Simon Fraser University shut out the South Dakota School of Mines in the second half en route to a 53-31 in NCAA Division II football action on Saturday.
The Clan trailed 31-26 at half time but scored 27 straight points in the second half to move into sole possession of second place in the Great Northwest conference with a 2-1 record.
Linebacker Jordan Herdman forced a fumble on the first play of the second half and Kristian Lawrence recovered the ball on the Hardrockers' 23-yard line to start the comeback at Swangard Stadium on Saturday.
Two plays later, Clan quarterback Ryan Stanford passed to Justin Buren for the go-ahead touchdown on a six-yard toss.
Herdman came up big again on the opposition's second possession, sacking the South Dakota QB to force a punt.
SFU capitalized again, this time on a 14-yard sweep by Lemar Durant shortly after Notre Dame grad Stephen Spagnuolo took the ball into the visitor's red zone on a 31-yard rush. The Burnaby running back finished with 83 yards on the ground.
The Clan scored touchdowns on the next two possessions as well.
"I told the entire team, this game was going to be a bit of a statement game - especially in the second half," said SFU head coach Jacques Chapdelaine in a Clan press release. "How we answered the bell in the second half was going to determine how the rest of the season was going to go for us."
SFU's Cole Tudor had a game-high 93 yards rushing and two touchdowns, while Standord ended the day completing 28 of 36 passes attempts to 372 yards and four scores.
Buren led all receivers with nine catches for 123 yards. Durant also had two receiving TDs.
On defence, Herdman led all tacklers with a game-high 15 stops and two sacks. Defensive end Jamie Puffer was in on three tackles for a loss and quarterback sack.
SFU takes to the road this week against 1-1 Western Oregon.
