The SMU football team (5-3, 3-2) is seeking a third straight bowl bid. A win at Tulane on Saturday, November 5 during Homecoming Weekend would give the Mustangs bowl eligibility as well as restoring some lost confidence. After getting routed by Texas A&M in the season opener, SMU had won five straight games, including impressive performances against then-No. 20 TCU and defending Conference USA champion UCF. However, the Mustangs quest of repeating as C-USA West Champion took two big hits with losses to Southern Miss and Tulsa in the last two weeks.

If SMU hopes to get back on track against the Green Wave, they'll need quarterback J.J. McDermott to revert back to the quarterback that took down TCU and UCF in consecutive weeks. McDermott suffered a chipped bone in his right foot during SMU's 31-point defeat to Tulsa last week. However, McDermott has said he would play on Saturday. If McDermott is unable to go, former starter Kyle Padon would be unavailable to suit up due to a back injury. The Mustangs would have to go to third-string quarterback Stephen Kaiser.

One way head coach June Jones could protect McDermott more is by giving the ball to running back Zach Line more often. Line is currently the leading rusher in Conference USA in just about every category - rushing attempts, rushing yards, touchdowns and rushinig yards per game. Compared to the best rushers in the country, Line is No. 12 with 118.25 yards per game. On the season, Line has amassed 946 yards on the ground and 14 touchdowns.

Due to McDermott's recent struggles in the last two games (353 yards, zero touchdowns, six interceptions), the passing game has been severely restrained. However, McDermott does have two of the nation's top receivers, senior Cole Beasley and junior Darius Johnson, at his disposal. Beasley is No. 31 in the nation with 685 receiving yards while Johnson is No. 41 with 625 yards. However, Johnson has caught four touchdowns compared to Beasley, who has only caught one.

After having to contend with three potent offenses in the past four weeks (TCU, Southern Miss and Tulsa), the SMU defense gets a reprieve with Tulane coming to town. The Green Wave's passing offense is No. 52 in the nation while their rushing offense is No. 96. The Mustangs are 25.5 point favorites to beat the worst team in Conference USA West.

The game is scheduled to kick off at 2:00 p.m. but get out early for the Homecoming festivities. The annual parade with floats will begin at 11:00 p.m. and boulevarding will go from noon till 2:00 p.m.

Photo courtesy of Rob Graham