It was just another game on the football field for Southern Illinois University Saturday.

The Salukis enjoyed another strong first-half performance and then struggled in the third quarter before righting the ship in the final period.

Kyle Dougherty kicked a 28-yard field goal with 2:59 left in the game and James Wheeler's interception with 36 seconds remaining sealed the deal as No. 9 SIU held off South Dakota State, 38-35, at McAndrew Stadium.

With the win on Senior Day, the Salukis (8-2, 6-1) inched closer to the Missouri Valley Football Conference championship while eliminating the Jackrabbits (6-5, 5-2) from a possible playoff berth.

"Our games always do go down to the wire," SIU head coach Dale Lennon said. "I don't know why that is that our games are always like that, but it just seems to work out that way."

The first half was a back-and-forth affair with SIU striking first and last en route to a 14-point halftime advantage.

The Salukis took the opening kickoff, got a 36-yard return by Richard White and then marched 46 yards in 10 plays capped by White's 2-yard TD plunge for a quick 7-0 lead.

SDSU knotted the game up on Kyle Minett's 1-yard TD dive that was set up by a 50-yard pass from Ryan Berry to Glen Fox.

On the ensuing kickoff, however, Larry Warner broke through the initial wave of defenders, cut outside and raced down the left sideline for an 89-yard touchdown return. It was his school-record third return for a score this season.

"It surprised me when they kicked it near me," said Warner, who totaled 269 all-purpose yards. "I feel like with my ability and the guys out there blocking for me that we can take it to the house when we get past that first line."

The Jackrabbits answered with another methodical drive that culminated with Berry finding Fox for a 4-yard touchdown pass, tying the game at 14 in the second quarter.

It was SIU's turn to score as Chris Dieker connected with Damian Sherman on a post route over the middle that covered 20 yards to put the Salukis back on top 21-14.

On SDSU's first play on its next possession, Berry was picked off by Marty Rodgers, who sprinted 57 yards for a touchdown that gave SIU a 28-14 lead.

"I saw they came out in a three by one," Rodgers said. "All week in practice if a three crosses my face to lean more toward the No. 2 receiver. I saw three cross my face, so I got one more look at the quarterback and saw him looking at two. So I got a good jump on the throw."

Berry led the Jackrabbits down the field 70 yards in 13 plays to keep within striking distance. The quarterback hit Minett for a 3-yard touchdown pass with 50 seconds left in the half.

That was plenty of time for SIU to march right back and regain its two-touchdown lead. Dieker hit Sherman for a 12-yard completion and then found Warner for a 42-yard shovel pass that set up the Salukis at the 7-yard line.

Dieker rushed 5 yards before Warner scampered in on a misdirection play to give SIU a 35-21 lead at intermission.

"We were able to answer their touchdowns in the first half, and I think that's always key," Lennon said. "That's where we got our two-touchdown lead. I give them credit for the way they came out in the second half."

The Jackrabbits took advantage of SIU's third-quarter woes to the tune of 14 points, tying the game for the third time.

Berry hooked up with Mike Steffen for an 18-yard touchdown on the opening drive of the second half to make it 35-28.

Then later in the third, Minett scored his second 1-yard TD run to pull SDSU even at the 2:53 mark. Minett finished with 90 yards on 26 carries.

"We don't want to have a bad third quarter," Lennon said. "We want to come out and take control of the third quarter. But a lot of time the team that you're playing has other ideas and other intentions."

In the fourth quarter, SIU overcame a Dieker interception with a defensive stand, which gave the offense another shot to regain its many leads throughout the game.

Dieker and Co. came through with a 16-play, 75-yard drive that chewed up 6:40 off the clock capped by the eventual winning field goal by Dougherty from 28 yards away. Dieker was 25 of 35 for 245 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

"Chris did a very good job of managing the offense," Lennon said of the final drive. "He had a couple big third-down conversions. The play calling was diverse, and we wanted to give our players a chance."

Berry was intent on leading his squad to the winning score at the other end. But on the ninth play of the drive in SIU territory, the Jackrabbits' QB was pressured and his attempt to throw the ball away was intercepted by Wheeler.

The Salukis ran three straight running plays with SDSU calling timeout after each one and were forced to punt in the final seconds, but a huge hit by Herrin graduate Kyle Walker put the Jackrabbits in tough field position and SIU's defense kept Berry from any big plays before time expired.

Berry ended the game 29 of 46 passing for 286 yards with three TDs and two INTs. Fox hauled in nine passes for 104 yards, Steffen had eight for 82 and JaRon Harris caught seven for 60.

"We came down here to win the football game, not to play them close," SDSU head coach John Stiegelmeier said. "We got close to getting that done against a really good football program. This is the toughest loss we've been through, I think, for a lot of reasons. It was a tough locker room to go into.

"But our guys are winners and they'll bounce back. I'm very proud of our football program in the second-half effort they put out. We just need to learn, get better and finish the deal."

SIU finishes its regular season on the road against Illinois State at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. The Salukis' seventh straight victory will earn them a share of the MVFC title and secure the league's automatic playoff berth.

"Next week becomes even bigger now," safety Mike McElroy said. "This win doesn't matter if we don't go over to Illinois State and show up."