Tulsa Corrals Mustangs 27-24

Saturday, November 24

H.A. Chapman Stadium

2:30 PM

Tulsa

3-9 , 2-6

SMU

5-7 , 4-4

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

SMU

Tulsa

Photo by: Brett Rojo

Tulsa Corrals Mustangs 27-24

11/24/2018 8:14:00 PM | Football

Box Score

GAME STATS PDF | POST-GAME NOTES | POST-GAME QUOTES | PHOTO GALLERY | SEASON STATS

TULSA, Okla. –– Tulsa scored 21 first-half points and held on for a 27-24 victory over the SMU Mustangs Saturday afternoon in the final game for 19 Golden Hurricane seniors. The win gave Tulsa a 3-9 record and 2-6 league mark, while the victory also prevented the Mustangs (5-7, 4-4 AAC) from becoming bowl eligible.

The Tulsa defense was impressive in holding SMU to 380 total yards of offense and seven points under its season scoring average. Tulsa defenders had two interceptions, leading to offensive scores for the Hurricane, while also compiling a season-high five sacks for -64 yards and blocked a field goal before halftime that proved to be the difference in the final score.

51171 — Zaven Collins' field goal block at the end of the first half proved to be the 3-point difference
in the game

Defensive ends Cullen Wick and Trevis Gipson each had two sacks, respectively, with Wick's sacks totaling 39 lost yards and Gipson's 14 yards.

51169 — Cullen Wick had 2 sacks for -39 yards in the first half

Red-shirt freshman quarterback Seth Boomer had a career-best passing day with 251 yards on 20-of-27 passing for the night. True sophomore Keylon Stokes totaled 191 all-purpose yards, including 140 yards receiving on six catches, while fellow sophomore Shamari Brooks led the Tulsa ground game with 89 yards and one TD on 21 carries.

Tulsa built a 21-0 lead in the first 23 minutes of the game, and didn't allow SMU on the scoreboard until 4:13 left in the first half. Tulsa's first-half scores covered 17 yards after an interception, 81 and 80 yards.

Tulsa was looking to add to its 21-7 halftime lead on its first second-half possession, but a field goal attempt from the 42-yard line was blocked and returned 45 yards by SMU's Rodney Clemons to cut the Hurricane lead to 21-14 with 11:15 on the third quarter clock.

SMU took its next drive into Hurricane territory, looking to tie the score, but McKinley Whitfield intercepted a Ben Hicks' pass in the end zone and took it out to the 22-yard line. Tulsa got to the SMU 17 but had to settle for a 34-yard John Parker Romo field goal to give Tulsa a 10-point lead at 24-14 with 3:06 remaining in the third period.

The Mustangs added a 32-yard field goal with only 13 seconds gone in the fourth quarter to make the score Tulsa 24, SMU 17, with 14:47 left in the game. After a Justin Hobbs acrobatic 31-yard catch to the SMU six-yard line on 3^rd-and-11, Tulsa added a 22-yard field goal with 3:28 left in the contest. SMU took the subsequent and went 75 yards in 11 plays in taking just 1:57 off the clock.

51170 — Justin Hobbs had an acrobatic catch to keep a late drive alive for Tulsa

SMU's onside kick, however, went out-of-bounds and Tulsa ran out the remaining 1:31 for the win.

An opening drive SMU turnover, on Cooper Edmiston's 4^th interception of the season, allowed the Hurricane to get on the board early as the offense capitalized on the takeaway when Shamari Brooks' 15-yard run capped a 17-yard, 2-play drive with 8:15 left on the first quarter clock.

Two possessions later, Keylon Stokes took a pass 70 yards to the SMU four-yard line and three plays later Seth Boomer connected on a two-yard pass play with Keenen Johnson in the back of the end zone to give the Hurricane a 14-0 lead following the PAT. The Tulsa score covered 81 yards in six plays.

On Tulsa's next drive, the Hurricane went 80 yards in 10 plays to take a 21-0 lead at the 8:12 mark of the second quarter. Corey Taylor ran in from one-yard out for the Tulsa touchdown.

The Mustangs responded with a nine-play, 68-yard drive that culminated with a 2-yard Ke'Mon Freeman touchdown. For its first score of the game, while the Mustangs' had an opportunity to trim three more points off its deficit but Tulsa's Zaven Collin's got a hand on it to preserve Tulsa's 14-point halftime lead.

Tulsa held a 250 to 199-yard edge in total offense in the first half, while running two less plays than the Mustangs. Tulsa had 161 passing yards and 89 rushing yards for the first 30 minutes, while the Mustangs managed just 33 rushing yards on 20 carries and had 166 yards passing.

WHAT WAS NOTEWORTHY:
STOKES GOES OVER 100 YARDS RECEIVING … For the first time this season, the Golden Hurricane had a 100-yard receiver in a single game as sophomore Keylon Stokes caught 6 passes for 140 yards. It was Tulsa's first 100-yard receiver since last year's SMU game, the 9^th game of the season.

BIG SACKS … Sophomore junior college transfer defensive end Cullen Wick had two big sacks, the first two of his career … his first was a 26-yard sack on SMU's first drive on a 3^rd-and-6 from Tulsa 49-yard line … the second came in the second quarter, as he sacked the SMU quarterback for 13 yards on the first play of the drive … for the game, Wick totaled 2 sacks for -39 yards.

OVER 1,000 YARDS … Sophomore running back Corey Taylor II came into the game needing 24 yards to surpass the 1,000-yard career rushing yards … he had 976 rushing yards in 18 career games before today, and ends the season with 1,029 career rushing yards.