UNIVERSITY PARK, Texas _ The last four times that East Carolina had scored, it brought the Pirates to within one point. Three touchdowns and a field goal for ECU. Three touchdowns and a field goal by SMU to respond.
It seemed as though the teams were in an unbreakable pattern of completely awful defense. But that pattern was broken on one play, and with it, SMU gained control of its eventual 59-51 win.
ECU returner Jsi Hatfield muffed a kickoff, and then squandered a chance to fall on it. SMU's Tyler Levine recovered. SMU scored three minutes later. Finally, some breathing room. The Mustangs' defense never got it done, but another way was found.
"The irony of the whole thing is that last week our kickoff coverage was so bad," head coach Sonny Dykes said. "This week, it's probably what won the game for us."
SMU's games are nothing if not entertaining. With the nation watching last week, SMU lost, 54-48, in one of college football's most entertaining games. The country's interest might not have been as piqued for SMU and ECU, but the offensive onslaught was even greater _ by an additional eight points.
The win was absolutely necessary for SMU as it remains right in the mix in the AAC West. With Memphis off, this week basically served as the Mustangs' turn to hold serve. They will need to win out and hope Memphis loses one of its final three games to earn a spot in the AAC title game.
Among the gaudy numbers were 414 passing yards for Shane Buechele, and 498 for ECU QB Holton Ahlers _ 240 of which went to WR Tyler Snead. The offense was so crisp, there wasn't a single penalty called on either team for the first 39 minutes of game action.
"It's exciting to play in, but you want to make more plays to get off the field," said ECU safety Davondre Robinson. "You don't want it to be as much back and forth with them scoring like that."
But back and forth would be the only way to describe this game, with almost no relent from either offense.
SMU got the scoring started with a touchdown pass to Kylen Granson just 2:16 into the game, and the teams were off to the races. It was big play after big play. Hatfield followed that with a 68-yard TD catch, blowing past two members of the SMU secondary to haul in the grab.
But there was a 51-yard touchdown catch by James Proche in the second quarter. A 35-yard Xavier Jones TD run in the third quarter. Perhaps the coolest play was ECU tight end Zech Byrd, appearing to drop a would-be TD pass before catching his bobble on the run and strolling into the end zone for a 45-yard catch.
"When they're scoring like that, obviously we've got to come back tomorrow and correct some things," SMU DE Turner Coxe said. "I think it's probably just a bust here and there. People not doing their job on a particular play."
There were records set. Jones' three TDs gave him 20 on the season, which passed a record by Eric Dickerson _ in attendance _ from 1981. Proche's second-quarter TD gave him 35 career receiving TDs, passing Emmanuel Sanders. It also gave him 4,663 all-purpose yards, passing another Dickerson record.
SMU was facing quite the predicament: a fourth-and-20 look from the East Carolina 31-yard-line. The Mustangs don't have a player on the roster who can make a 49-yard field goal.
So, out of necessity, the Mustangs had to go for it, up one midway through the fourth quarter. Given the nature of this game, it makes sense that Buechele found Granson for a 31-yard TD. He caught the ball and took one step into the end zone.
"We've got a great quarterback. We've got great skill players. We've got great tight ends," Granson said. "The fact that he was willing to go for a fourth-and-long like that, I feel a little big for my boots."
Granson added it was the first three-TD game of his career at any level. He finished with a season-high seven receptions and 138 yards receiving.
There were 110 points scored in this shootout. But not once did SMU give up its lead. It lost 17 points worth of its once-18-point lead. But literally every time ECU knocked on the door, the Mustangs' offense was there to slam it back shut.
SMU went 5 for 5 on fourth down. The final one sealed the deal. The Mustangs could have punted and given ECU the ball back with only seconds to play. They probably should have punted.
But Buechele was able to find Proche for a 6-yard reception to effectively end the game.
And in a game full of incredible offensive highlights, it might have been a muffed kickoff that was the biggest play.
