Dallas, TX — Kevin Jennings turned a rough beginning into a record-setting afternoon Saturday, throwing for 464 yards and three touchdowns as No. 22 SMU rallied from an early 10-point deficit to defeat Missouri State 34-24.
The victory was highlighted by Jennings moving to the top of SMU’s career passing list while helping the Mustangs overcome two costly first-quarter turnovers.
Jennings completed 33 of 39 passes and established a school record with 21 consecutive completions. He also scored on a 1-yard rushing touchdown and finished the afternoon responsible for four touchdowns.
“Absolutely fantastic,” SMU coach Rhett Lashlee said. “He was awesome. He made us go.”
Jennings’ performance pushed his career totals to 722 completions and 9,162 passing yards, moving him past Ben Hicks, who finished his SMU career from 2016-18 with 718 completions and 9,081 yards.
Jennings also broke Tanner Mordecai’s school record for touchdowns responsible for. His 78 total touchdowns — 67 passing and 11 rushing — moved him past Mordecai’s previous mark of 76.
“Got a lot more to be done, but this is a blessing,” Jennings said.
SMU Overcomes Rocky Start
The Mustangs appeared to be in trouble early.
SMU turned the ball over twice in the opening quarter, and Missouri State capitalized on both mistakes to grab a 10-0 advantage.
The Bears opened the scoring with a 35-yard field goal by Yousef Obeid after Martavis Blackmon recovered a fumble inside the Missouri State 10-yard line. The turnover came when Yamir Knight lost the ball at the end of a 23-yard reception.
Four plays later, Missouri State struck again.
Jennings was hit as he threw, and cornerback Joel Boamah stepped in front of the pass and returned it 60 yards for a touchdown. The interception return gave the Bears their 10-point cushion with 41 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
SMU, however, steadily took control.
Jennings had already thrown for 291 yards by halftime, while Knight had 125 receiving yards. The Mustangs finally broke through when Jennings connected with tight end Theo Melin Ohrstrom on a 19-yard touchdown pass with only four seconds remaining before halftime.
That score gave SMU a 14-10 lead heading into the break.
Jennings then finished the job himself on the Mustangs’ opening possession of the second half, scoring on a 1-yard run to extend the lead.
“A little adversity came early, but we knew we had to respond,” Jennings said. “That’s what we did. Feel like we played a pretty good game in the second half. You just can’t start that slow again.”
Knight, Cooper Provide Plenty of Help
Jennings had plenty of weapons around him.
Knight finished with 11 receptions for 164 yards and delivered the game’s final touchdown on a 28-yard reception late in the fourth quarter.
“Kevin doing Kevin things,” Knight said.
Jalen Cooper also topped the century mark, catching eight passes for 125 yards.
Ohrstrom finished with two touchdown receptions, giving Jennings a reliable target in the red zone.
SMU also received a strong contribution from Kendrick Raphael, who rushed for 98 yards. His 1-yard touchdown early in the second quarter capped an 11-play, 78-yard drive and helped shift momentum toward the Mustangs.
By the end of the afternoon, SMU had accumulated 592 total yards compared with just 239 for Missouri State. The Mustangs also held a 29-14 advantage in first downs.
Familiar Faces on Opposite Sidelines
The game carried an added layer for both coaching staffs.
Missouri State coach Casey Woods spent the previous four seasons as SMU’s offensive coordinator and helped recruit Jennings to Dallas. Woods and Lashlee have known each other for years and previously worked together at Arkansas State.
The two also spent time together as young assistants at Auburn, where they were part of the program that won the 2010 national championship.
Woods said Jennings’ performance illustrated why the quarterback has generated Heisman Trophy attention.
“You can see why their quarterback is a Heisman Trophy candidate,” Woods said.
Lashlee Wants More Consistency
Despite the victory, Lashlee acknowledged that SMU still has plenty to clean up.
The Mustangs committed two early turnovers, missed two field-goal attempts and were penalized 12 times for 106 yards. Their opening possession also ended when they failed to convert a fourth-and-3 from the Missouri State 30-yard line.
SMU entered the game as a heavy favorite, making the slow start particularly frustrating for Lashlee.
“The reality of it is, four games in we’re 3-1,” Lashlee said. “We’re thankful for that, but if you’re just honest, we don’t make ourselves hard to beat. I’ve looked at the stat sheet every game, and it looks like we should have won by three or four touchdowns.”
Still, the Mustangs accomplished their primary objective: bouncing back after a 41-31 loss at Louisville.
Missouri State Turns Its Attention to Conference Play
Missouri State fell to 1-3, but Woods believes his team can improve as it moves into Conference USA competition.
The Bears once again jumped on SMU early, repeating a 10-0 start from their meeting last September, when Missouri State hosted the Mustangs in its first home game as an FBS program.
The Bears also opened this season with a 50-0 loss at then-No. 8 Texas A&M.
“We have the makings of a good team,” Woods said. “This entire time we’ve said we wanted to be playing our best football by the time we get to conference play, and certainly want to be playing meaningful games in November.”
What’s Next
SMU improves to 3-1 and will open its ACC home schedule next Saturday against Boston College.
Missouri State has a bye before beginning Conference USA play Oct. 8 at Western Kentucky.
For the Mustangs, the next challenge will be turning Saturday’s comeback into the kind of consistent performance Lashlee believes this team is capable of producing.
