CARBONDALE, Ill. (AP) -Chris Dieker threw two touchdown passes as Southern Illinois held off North Dakota State 24-14 in a Missouri Valley Football Conference opener played Saturday, Sept. 26, before 8,768 at McAndrew Stadium.

Dieker connected with Jeff Evans on a 61-yard pass to open the scoring, then finished it with a 7-yard touchdown pass to Joe Allaria midway through the fourth quarter. Dieker was 10 of 23 for 186 yards for the Salukis (2-1, 1-0).

Southern's Deji Karim rushed for 127 yards on 23 carries, including a 23-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Kyle Dougherty added a field goal.

D.J. McNorton scored on a 1-yard run for North Dakota State (1-3, 0-1), and Gerry Ebel scored the other touchdown on a blocked field-goal return. The Bison start the season 1-3 for the first time since 2002.

Pat Paschall led all rushers with 150 yards on 28 carries for North Dakota State. Paschall, who entered the game as the leading rusher in NCAA Division I FCS, has four 100-yard games this season and eight for his career.