Williams' field goal in OT pushes SMU past Cincinnati, 31-28
CINCINNATI, OH - OCTOBER 21: Trey Quinn of SMU dives for yardage as he hauls Linden Stephens of Cincinnati on his back making the tackle at Nippert Stadium on October 21, 2017 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
CINCINNATI (AP) - Ben Hicks connected with Trey Quinn on a fourth-and-26 pass to keep SMU alive and Josh Williams kicked a 27-yard field goal to defeat Cincinnati 31-28 in overtime on Saturday.
Kryan Mitchell intercepted Hayden Moore to end the game.
Hicks found All-American wideout Courtland Sutton on a 25-yard scoring strike to give the Mustangs (5-2, 2-1 American) a 28-20 lead with 6:36 left in the game. Moore then led Cincinnati on a 10-play, 78-yard drive, finding Devin Gray for a 21-yard score and again on the two-point conversion pass to tie the game with 2:22 remaining.
Hicks fumbled on the first play of overtime, sacked by Marquis Copeland, but the Mustangs kept possession at the 41. Three plays later Hicks passed to Quinn for a 28-yard gain and a first down at the 13. Hicks finished 26 of 37 for 295 yards.
Moore was scrambling to escape a sack and attempted to dump the ball off to Mike Boone in the backfield when Mitchell intercepted to end the game.
The Mustangs won on the road for the first time this season. The Bearcats (2-6, 0-4) losing streak extended to five games.
The Bearcats scored on their first four possessions to keep up with the high-powered SMU offense. Cincinnati had a first-and-10 on the SMU 14-yard line with 26 seconds left in the first half, poised to score a go-ahead touchdown but Moore was sacked on back-to-back plays. Ryan Jones missed a 47-yard field goal attempt with four seconds remaining as SMU retained a 21-20 halftime advantage.
The teams played scoreless football in the second half until the 6:26 mark of the fourth quarter.
Cincinnati has given up at least 33 points in its previous four losses, held SMU well under its scoring average of 43.8 points per game.
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