Two starters hurt early for No. 16 SMU, a receiver on 1st play and a linebacker on strange pick-6

DALLAS (AP) — SMU middle linebacker Alexander Kilgore was injured while returning an interception 10 yards for a touchdown after the ball ricocheted off his foot without hitting the ground when deflected by a teammate for the 16th-ranked Mustangs in their season-opening 42-13 victory over FCS team East Texas A&M on Saturday night.

Kilgore, one of the team’s captains, injured his left ankle when he tumbled into the end zone on that strange play with 5 1/2 minutes left in the first quarter.

SMU had already lost top returning receiver Jordan Hudson to an elbow injury on his 7-yard catch on the first offensive play of the season.

Coach Rhett Lashlee said X-rays were negative for both players, but he still was uncertain about their availability for the next game.

Kilgore was tripped up when quarterback Will Madonna made a desperate attempt to tackle him. Kilgore was limping when he got up and went into the medical tent. He was on the sideline after halftime with crutches and a protective boot on his left foot.

Madonna’s pass first hit the hands of 6-foot-4 defensive end Cameron Robertson, who was reaching over an offensive lineman but couldn’t get control of the ball before 5-8 running back EJ Oakmon made contact. The ball was falling toward the ground when it instead bounced up off the foot of Kilgore, who grabbed it and ran into the end zone.

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