Offense dictated June Jones’ first four wins in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl.
The fifth was defined by defense.
SMU’s defense — headlined by a dominant second-quarter stretch from lineman Margus Hunt and two interception returns for touchdowns — powered the Mustangs to a 43-10 win over Fresno State on Monday at Aloha Stadium.
"We had some really good games throughout the season, we had a couple of shutouts," Hunt said. "But we knew we had to bring pressure and shut down the run game first."
The Mustangs placed big red check marks next to both tasks in holding Fresno State to minus-16 yards rushing and sacking Fresno State quarterback Derek Carr seven times while extending Jones’ Hawaii Bowl win streak to five.
"It’s not rocket science, if you take care of the ball and you get a lot of takeaways you increase your chances of winning and we did," Jones said.
"We thought we could stop their run game and we did. … (Defensive coordinator Tom Mason) did some things on the back end that were different than what we had shown on film. It took (Carr) a little while to work it out, in the meantime the pass rush got to him."
Jones led Hawaii to three wins in the bowl game and added another at SMU in 2009. Quarterbacks earned team MVP honors in each of those contests, but Hunt, a senior defensive end, took home the trophy on Monday primarily on the strength of a pivotal second-quarter stretch.
On three consecutive Fresno State possessions, Hunt sacked Carr twice, forcing a fumble on the first and nailing him for a safety on the second, and forced another fumble by running back Robbie Rouse. Those plays contributed to 15 unanswered points —two field goals, the safety and an eight-yard touchdown run by Zach Line — as the Mustangs took a 22-0 lead into halftime.
"We knew he was going to be a problem, but not to that extent," Fresno State coach Tim DeRuyter said of the 6-foot-8, 275-pound senior. "He was clearly the dominant force, especially in that first half and early in the second half. … At times he was unblockable for us."
SMU punctuated the night with two interception returns for touchdowns to raise its season total to eight and tie the FBS record set last season by SHB champion Southern Mississippi. Linebacker Taylor Reed took the first pick back 69-yards to give SMU a 36-10 lead. Hayden Greenbauer capped the scoring with a game-record 83-yard return and SMU closed the season at 7-6.
"It’s a great finish to a great season," Mason said after the Mustangs raised their season takeaway total to 37. "We had a tough schedule early, fought through a lot of adversity a lot of injuries and this was the answer to it all."
The SMU offense converted on the opportunities provided by the defense with quarterback Garrett Gilbert throwing for 212 yards and a touchdown and running for 98 yards and a score. He threw two interceptions in the second half, ending a string of 144 attempts without a pick.
Line rushed for 71 yards, and his second-quarter touchdown run tied him with Eric Dickerson for a school record with his 47th career rushing touchdown.
Carr finished with 362 passing yards and a touchdown to team MVP Davante Adams, who caught 13 passes for 144 yards. But he also threw two interceptions after being picked off just five times during the regular season.
"I was trying to do too much I guess, just trying to make too many plays and that’s not me," Carr said. "I hate turning the ball over, that’s the one thing I hate the most."
SMU held Rouse, who entered the game averaging 122.3 yards per game, to 22 yards on 13 carries.
