The Mustangs, who were playing their season opener, were forced into two punts and a turnover in their first three possessions by the S&T defense. But on their fourth possession, they picked up the tempo and drove 65 yards for a score, getting into the end zone on a five-yard run by quarterback Brandon Kelsey with 12:31 to go in the half.

That touchdown was followed by three more before the second quarter ended, which came on a five-yard run by Lester Bush, a 22-yard scamper by Kelsey and a one-yard scoring run with 51 seconds to go by Keidrick Jackson.

Kelsey also threw two scoring passes in the second half to David Little, covering 32 and nine yards.

The Miners had the first good scoring opportunity in the contest in the opening period. Jimmy Barnhart (Union, Mo./Union) recovered a Jackson fumble at the Mustangs' 38-yard line, then S&T eventually drove to the two-yard line before settling for a 19-yard field goal attempt from Will Morrison (Rolla, Mo./Rolla). However, Morrison pushed the ball to the right and the Miners came away emptyhanded.

After the teams traded punts, the Mustangs went on their initial scoring drive of the night, with Kelsey completing passes of 25 yards to Little and 27 yards to Edgard Theliar to get into position for his five-yard scoring run to culminate the drive.

S&T halted a scoring chance on MSU's next possession when senior Cameron Williams (Princeton, Ky./Caldwell County) intercepted a pass inside the Miners' 10-yard line, but the Mustangs would score on their next five possessions to break the contest open.

Midwestern State finished the night with a huge advantage in the yardage department, compiling 453 yards to S&T's 179. The Mustangs had 253 of the yards on the ground, while Kelsey completed 13-of-20 passes for 187 yards.

S&T quarterback Josh Firm (Lancaster, Calif./Quartz Hill) threw for 142 yards on 19 completions, with eight of the passes going to Smook Thomas (Quincy, Fla./East Gadsden) for a total of 70 yards. Freshman wideout Nick Taylor (Wichita, Kan./Southeast HS) ended the night with 135 all-purpose yards.

On defense, Jimmy Barnhart (Union, Mo./Union) finished with a team-high six tackles and Chris Emesih (Houston, Texas/Westfield) ended with five.

The Miners (1-1) will face Drake (1-1), who took a 28-21 overtime decision over Grand View Saturday night, next Saturday in Des Moines, Iowa. Game time is at 6 p.m.