DALLAS — Kyle Padron completed 17 of 24 passes for 244 yards and two touchdowns, and added a pair of TD runs to lead SMU to a 35-31 win over UTEP yesterday.

SMU (6-4, 5-1 Conference USA) gained sole possession of first place in the conference's West Division after Houston lost 37-32 to Central Florida earlier in the day. The Miners (3-7, 2-4) have lost three straight.

The Mustangs also became bowl eligible for the fifth time.

UTEP took a 31-28 lead after Donald Buckram scored on a 30-yard screen pass from Trevor Vittatoe with 8:57 left to play.

But Padron threw a 37-yard touchdown pass to Emmanuel Sanders with 4:34 left to give SMU the lead. UTEP drove to the Mustangs' 14-yard line but Vittatoe was sacked by SMU's Taylor Thompson on fourth-and-6 with 26 seconds left.

Vittatoe finished 23 of 40 for 396 yards, one interception and two touchdowns. Buckram also rushed for 241 yards and one score.

MORE CONFERENCE USA

ALABAMA-BIRMINGHAM 31, MEMPHIS 21

Joe Webb passed for 378 yards and three touchdowns, and rushed for another score to lead the visiting Blazers (5-5, 4-2) past the Tigers (2-8, 1-5).

RICE 28, TULANE 20

Nick Fanuzzi passed for four touchdowns, including scoring passes of 32, 70 and 29 yards to Toren Dixon, as the host Owls (1-9, 1-5) beat the Green Wave (3-7, 1-5) to snap a nine-game losing streak.

SOUTHERN MISS 27, MARSHALL 20

Martevious Young threw a 36-yard scoring toss to DeAndre Brown with 6:54 left in the game and Justin Wilson intercepted two passes in the final 2 minutes to help the visiting Golden Eagles (6-4, 4-2) hold off the Thundering Herd (5-5, 3-3).

ACC

BOSTON COLLEGE 14, VIRGINIA 10

Dave Shinskie scored on a 1-yard sneak on fourth down with 7:53 left to play as the visiting Eagles (7-3, 4-2) handed the Cavaliers (3-7, 2-4) their fourth straight loss and kept their hopes alive to win the ACC's Atlantic Division.

FLORIDA STATE 41, WAKE FOREST 28

Jermaine Thomas rushed for 149 yards and a touchdown, and QB E.J. Manuel ran for one TD and threw for another as the visiting Seminoles (5-5, 3-4) kept their bowl hopes alive with a victory over the Demon Deacons (4-7, 2-5).

BIG 12

IOWA STATE 17, COLORADO 10

Austen Arnaud threw two touchdown passes, including a 20-yarder for a 17-3 lead midway through the third quarter, and the host Cyclones (6-5, 3-4 Big 12) held the Buffaloes (3-7, 2-4) to just three points on three trips inside the 10-yard line.

MISSOURI 38, KANSAS STATE 12

Blaine Gabbert was 20 for 27 for 298 yards and threw touchdown passes of 54, 16 and 80 yards to Danario Alexander, who had 10 receptions, as the visiting Tigers (6-4, 2-4 Big 12) beat the Wildcats (6-5, 4-3).

NEBRASKA 31, KANSAS 17

Roy Helu Jr. ran for 156 yards and three touchdowns, helping the visiting Cornhuskers (7-3, 4-2) beat the Jayhawks (5-5, 1-5 Big 12) and move into a tie atop the Big 12 North with Kansas.

OKLAHOMA 65, TEXAS A&M 10

A week after throwing five interceptions, Landry Jones passed for a career-high 392 yards and five touchdowns — two to DeMarco Murray — as the host Sooners (6-4, 4-2 Big 12) became bowl-eligible with a rout of the Aggies (5-5, 2-4).

BIG EAST

LOUISVILLE 10, SYRACUSE 9

Adam Froman hit Josh Chichester for a 15-yard touchdown pass with 1:24 remaining to help the host Cardinals (4-6, 1-4 Big East) end a two-game losing streak against the Orange (3-7, 0-5).

BIG TEN

NORTHWESTERN 21, ILLINOIS, 16

Mike Kafka threw for 305 yards and a touchdown and ran for another score, and Sherrick McManis made a last-minute interception to preserve the visiting Wildcats' (7-4, 4-3 Big Ten) victory over the Illini (3-7, 2-6).

MICHIGAN STATE 40, PURDUE 37

Kirk Cousins threw three touchdown passes, and the visiting Spartans (6-5, 4-3 Big Ten) overcame an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Boilermakers (4-7, 3-4) and become bowl eligible.

MINNESOTA 16, SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 13

Eric Ellestad's third field goal of the game, a 25-yarder with 2:22 remaining, broke a 13-all tie and lifted the host Golden Gophers (6-5) over the Jackrabbits (7-3).

IA INDEPENDENTS

ARMY 22, VMI 17

Patrick Mealy ran 16 times for 136 yards and a touchdown as the host Black Knights (4-6) ended a three-game skid and reached four wins for the first time since going 4-7 in 2005 with a victory over the Keydets (2-8).

MID-AMERICAN

WESTERN MICHIGAN 35, EASTERN MICHIGAN 14:

Tim Hiller threw for 275 yards and four touchdowns to propel the visiting Broncos (5-6, 4-3 Mid-American) past the Eagles (0-10, 0-6), who scored first on Alex Gillett's 4-yard run.

MOUNTAIN WEST

WYOMING 30, SAN DIEGO STATE 27

Ian Watts kicked a 43-yard field goal with 23 seconds left as the visiting Cowboys (5-5, 3-3 Mountain West) overcame a 21-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Aztecs (4-6, 2-4).

SEC

MISSISSIPPI 42, TENNESSEE 17

Dexter McCluster rushed for 282 yards and four touchdowns, finishing with 324 all-purpose yards, as the host Rebels (7-3, 3-3 Southeastern Conference) beat the Volunteers (5-5, 2-4) for the first time since 1983.

KENTUCKY 24, VANDERBILT 13

Randall Cobb ran for two touchdowns as the visiting Wildcats (6-4, 2-4 SEC) defeated the Commodores (2-9, 0-7) to become bowl eligible for a school record fourth straight year.

GEORGIA 31, AUBURN 24

Caleb King ran for two fourth-quarter touchdowns, Bacarri Rambo made a jarring tackle that likely saved the tying score and the host Bulldogs (6-4, 4-3 Southeastern Conference) held off the Tigers (7-4, 3-4) to become bowl eligible.

ARKANSAS 56, TROY 20

Ryan Mallett threw for 405 yards and five touchdown passes, all to different receivers, as the host Razorbacks (6-4) routed the Trojans (7-3) to win three straight for the first time under coach Bobby Petrino, who took over before last season.

ELSEWHERE

Pass reception record: Daniel Passafiume set the NCAA record for most receptions in a single game, catching 25 passes for Division III Hanover College. Passafiume finished with 153 yards receiving and two touchdowns in a 42-28 loss to Franklin College. He broke the previous all-divisions mark of 24 shared by Jerry Rice and Chas Gessner.