SMU Rolls Past Rice, Looks To Slow Tulsa Quarterback G.J. Kinne
By Rick Atkinson for cusa-fans.com
http://cusa-fans.com/
DALLAS – Perhaps no C-USA quarterback would like last year’s game against SMU back more than Tulsa’s G.J. Kinne. Then-sophomore Kinne had one of those days a quarterback dreams about – during a heart-pounding, chest-sucking nightmare, that is: 2-for-10 passing, 10 yards, 3 sacks, 2 interceptions. Oh, and a concussion, though it wasn’t diagnosed until the next day. Kinne was benched in the second quarter and played sparingly in the second half.
SMU won, 27-13, and vaulted to a 5-1 finish. Tulsa skidded for three more losses in a season-killing six-game drought.
Kinne gets another shot at the Mustangs (3-2, 2-0) on Saturday when he leads The Golden Hurricane’s league-leading offense into Dallas. The 6-2, 215-pound Kinne currently leads C-USA in passing yards (284) and total yards (304) per game. He threw for 399 yards at East Carolina in a high-scoring, two-point loss in Week One. Tulsa (3-2, 1-1) averages 39.8 points and 507 yards per game. Memphis was blown out, 48-7, by the ‘Cane last week.
SMU, coming off a 42-31 win at Rice, expects to see a different Kinne this time.
“He’s putting up crazy numbers, that’s for sure,†said SMU secondary coach Derrick Odum. “And he looks like his arm is a lot stronger that is was last year. He’s in rhythm and he is definitely a formidable guy that we’ve got to face, probably one of the better ones that we’ll have this year.â€
“We expect his best this game, no question about it. He’s ready to go.â€
“He’s really accurate,†said SMU cornerback Sterling Moore, who had a pick-six at Rice.
“He’s accurate down the field, he’s accurate underneath and he makes good decisions. … He does present a challenge for us, but at the same time we look forward to challenges.â€
Said linebacker Youri Yenga, “[Kinne’s] managing the offense well and he makes plays when it counts. He’s definitely improved from last year.â€
Sterling Moore, right, on Wednesday
The Mustangs are poised for their first 3-0 conference start since 1986. Saturday’s winner stays in the hunt with Houston for a West Division title. SMU’s Kyle Padron, C-USA’s Offensive Player of the Week, passed for 371 yards at Rice, completing 24 of 32 attempts with no interceptions. Cole Beasley and Aldrick Robinson combined for 306 receiving yards, marking the first time SMU has had two 100-yard receivers in a game since last year’s Hawaii Bowl.
Tulsa’s receivers, led by Charles Clay and Damaris Johnson, will test the Mustangs’ secondary often. “They’re quick, they’re shifty and they’re fast,†Moore said. “They run real crisp routes and that’s something that you really have to watch film for, especially teams that run the type of route combinations that they do. There are so many routes, you really have to get in the film room for that.â€
“If you’re the No. 8 offense in the country,†Odum said, “you’ve got something going for you. [The receivers] are obviously a big part of that.â€
The game also features Tulsa’s league-leading rushing game versus SMU’s rush defense, ranked second in C-USA. (Tulsa is ninth in total defense, giving up 417.8 yards per game.)
Moore has an interception in each of the last two games. “He studies extremely well all during the week, as far as film,†Odum said. “He’s a technician on things and he has great ball skills. So, all that together, he’s going to make a lot of plays.â€
Moore said he’s coming out his breaks cleaner now too. “I feel like it’s really helped me this year,†he said.
Odum also has great confidence in opposite corner Richard Crawford. “Rich is another guy that works extremely hard in the film room,†he said. “He’s a football junkie and he keeps improving every week. I really like where he’s headed. He’s definitely a guy that we can count on out there.â€
What’s Odum been stressing of late? “Get the ball out of the air,†Moore laughed. “Last year we got a lot more interceptions than we have this year. There’s kind of been a recession in interceptions this year.â€
“It’s an exciting time here,†Moore said of SMU’s shot at 3-0. “It’s all a challenge but at the same time we don’t let down the fans. A lot more fans are starting to come out to SMU and starting to take a look at SMU. That’s something that we want to continue.â€
“It’s great,†echoed Odum. “It’s hard to see the big picture, you just focus on the next week and the next week and the next week. We’re enjoying the ride, but we know we still have a lot of work ahead of us.â€
“We’ve got our hands full [with Tulsa]. We’ll show up and play our best.â€
Gameday: Tulsa @ SMU, Saturday, Oct. 9, 7:00 p.m. Central
Prediction: Kinne’s back, but it’s not enough. SMU, 35-33, in a shootout.
(Last week, picked SMU over Rice, 27-14; straight record, 4-1)
Notes
*Brewing rivalry? Last year at Tulsa, after loud PA music likely caused three straight false starts by the Mustangs in the third quarter, SMU coach June Jones went onto the field in protest, drawing a 15-yard penalty. Later, with the Mustangs leading, Tulsa fans behind SMU’s bench were confronted by police for shouting racial slurs at players and staff.
*G.J. Kinne is the son of Gary Joe Kinne, the former Canton High head coach shot by a player’s angry parent in 2005. The elder Kinne is now head coach at Sherman High, north of Dallas.
*SMU linebacker Ja’Gared Davis returned a blocked field goal 77 yards for a touchdown at Rice. Linebacker Taylor Reed is the sixth leading tackler in C-USA with 9.4 stops per game. He’s one of just two sophomores in the top ten.
*SMU first played Tulsa in 1935 and leads the series, 11-6.
Richard Crawford
