BYU cornerback Jakob Robinson tackled SMU quarterback Tanner Mordecai on a two-point conversion with eight seconds left, stuffing the Mustangs and lifting the Cougars to a 24-23 win in their final game as an independent in the New Mexico Bowl in Albuquerque, N.M., on Saturday night.
After Mordecai led SMU 88 yards in just under three minutes, the Mustangs (7-6) went for two and spread their receivers out. Mordecai tried to run it in but was brought down by Robinson on a fine one-on-one tackle well short of the goal line.
Slotting as the fourth-string quarterback entering camp, BYU’s Sol-Jay Maiava-Peters was the surprise starter and rushed for 96 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries. He completed 7 of 12 passes for 47 yards with an interception.
Christopher Brooks rushed for a score, and linebacker Ben Bywater had 11 tackles and the first pick-six in New Mexico Bowl history for the Cougars (8-5), who will open play as a Big 12 member in 2023.
Mordecai was 27 of 37 passing for 218 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. SMU got scores from Roderick Daniels Jr. and Tyler Lavine (91 yards on 23 carries). Shanon Reid had an interception.
In the 17th New Mexico Bowl, SMU played uptempo and put points on the board at 12:01 when Collin Rogers booted a 35-yard field goal. But Maiava-Peters kept the ball on a fourth-down conversion and trotted into the end zone untouched from 1 yard out for a 7-3 BYU lead with just over six minutes left in the first quarter.
Mordecai hit Daniels for 9-yard score off the right side late in the first, but Maiava-Peters took the Cougars 66 yards on a 14-play drive that took 7:11 off the clock. Jacob Oldroyd’s 31-yard kick made it 10-10 with 3:34 left in the second quarter.
With SMU driving on its second series of the second half and inside the red zone, Bywater stepped in front of a bubble screen for an interception and dashed 76 yards to put the Cougars ahead 17-10 at 8:17.
Brooks padded the lead to 24-10 with a 22-yard run on BYU’s next drive, which went 82 yards in nine plays. But Lavine capped a 75-yard drive with a short touchdown run with 12:39 left to play.
Alden Tofa’s sack of Mordecai on fourth-and-2 forced a turnover on downs with 4:58 remaining in regulation before Mordecai marched the team down the field.
BYU is 17-22-1 in bowl games and 4-0 all-time against the Mustangs, who are 7-10-1 in the postseason.
–Field Level Media