DALLAS (AP)—Justin Willis threw for 208 yards and four touchdowns off the bench in his first game back from suspension as SMU beat Marshall 31-21 on Saturday.
Willis, who started SMU’s first five games but was benched last week after getting in an off-campus fight, completed 20 of 23 passes after replacing Corey Slater in the second quarter.
Willis’ third touchdown pass, a 7-yard score to Reynaldo Pellerin with 6:38 remaining, gave SMU (4-3, 2-1 Conference USA) the lead. Less than a minute later, Willis sealed the win with a 17-yard touchdown to Ryan Kennedy.
Bernard Morris finished 19 of 32 for 192 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions for Marshall (1-4, 0-2). Devin Lowery had all three interceptions for SMU.
Marshall took a 21-17 lead early in the fourth after Morris’ 25-yard touchdown pass to Marcus Fitzgerald. Marshall running back Ahmad Bradshaw rushed for 91 yards and scored two touchdowns for the Thundering Herd, who led 14-10 at halftime.
Emmanuel Sanders set an SMU school record with a touchdown reception in his fifth straight game after catching a 3-yard score from Willis in the third. He led SMU with 62 yards on six receptions.
Slater was 3-of-6 for 23 yards for SMU before being replaced by Willis, who was suspended Oct. 6 but reinstated by the school Thursday.
Head to Head - Week 7
| Team | Total Yds | Pass Yds | Rush Yds | First Downs | 3rdD% | Pen./Yds | Turnovers | Time of Poss. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marshall | 299 | 192 | 107 | 17 | 57.1% | 7/52 | 4 | 27:13 |
| Southern Methodist | 366 | 231 | 135 | 25 | 57.1% | 2/20 | 1 | 32:47 |