140 points set the FBS record for a regulation game.
“They were going to score every time they had the ball,” UH coach Dana Holgorsen said after the Cougars allowed a school record for points in a game. “I’ve never seen that. Usually, you get some stops. We got no stops.”
With UH moving to the Big 12 next year and no games scheduled for the foreseeable future, SMU made sure to leave an indelible impression on its I-45 rivals.
Mordecai had touchdown passes of 2, 6, 9, 35, 1, 10, 4, 3 and 43 yards. His seven touchdown passes before halftime tied the FBS record for a half.
UH had no answer how to stop Mordecai and his stable of wide receivers. SMU scored touchdowns on its first nine drives. The crowd at Gerald J. Ford Stadium booed when the Mustangs had to punt for the first time with about five minutes left in the third quarter.
“Mordecai played out of his mind. He didn’t make mistakes,” Holgorsen said. “Tune played out of his mind. He just made a couple of mistakes.”
Tune threw a pair of interceptions on back-toback possessions in the second quarter, allowing the Mustangs to score both times and break a 2121 tie.
SMU delivered the record-breaking score — a 15-yard run by Tyler Lavine with 5:13 remaining — as the Mustangs broke the previous school record 72 points set against the Cougars in 2012. The 77 points were the most allowed in UH’s 832-game history.
UH (5-4, 3-2 AAC) had its three-game winning streak snapped and fell behind first-place Tulane and second-place UCF and Cincinnati in the AAC race. The Cougars must also wait at least another week to become bowl eligible.
Defense was optional as the two teams combined for 20 touchdowns and 1,352 yards total offense. UH had 710 yards and SMU finished with 642.
It was another bitter pill for the Cougars, who lost for the fourth time in the last five trips in Dallas. In those four losses, UH has allowed an average 56.3 points.
“They were clearly ready to play,” Holgorsen said. “They had this game circled.”
SMU (5-4, 3-2 AAC) broke open the game when Mordecai hooked up with Dylan Goffney for a 35-yard touchdown and Tune threw a pair of interceptions — both to SMU safety Nick Roberts — that led to touchdowns and a 42-21 lead.
UH managed touchdown catches by KeSean Carter and Matthew Golden, but SMU continued its aerial assault as tight end Ben Redding answered with scoring catches of 10 and 4 yards for a 56-35 halftime lead.
Bubba Baxa missed a 49-yard field goal to end the first half as the 91 combined points just missed the NCAA record 94 set by North Texas and Navy in 2007.
Mordecai was 28-of-37 for 379 yards with nine touchdowns and no interceptions. A week after missing SMU’s win at Tulsa due to concussion protocol, Mordecai directed eight scoring drives that took less than 2 minutes, 55 seconds. Redding had three touchdowns, and Rashee Rice and RJ Maryland had two touchdowns apiece.
It took that type of performance by Mordecai to unseat Tune, who had won three of the last four AAC offensive player of the week awards. Tune put together a valiant effort, accounting for eight total touchdowns. Tune had career highs in passing yards (527) and touchdowns (seven). He added 111 rushing yards.
Nathaniel Dell had 13 catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns, his 11th and 12th of the season, and Carter added seven catches for 124 yards and a score. Sam Brown had two touchdowns for the Cougars.