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 Draft Scout College Football Player News: Southern Methodist
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  11/01/25 - TJ HardenSr/2026, Southern Methodist, 6-2, 220 (DS#20 RB) + More +

  T.J. Harden scored on a 1-yard run in overtime, and SMU upset No. 10 Miami 26-20 on Saturday, handing the Hurricanes their second loss in three weeks and damaging their playoff hopes. Ahmaad Moses put the Mustangs (6-3, 4-1 Atlantic Coast) in position to win even with a field goal by intercepting Carson Beck just short of the goal line on the first possession of the extra period. Harden's score came on the last of his four consecutive runs as the Mustangs won their 13th consecutive home conference game a week after losing an ACC regular-season game for the first time in their second season since returning to a power league. Harden took a handoff and ran left untouched, launching a wild celebration as SMU students stormed the field from the stands behind the Miami bench. Fans toppled the goal post in the end zone where Harden scored. Marquise Lightfoot's critical unnecessary roughness penalty on a hit on quarterback Kevin Jennings after Miami called a timeout gave the Mustangs a first down when they were facing fourth-and-9 down three with 1:08 remaining in regulation.

Sam Keltner kicked a tying 38-yard field goal with 25 seconds remaining in regulation after a potential tying 42-yarder with about six minutes to go was ruled no good as the ball sailed over the right upright. SMU coach Rhett Lashlee, hours after the school announced his two-year contract extension, argued the call, but it wasn't reviewable. Jennings threw for a touchdown and ran for a score before ignoring an apparent lower left leg injury and returning to finish a drive to Keltner's 43-yard field for a 17-all tie in the final second of the third quarter. Beck had 274 yards passing with touchdowns to Joshisa Trader and Alex Bauman, but threw two interceptions in Miami's first game outside Florida this season. The Mustangs had negative yards rushing when they started overtime. The 25 yards on the winning possession put them at 23 for the game. - SMU/AP College Football


(DS#20 RB) Sr/2026 RB TJ HardenSouthern Methodist
News Source: SMU/AP College Football
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  WEEK 8 ACC SPECIALIST OF THE WEEK: Sam Keltner, R-Fr., PK, SMU (Keller, Texas),...Made a career-best three field goals in the Mustangs' road win at Clemson...Made good on field goals from 51, 48 and 48 yards for the game...His 51-yard field goal was a career-long...Also added six touchbacks on kickoffs in the game. - ACC Football

(DS#999 K) rFr/2029 K Sam KeltnerSouthern Methodist
News Source: ACC Football
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  Kevin Jennings threw for 290 yards and two touchdowns, Chris Johnson Jr. put the game away with a late 6-yard scoring run and SMU defeated Clemson 35-24 on Saturday to avenge last year's heartbreaking loss in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game. Jordan Hudson finished with seven catches for 131 yards and a touchdown for the Mustangs (5-2, 3-0 ACC), who've won three straight. Clemson played without first-team Preseason All-American quarterback Cade Klubnik, who sat out with ankle injury. Christopher Vizzina made his first start for the Tigers (3-4, 2-3) and completed 29 of 42 passes for 317 yards with three touchdowns, including two to T.J. Moore. Moore had five catches for 124 yards, including a one-hand snag on a 62-yard touchdown reception. Clemson beat SMU 34-31 last December for the ACC title on a walk-off field goal, and this game provided similar drama. SMU led 29-17 in the fourth quarter when Clemson's Ricardo Jones intercepted Jennings near midfield with 10 minutes remaining.

Facing a fourth-and-21, Vizzina found a leaping Tristan Smith for a 23-yard touchdown strike between two defenders to cut the Mustangs' lead to 29-24 with 6:44 left and pumping life into the home crowd. But SMU drew a crucial pass interference penalty on a fourth-and-3 at the Clemson 39 to move the chains on the ensuing possession and Jennings followed with a 26-yard strike along the right sideline to Hudson on third-and-10. With Clemson needing stop to force a field goal and keep it a one-possession game, Johnson plowed into the end zone with 1:03 left to seal the victory. SMU outgained Clemson 139-35 on the ground. Clemson trailed 16-7 at the break and looked like it might get back in the game after Moore reached out and snagged a one-handed grab on a long ball from Vizzina and raced to the end zone. But SMU answered with a pair of 75-yard scoring drives on its next two possessions to take a 29-17 lead as McFall took a pitchout and raced 35 yards around right end untouched to the end zone and tight end Matthew Hibner hauled in a one-handed grab on a crossing route for a walk-in 22-yard TD. - SMU/AP College Football

(DS#18 QB) rJr/2027 QB Kevin JenningsSouthern Methodist
News Source: SMU/AP College Football
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  Chris Johnson Jr. ran for an 87-yard touchdown and took a short pass 42 yards for a score after a nifty escape from quarterback Kevin Jennings as SMU beat Stanford 34-10 on Saturday. Justin Medlock returned an interception 96 yards for a clinching TD in the fourth quarter of the 19th consecutive regular-season conference victory for the Mustangs (4-2, 2-0 Atlantic Coast). SMU is 10-0 in the ACC in the regular season since returning to a power conference last season for the first time since 1995. The Mustangs lost to Clemson in the ACC championship game last year.

The Cardinal (2-4, 1-2) answered Johnson’s long rushing score with 35 seconds to go before halftime by driving 75 yards in four plays and 33 seconds to get within 17-7 at the break. Stanford cornerback Aaron Morris was immobilized and taken off the field in an ambulance in the first quarter after tackling SMU receiver Jordan Hudson. Morris cleared precautionary tests and was allowed to rejoin the team before the end of the game. Five plays after Morris’ injury, Derrick McFall took a short pass from Jennings 19 yards for the game’s first points. Johnson was 22 of 30 for 247 yards and two scores. On the TD to Johnson, Jennings escaped immediate pressure from Tevarua Tafiti by pivoting out the tackle, then lobbing the pass to Johnson just before he was crunched by several defenders. Johnson was alone along the sideline before cutting toward the middle of the field. - SMU/AP College Football


(DS#999 RB) rSo/2028 RB Chris Johnson Jr.Southern Methodist
News Source: SMU/AP College Football
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  Kevin Jennings threw for 281 yards and a touchdown, T.J Harden ran for 96 yards and two more scores, and SMU bounced back from a double-overtime loss to Baylor by rallying for a 28-10 win over Missouri State on Saturday. Dramekco Green added a touchdown run for the Mustangs (2-1), who trailed 10-0 early before finishing with four unanswered touchdowns against the Bears (1-2), who were playing their first home game as a member of the Football Bowl Subdivision. The Bears' Jacob Clark threw for 275 yards and a touchdown. But he also was picked off three times, including once in the end zone, when Missouri State had a chance to regain the lead early in the second half.

The Bears, who were blown out by USC in their opener, had rebounded with a comeback win over Marshall. And they carried that momentum into revamped Plaster Stadium, where a big crowd turned up for one of the biggest home games in school history. Missouri State turned an early interception into a field goal. Then, after swapping possessions, the Bears needed just six plays to go 74 yards, and Clark finished off the drive with a 9-yard touchdown pass to Dash Luke for a 10-0 lead. For much of the first half, SMU looked as if it was still recovering from last week's loss to Baylor, which knocked the Mustangs out of the Top 25. But coach Rhett Lashlee's bunch finally hit its stride late in the second quarter, driving 73 yards and 80 yards on consecutive possessions to take a 14-10 lead into the break. Harden added a 37-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, and RJ Maryland's TD catch in the fourth put the game away. - SMU/AP College Football


(DS#18 QB) rJr/2027 QB Kevin JenningsSouthern Methodist
News Source: SMU/AP College Football
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  SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings had two 75-yard touchdowns while completing all 10 of his passes Saturday in the first half of the 17th-ranked Mustangs' first game against former Southwest Conference rival Baylor since 2016. Those two long TDs accounted for 150 of Jennings' 236 yards passing by halftime, when SMU led 24-21. The first snap of the game was Jennings' TD to Romello Brinson, who reached out with his left hand and deflected the ball back to himself near the 40 after Baylor cornerback Levar Thornton Jr. jumped in front of him and got his hands on it.

Brinson had a 63-yard touchdown catch from Jennings on the third play of SMU's 42-13 win over East Texas A&M in the season opener last Saturday. Jennings got his other 75-yard TD against Baylor, also on the first play of a drive, when he found Jalen Cooper open behind the Baylor secondary and hit the freshman in stride near the 40. That put the Mustangs up 24-14 with 4:49 left in second quarter. - AP College Football


(DS#18 QB) rJr/2027 QB Kevin JenningsSouthern Methodist
News Source: AP College Football
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  09/02/25 - Ahmaad MosesSr/2026, Southern Methodist, 5-10, 205 (DS#6 SS) + More +

  WEEK 1 ACC DEFENSIVE BACK OF THE WEEK: Ahmaad Moses, Sr., S, SMU (Arlington, Texas),...Finished with four tackles in SMU's season-opening win against East Texas A&M...Tallied a 95-yard interception return for a touchdown...His pick-six is tied for the fourth-longest in program history. - Atlantic Coast Conference

(DS#6 SS) Sr/2026 SS Ahmaad MosesSouthern Methodist
News Source: Atlantic Coast Conference
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  08/31/25 - Ahmaad MosesSr/2026, Southern Methodist, 5-10, 205 (DS#6 SS) + More +

  Ahmaad Moses returned an interception 95 yards for a touchdown and middle linebacker Alexander Kilgore had a much shorter and stranger pick-6 as 16th-ranked SMU opened the season with a 42-13 win over East Texas A&M on Saturday night. The Mustangs led for good after Kevin Jennings' 63-yard TD pass to Romello Brinson on the third play less than a minute into the game. Jennings completed 22 of 30 passes for 260 yards and two TDs, and ran 7 yards for a score. Brinson had seven catches for 121 yards.

Moses' big play made it 28-3 after Football Championship Subdivision East Texas A&M got to the SMU 8 on the first drive after halftime. He stepped in front of a pass by Eric Rodriguez and sprinted the length of the field untouched. Kilgore, one of the team's captains, got hurt on his 10-yard TD return in the first quarter. He was limping when he got up and was on the sideline after halftime on crutches and with a protective boot on his left foot. Will Madonna threw that interception, which first went off 6-foot-4 defensive end Cameron Robertson while he reached over an offensive lineman. The ball then ricocheted off of Kilgore's foot without hitting the ground. He grabbed it and was tripped up by Madonna as he crossed the goal line. SMU lost top returning receiver Jordan Hudson to an apparent shoulder injury on a 7-yard catch on the first play of the game. - SMU/AP College Football


(DS#6 SS) Sr/2026 SS Ahmaad MosesSouthern Methodist
News Source: SMU/AP College Football
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  Brashard Smith ran for 108 yards and two touchdowns, 348-pound nose tackle Anthony Booker Jr. returned a fumble for a score and SMU routed FCS member Houston Christian 59-7 on Saturday night. Preston Stone threw for two TDs and Kevin Jennings had one passing and one rushing as the quarterbacks split time in the first home game for SMU (2-0) since joining the Atlantic Coast Conference. After starting with a three-and-out, the Mustangs scored touchdowns on four consecutive possessions of their own - and one of Houston Christian's.

Jahfari Harvey crunched CJ Rogers in the chest late in the first quarter, the ball squirted loose as the QB was being slammed to the turf and Booker scooped it up and rumbled 16 yards for a 28-0 SMU lead. The lead was 42-7 with five minutes left in the first half a week after the Mustangs were three-touchdown favorites but didn't lead until the final two minutes of a 29-24 victory at Nevada. The Huskies (0-1) got a 10-yard touchdown catch from Deuce McMillan but averaged just 3 yards per play with 10 first downs and had three turnovers in coach Jason Bachtel's debut. - AP College Football


(DS#20 RB) Sr/2025 RB Brashard SmithSouthern Methodist
News Source: AP College Football
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  Preston Stone connected on a 35-yard touchdown pass to RJ Maryland with 1:18 left in the fourth quarter and Southern Methodist avoided an upset to open the season, defeating Nevada 29-24 on Saturday night.A near four-touchdown favorite, SMU needed a fourth-quarter comeback to survive the first game of its inaugural season as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. "I think as a collective we struggled in the first half," Stone said. "The defense did a good job in the first half of getting stops. We (the offense) were stalling." He added: "Unfortunately for Nevada they played man against RJ, and they just can't do that." Down 24-13, the SMU comeback started with 10 minutes left and the Mustangs pinned at their own 10-yard line. On third down and short, Stone connected on a 49-yard pass to Maryland. SMU finished the drive with a Brashard Smith 4-yard touchdown run and a two-point conversion to pull within 24-21.

On Nevada's next possession, SMU defensive lineman Anthony Booker Jr. tackled Nevada quarterback Brendon Lewis in the end zone for a safety to pull the Mustangs within a point with eight minutes left in the game. SMU began its winning drive on its own 17-yard line with 3:31 left. The nine play, 83-yard drive ended with Maryland's winning catch. SMU's 6-foot-4 junior tight end and son of former Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Russell Maryland finished the game with eight receptions for 162 yards. Stone completed 17 of 30 passes for 254 yards with a touchdown and an interception. - AP College Football


(DS#4 TE) Sr/2026 TE RJ MarylandSouthern Methodist
News Source: AP College Football
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  Jalen Rivers, who has played mostly guard at UM, again lined up as the first-team left tackle, while Chris Washington was the first-team right tackle. Left tackle Zion Nelson, who missed much of last season because of a knee injury, remains out for undisclosed medical reasons; Mario Cristobal has indicated he's optimistic that Nelson will be able to play this season. Rivers could end up starting at left tackle if Nelson doesn't win the job this summer, or if the Canes believe five-star freshmen tackles Samson Okunlola and Francis Mauigoa aren't ready for starting jobs. - Miami Herald

(DS#60 OT) rSr/2026 OT Zion NelsonSouthern Methodist
News Source: Miami Herald
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  The Miami Herald learned Thursday from multiple sources that Miami Dolphins great and NFL Pro Football Hall of Fame member Jason Taylor has taken the job as the University of Miami defensive ends coach - the final assistant coaching vacancy on head coach Mario Cristobal's staff. Taylor, 48, a well-respected, beloved figure, in 2022 served as a defensive analyst with the Hurricanes. He will replace former UM defensive ends coach Rod Wright, who has left the Hurricanes to join the NFL's Houston Texans staff.

Taylor could also coach outside linebackers, as UM previously announced new "inside linebackers coach" Derek Nicholson. Taylor's hiring completes Cristobal's assistant coaching staff. The Herald reported early Wednesday that former UM 2001 national champion and former UM assistant Kevin Beard is being hired as the wide receivers coach to replace Josh Gattis, who also served as offensive coordinator. Spring practice begins Saturday at Greentree Field. - Miami Herald


(DS#47 DE) rSr/2025 DE Jahfari HarveySouthern Methodist
News Source: Miami Herald
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  After Tyler Van Dyke's disappointing season in 2022 that ended with the Hurricanes quarterback missing most of the second half of the season due to injury, rumors swirled that the 2021 ACC Rookie of the Year could seek greener pastures elsewhere. That did not come to pass. Instead, the rising fourth-year signal-caller played an integral role in bringing more players to UM. Cristobal said Van Dyke even cut short a trip home to see his family to participate in a recruiting weekend, flying back from Connecticut to Florida to pitch the Hurricanes to prospective players. "A lot of guys," Cristobal said, "they would've ran to the hills...Instead, he was instrumental in getting a lot of these guys on board and signing them." Van Dyke finished last season with 1,835 passing yards, 10 touchdowns and a 63.2 completion percentage. He got off to a slow start before getting into a groove against North Carolina and Virginia Tech. However, he suffered an injury against Duke on Oct. 22 and threw only 16 passes the rest of the year.

Cristobal said Miami's offensive system under Gattis did not work with Van Dyke and UM's roster last season, especially once injuries began to take their toll on starting players. "Systematically, it just didn't fit," Cristobal said. "Those systems were phenomenal when we were at Alabama and at Oregon. The track record is what it is: They worked and they worked well. But when you're in a roster transition and whatnot, and it doesn't quite fit, you have to keep finding tweaks, and you've got to keep finding ways to make things work. And we didn't do a good enough job when the injuries piled up." - Sun Sentinel


(DS#25 QB) rSr/2026 QB Tyler Van DykeSouthern Methodist
News Source: Sun Sentinel
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  SMU added more talent to its offensive line on Monday when former Miami (FL) starting center Jakai Clark announced his commitment to the Mustangs. Clark, a former three-star recruit out of Loganville, Georgia, started the majority of the last two seasons for the Hurricanes. SMU has already signed 16 transfers in this cycle. Five of those transfers played at Miami (FL) with Clark. They'll all reunite in Dallas. Clark is also the fourth Power Five offensive lineman to transfer to SMU. The Mustangs previously added Texas offensive lineman Logan Parr, Missouri offensive lineman Hyrin White and Texas A&M transfer P.J. Williams. - Dallas Morning News

(DS#49 OG) rSr/2025 OG Jakai ClarkSouthern Methodist
News Source: Dallas Morning News
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  The SMU football program has been no stranger to the transfer portal, bolstering many positions with veteran experience throughout the offseason. After Tanner Mordecai's departure to Wisconsin, Rhett Lashlee and the Mustangs were ready to look forward to the future at quarterback. That future will include another experienced player at signal caller.

On Friday, former Iowa quarterback Alex Padilla took to Twitter to announce his transfer to SMU. In three seasons with the Big Ten program, Padilla completed 77 of 157 pass attempts for 821 yards and three touchdowns to go with four interceptions. Padilla, a Greenwood Village, Colo. native, announced his intention to transfer from Iowa on Nov. 29. He was originally a three-star recruit in the class of 2019, according to 247Sports. - Dallas Morning News


(DS#999 QB) rSr/2024 QB Alex PadillaSouthern Methodist
News Source: Dallas Morning News
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