Gio Lopez Scores Three Times as No. 11 Wake Forest Routs No. 25 SMU 49-7

The matchup was billed as a top 25 test in Dallas. By halftime it was a 42-0 statement. Wake Forest scored six first-half touchdowns, forced two takeaways and stopped SMU twice on fourth down, then coasted to a 49-7 win on Saturday at Gerald J. Ford Stadium.

Gio Lopez, back after sitting out last week's game against Merrimack, threw for 201 yards and a touchdown and ran for two more scores. Five different Demon Deacons found the end zone, the offense piled up 535 yards, and the defense held a Mustangs attack that scored 51 points a week earlier to 275. No. 11 Wake Forest is now 9-1 and 6-1 in the ACC, with seven straight wins since its only loss, to Miami in September. No. 25 SMU drops to 7-3 and 5-3 in league play.

A defense that set the tone early

Wake Forest won the toss and chose to kick, and the decision paid off right away. On SMU's opening series, Gabe Kirschke dropped Kevin Jennings for a 20-yard sack, and the Mustangs went three-and-out.

The Deacons needed six plays to score. Facing third-and-18, Ty Clark III broke a 27-yard touchdown run at 11:04 of the first quarter, and Connor Calvert's extra point made it 7-0. Aiden Hall then intercepted Jennings at the Wake Forest 36, his first career interception, according to Sports Illustrated's account of the game.

SMU's next big gamble went the wrong way. With 5:25 left in the first quarter, the Mustangs went for it on fourth-and-1 from their own 26, and Braylon Johnson and Matt Herron stopped Christian Rhodes for no gain. Wake Forest took over in plus territory and scored five plays later on a 6-yard run by Jamar Searcy. It was 14-0 after one quarter.

The second quarter that ended it

If the first quarter put SMU in a hole, the second buried it. Wake Forest scored four touchdowns in a span of about 10 minutes.

Lopez opened the period by hitting Carlos Hernandez for a 44-yard touchdown at 12:14, capping a six-play, 82-yard drive. On SMU's next possession, Frank Cusano forced a fumble by Rhodes and Dallas Afalava recovered at the SMU 21. Five plays later, Lopez kept the ball and scored from 5 yards out at 9:42 for a 28-0 lead.

The Deacons then put together their longest drive of the half, a nine-play, 82-yard march helped by a 38-yard run from Searcy. Deuce Lawrence finished it with a 1-yard touchdown at 4:31. Wake Forest got another short field on its next series, starting at the SMU 21, and Lopez scored on a 5-yard run again at 2:02. That made it 42-0.

SMU's best drive of the half came too late to matter. The Mustangs moved 73 yards on 10 plays and reached the Wake Forest 2, but on fourth down with 11 seconds left, Somad Eaddy broke up a pass intended for Jalen Cooper. The shutout held into the break.

Turning point

The fourth-down stop at the SMU 26 was the moment the afternoon turned. SMU's coaches chose aggression with a 7-0 deficit, and the decision handed Wake Forest a 26-yard field and a two-score lead. From there, the Mustangs spent the rest of the half playing from behind against a defense that did not give them much.

The numbers tell the rest. Wake Forest converted 10 of 15 third downs, and SMU converted 3 of 14. The Deacons held the ball for 36:59, and they won the turnover battle 3-1.

Lopez, the backs and the defense

Lopez finished 14 of 25 passing for 201 yards and the touchdown to Hernandez, and added 34 rushing yards and two touchdowns on eight carries. Hernandez led all receivers with six catches for 94 yards. Antonio Meeks caught four passes for 49 yards, Jack Foley had two for 42, and Kam Shanks had two for 41, including a 35-yarder.

The ground game did most of the heavy lifting. Wake Forest ran 45 times for 286 yards. Clark led the way with 77 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries, Searcy added 44 yards and a score on four carries, and Lawrence ran eight times for 30 yards and a touchdown. Steele Pizzella, who threw for 432 yards in his first start against Merrimack, came on later and ran six times for 58 yards, including a 25-yard touchdown at 13:28 of the fourth quarter that capped a nine-play, 75-yard drive. Pizzella also completed 4 of 5 passes for 48 yards.

On defense, Deuce Blades II and Hall each made five tackles, with Hall adding the interception. Kirschke, Davaughn Patterson, Johnson and Vincent Firenze had four tackles apiece. Kirschke, Kerrington Lee and Zach Lohavichan each recorded a sack, and Wake Forest finished with three sacks and six tackles for loss. Calvert went 7 for 7 on extra points, and Ethan Hyams, named a Ray Guy Award semifinalist this week, punted only twice.

What SMU salvaged

Jennings completed 22 of 35 passes for 209 yards with one touchdown and one interception, and he finished with minus 5 rushing yards on seven attempts, sacks included. Randy Pittman Jr. caught five passes for 76 yards, and Yamir Knight added five catches for 44.

The Mustangs' lone score came in the third quarter. After SMU turned Wake Forest away on downs at the SMU 28, Ahmaad Moses forced a fumble by Foley and Brandon Booker recovered at the Wake Forest 50. Eight plays later, Jennings found Yannick Smith for a 19-yard touchdown at 3:55, and Brendan Baird's kick made it 42-7.

Booker led SMU with eight tackles. Jayvon Thomas, Marcellus Barnes Jr. and Alexander Kilgore had six apiece, and Marques White posted a sack among his two tackles for loss. Punter Wade McSparron kept busy, averaging 48.8 yards on five punts with a long of 58. Kendrick Raphael ran 15 times for 54 yards, but SMU managed only 66 rushing yards as a team on 27 carries.

What it means

The win keeps Wake Forest in the thick of the ACC title race. The Deacons are 6-1 in conference play, second in the standings behind Miami at 7-0, and SMU's third league loss all but removes the Mustangs from that chase. It also settles some business from last season, when Wake Forest beat SMU 13-12 on Calvert's 50-yard field goal as time expired. This one was never close.

It is the latest in a run of lopsided results for the Deacons, who beat Virginia 51-7 on Oct. 31 and Merrimack 77-0 a week later. SMU came in on a high after rolling past Virginia Tech 51-28, a week after its 30-27 loss at Syracuse.

Wake Forest plays at Georgia Tech on Nov. 21 and closes the regular season at home against Duke on Nov. 28. SMU travels to Notre Dame on Nov. 21 for a 6:30 p.m. CT kickoff on NBC and Peacock, then finishes at Stanford on Nov. 28.

Closing take

Wake Forest has won its last three games by a combined 177-14, and this one came against a ranked opponent on the road. The Deacons did not need anything fancy. They won on third down, won the turnover battle and ran the ball at will. The bigger test may still be ahead, with Miami holding the top spot in the league, but on this form Wake Forest looks like a team that belongs in that conversation. SMU, meanwhile, has a short week to regroup before one of the toughest road trips on its schedule.

Full stats are in the ESPN box score (opens in a new tab), and SMU's game page is on SMU Athletics (opens in a new tab). For more, visit the Undrafted college football hub.

Sources: ESPN box score and play-by-play, Wake Forest Athletics, SMU Athletics, Sports Illustrated.

Photo: SMU Athletics.