Recap: Tulane vs. SMU

New Orleans, LA (Sports Network) - The Tulane Green Wave ended their FBS leading 15-game losing streak as they took down the SMU Mustangs, 27-26, in a thrilling Conference USA.battle at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Ryan Griffin returned from an injury for Tulane (1-5, 1-1 C-USA) that kept him sidelined the past three weeks to throw for 302 yards and three touchdowns, including the go-ahead score to Rob Kelly with just 35 seconds left. Kelly finished with 64 yards and two touchdowns on four catches. Marc Edwards had a team-high 96 receiving yards and a touchdown on just two receptions.

Graham Gilbert paced SMU (2-4, 1-1) by completing 25-of-51 attempts for 275 yards and two touchdowns, but he also tossed one interception.Zach Line gained 177 yards on 28 carries. Jeremy Johnson caught 11 passes for 106 yards and a touchdown as the Mustangs fell for the third time in their last four outings.

Griffin did not appear to be rusty as he completed a 31-yard touchdown pass to Kelly less than three minutes after kickoff to give the Green Wave an early lead.

SMU answered with a 10-play, 65-yard drive which was finished off by a 27-yard field goal by Chase Hover. Tulane added a field goal of its own as Cairo Santos drilled a 44-yard kick with seconds remaining in the first frame to make it 10-3.

Hover opened up the second quarter scoring with a 22-yard field goal, but the Mustangs could not produce any more first half points. The Green Wave took a 20-6 lead into the intermission after Griffin completed a huge 79-yard touchdown pass to Edwards and Santos made a 35-yard field goal as the second quarter's time expired.

The only points in the third quarter came courtesy of a 52-yard field goal by Hover.

SMU continued to rally in the final period as Gilbert completed touchdown passes to Johnson and Darius Joseph. Hover kicked a 19-yard field goal with 1:22 left in regulation to give the Mustangs a 26-20 lead.

The Green Wave finally ended their opponent's 20-0 run as their offense produced a five-play, 65-yard drive which was punctuated by a 16-yard touchdown pass from Griffin to Kelly. Santos made the extra point to put Tulane ahead with 35 seconds remaining on the scoreboard. SMU was unable to pull off a miracle drive and Tulane's losing streak finally ended.

Tulane had not won a game since September of 2011. It increased its all-time series lead over SMU to 12-8.