DALLAS (AP) - Zach Line rushed for 114 yards and two touchdowns and J.J. McDermott was a winner in his first start at quarterback for SMU in a 28-17 victory against UTEP on Saturday night.
Line scored on 1- and 7-yard runs for the Mustangs (1-1, 1-0 Conference USA). McDermott, a senior who relieved Kyle Padron last week at Texas A&M, was 18 of 31 for 244 yards and an interception.
UTEP (1-1, 0-1) lost starting quarterback Nick Lamaison to a shoulder separation in the third quarter. The game was delayed 10 minutes in the third quarter as defensive lineman Germard Reed was taken off the field in an ambulance with an apparent neck injury.
Lamaison was 15 of 26 for 142 yards, and Jay Hall was 8 of 20 for 130 yards and an interception. The Mustangs sealed the win when Hall's fumble in the end zone was recovered by Ja'Gared Davis for a TD, making the score 28-17 with 2:39 remaining.
Padron saw action and had a 12-yard TD run in the first quarter.
