Justin R. Lessman

The SDSU Jackrabbit football team beat the University of Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks 38-21 at Coughlin-Alumni Stadium Saturday night.

In front of a Beef Bowl crowd of 7,581, the Jacks dominated the first half, drilling out 273 yards and scoring on each of their first four drives.

After being held to a 20-yard rushing performance last week in their win against Chadron State, the Jacks nailed 142 rushing yards in the first half and finished with 232.

Senior quarterback Dan Fjeldheim led the Jacks to a 2-0 season record with 202 total offensive yards. He completed 14 of 22 passes for 181 yards and one touchdown.

He also rushed six times for 21 yards.

“We got off to a good start,” Fjeldheim said. “Our defense stopped them right away and it got our confidence up and got us rolling.”

Junior running back Scott Nedved contributed as well, rushing 18 times for 89 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Junior Keith Witt kicked three field goals, the longest being a 44-yard boot with 3:36 left in the fourth quarter.

The Jacks barely out-gained the Mavericks overall, who fell to 1-3 after Saturday’s loss, but UNO made few yardage and no point gains until the fourth quarter.

SDSU’s defense held the Mavericks’ running game to 154 yards, just one week after they racked up over 400 against Midwestern State.

UNO made it to the Jack’s 26-yard line on the first drive of the game, but missed taking the early lead when senior kicker Troy Severson sent a 44-yard field goal attempt wide right.

The Jacks scored first on a 22-yard toss from Fjeldheim to sophomore Solomon Johnson. The touchdown came after SDSU ate up 74 yards on 11 plays.

Fjeldheim nailed two other passes for 32 yards to highlight the early march.

On the Maverick’s next trip down the field, SDSU’s Dallas Clarksean blocked a 50-yard field goal attempt by Severson. The blocked kick was one of two suffered by Severson.

After two field goals by Witt, the Jacks sat 13-0 early in the second quarter. SDSU dominated near the end of the half.

With a mix of penalties, the Jacks gained 98 yards on 12 plays.

Fjeldheim’s five passes totaling 57 yards and a 47-yard run by senior fullback Craig Martinmaas led to a touchdown by Nedved, with a minute-and-a-half left.

The Jacks left for halftime with a 21-0 lead.

In the third quarter, Nedved struck again with another touchdown carry.

Junior running back James O’Neill added a 12-yard score in the fourth.

The Jacks had a 359-173 advantage at the end of three quarters, before ending the game by a slim margin of 413-412 thanks to a late passing surge by UNO.

Leading 35-0, with 12:27 to play, UNO scored three touchdowns on passes by quarterback Trey Guidry to junior Ryan Krause. Krause ended the evening with 10 catches for a total of 171 yards.

“The final score doesn’t really say much,” said Fjeldheim. “We dominated them for three quarters … then we let up a little bit at the end, but by then the game was over anyway.”

Guidry completed 15 of 18 passes for 216 yards. On the defensive front, SDSU’s safety Justin Landis led with 11 tackles and five solos. Junior safety Scott Connot had ten and also added five solos.

Senior Brandon Thiesse added seven tackles and a fumble recovery.

UNO’s Brandon Pinderhughes led the Maverick’s defense with 11 tackles. Junior Nick Pearson had eight.

It was the North Central Conference opener for both teams.

The Jacks play at St. Cloud State Sept. 28. The game begins at 1 p.m.

#1.888005:1977184831.jpg:Image: SDSU sinks UNO, 38-21:Senior quarterback Dan Fjeldheim looks for a target as offensive tackle Ben Fast fends off the Maverick defense in the Sept. 21 game against the University of Nebraska-Omaha. Fjeldheim completed 14 of 22 passes for 181 yards and a touchdown. The Jackrabbits beat UNO 38-21 in their first NCC match-up of the season.:Theanne Tangen