SMU defensive back ejected from game vs Nevada for spitting on player

SMU Mustangs defensive back Brandon Crossley was ejected in the third quarter in the team’s win over the Nevada Wolf Pack on Saturday night when he spat in the face of another player.

Crossley, a senior from Dallas, didn’t record any statistics before he was thrown out of the game. The referees called an unsportsmanlike penalty on Crossley and ejected him.

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"Officials make calls, and we’ve got to live with it. They do a good job running the game," Mustangs coach Rhett Lashlee said after the game, via the Dallas Morning News. "It’s really hard for guys to control their emotions when they get spit on, but they’ve got to."

The penalty kept Nevada’s drive alive and the Wolf Pack scored a touchdown to take a 24-13 lead.

"That’s on us. It cost us him, and it cost our team," Lashlee added. "We’ve got to be better than that. We’ve got to have composure. There’s a difference between playing with passion and emotion. We were emotional a lot tonight. We’ve got to be passionate. Big difference."

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Lashlee did say there was another spitting incident earlier in the game. He said wide receiver Jordan Hudson told him he was spat on in the first quarter, which is why he was seen slapping Nevada’s Kristopher Ross.

No penalty was called for spitting, then. 

SMU won the game on a Preston Stone touchdown pass to RJ Maryland with 1:18 left in the game.

The touchdown helped the Mustangs top the Wolf Pack 29-24.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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