2029 Week 17

National championship game
Rose Bowl
Pasadena, Calif.

SMU 27, No. 2 Rutgers 24

Junior tailback Willie Gold takes an option pitch from Michael Butler and outruns the Scarlet Knights' right linebacker 22 yards for the winning touchdown with 3:21 left to give Coach Nibble and the Mustangs the national title.

Mustangs fend off two final Rutgers efforts, the first ending when CB Walter Thomas breaks up a fourth-down pass at the SMU 38 with 2 minutes left and the other a Hail Mary attempt that's batted away at the 20 on the final play.

SMU rallies from being down 7-0, 10-7, 17-10 and 24-17. Gold does much of the running work with 83 yards. FB Tyler Lane bulls for 71 yards and a TD.

Mustangs trail 17-10 in the fourth quarter when Butler hits Terry Gray on an hook at the Rutgers 40. Gray spins away from a tackle and outruns the pursuit for a 50-yard TD to tie it. The Mustangs appear to be driving for the go-ahead score on their next possession when CB Paul Givens picks off a Butler out route and races 72 yards for a Rutgers TD and a 24-17 lead.

SMU's Bobby Whitehead kicks a 33-yard field goal to cut it to 24-20, then the Mustangs go 60 yards in six plays for the go-ahead score, which comes on a counter option.

Rutgers QB D.J. Bernard, the Heisman Trophy runner-up, hits 25 of 46 passes for 292 yards. He's significantly slowed in the second half, however, when the Mustangs get four sacks and several hurries.

Season notes
Awards
Lombardi: DT Eric Riley
Thorpe: CB Ricky Paul
Ray Guy: Terry Colby

All-Americans: Riley, Paul, Colby, DT Arthur Weeks, DE Shane Wright, FS Terry Dawkins

Passing
Michael Butler 48 percent, 1860 yards, 14 TDs, 12 INTs

Rushing
Willie Gold 1003 yards, 12 TDs
Tyler Lane 951 yards, 20 TDs
Quinton Smith 920 yards 4 TDs

Receiving
Terry Gray 32 catches, 6 TDs

Defense
MLB Thomas Gates 92 tackles
Eric Riley 18 sacks
Shane Wright 12 sacks
Arthur Weeks 10 sacks
Ricky Paul 6 INt, 1 TD

Records: Riley's 18 sacks are a school season record; Wright's 35 career sacks are a school mark; Lane's 20 TDs break Eric Dickerson's season mark of 19.