Nov. 9, 2002

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GREELEY, Colo. - The No. 8 ranked University of Northern Colorado football team completed only the second perfect season in the North Central Conference in last 12 years, and its first perfect conference record ever, by defeating South Dakota State 28-17 on a windy afternoon at Nottingham Field on Saturday.

UNC (9-1 overall, 8-0 NCC) won its 11th consecutive NCC game, its ninth straight home contest and 13th straight game against a Division II opponent, all dating back to last season.

Junior running back Adam Matthews had his sixth consecutive 100-plus yard rushing day, totaling 167 yards and three touchdowns on the afternoon. He threatened his career-high which was 178 yards posted against Nebraska-Omaha earlier this season.

As the game started and high winds moved into the area right around kickoff, the Bears looked like they were going to blow South Dakota State (5-4, 3-4) right off the field if the wind did not. UNC scored on its first three possessions and led 21-0 with 6:38 remaining in the first quarter.

Junior linebacker Cabel Rohloff started the game for UNC with a bang, intercepting Jackrabbits quarterback Dan Fjeldheim on the game's second play from scrimmage and giving the Bears great field position at the SDSU 26-yard line. Two plays later Matthews scored his first touchdown on the afternoon thanks to a 28-yard run and the Bears were up 7-0 1:25 into the first quarter.

Following a Jacks three-and-out possession, Matthews once again took the ball across the goalline, this time from two-yards out as UNC completed a five-play, 47-yard drive and led 14-0 before five minutes of gametime had elapsed.

Another three-and-out SDSU possession once again gave UNC great field position near midfield and senior quarterback Mark Passard was able to find sophomore wide receiver Vincent Jackson on a 27-yard strike to push the Bears advantage to 21-0.

UNC missed several golden opportunites to put the game out of reach, as junior fullback Sam Polce fumbled on the SDSU one-yard line and redshirt freshman Mike Swim could not convert on two, second quarter field goal attempts.

After not converting on the Polce fumble, the Jacks did break through after senior wideout Eric Nelson fumbled a punt return early in the second quarter. Three plays later senior running back Scott Nedved scored from one-yard out to cut into the UNC advantage.

On the Bears next possession, Passard was intercepted by Justin Landis which led to a Fjeldheim touchdown pass to redshirt freshman wide receiver Chris Molitor as the Jacks crept to within 21-14 at the 9:30 mark of the second quarter.

The score would remain 21-14 until the start of the fourth quarter when Jacks kicker Keith Witt nailed a 47-yard field goal attempt into the wind to cut the gap to only four points. But tough Bears defense proved to be the story of the fourth quarter and with 3:15 remaining in the final quarter Matthews took the ball to paydirt for the third time on the afternoon, breaking through on a 39-yard run to put the game out of reach.

Passard was 17-34 on the day for a career-high 300 yards and a touchdown. He spread those 17 completions to seven different receivers with tight end Justin White catching a team-high five balls for 60 total yards.

Defensively, Rohloff recorded two interceptions for the second time this season. He also added four solo tackles and an assist and deflected two passes.

"I was in the right place at the right time today," Rohloff said in a post-game interview. "We knew coming into the game that they threw the ball a lot and we were ready for that."

Team-wise, UNC outgained SDSU 498 to 273 overall, including a whopping 198-64 on the ground.

"This team ranks right up there with the great UNC team of all-time," Bears head coach Kay Dalton said after the game.

The only negative on the day was a possible season-ending injury to senior reciever George Carroll. Carroll appeared to break his left leg in the game and did not return.

"I'm not going to speak of negatives right now because I am very positive about that," Dalton said.

"George is a big part of our team and a great leader on and off the field," Jackson said. "But we work hard as a team in practice and we will be ready when the time comes to play next week and for the rest of the season."

"It feels good to be the first UNC team to go undefeated in the NCC," Jackson continued. "There have been a lot of great players that have played here over the years."

"UNC is without a doubt the best team we have played this season," SDSU head coach John Stiegelmeier said after the game. "But I was extremely proud of our kids for coming back from such a large, early defecit and not giving up."

UNC will close out its regular season when it travels to to New Haven, Conn. to battle the University of New Haven next Saturday at 10:30 a.m. mountain time.

The Bears should remain number two in the next NCAA Midwest region poll that will be released next week. Number one ranked Northwest Missouri was a 13-10 winner over rival Missouri Western on Saturday and should remain in the top spot. If UNC remains in one of the top two spots in the region, they will host a playoff game at Nottingham Field on Saturday, November 23.