ASHLAND – How things have changed in five quarters for the Southern Oregon University football team.

From staring down a 1-3 start, to pulling off their biggest fourth-quarter comeback in a couple decades and following up with an upset of the No. 18-ranked team in the country – those who were ready to write off the Raiders can put down their pens for now.

SOU made a statement with a 24-3 defeat of rival Eastern Oregon on Saturday afternoon at Raider Stadium, moving to 3-2 in the Frontier Conference. In their most complete effort of the season, the Raiders picked up their first NAIA Top 25 win since 2018 and held the Mountaineers to their lowest point total in nine years.

After battling to a scoreless tie through one half, the Raiders exploded for 17 points in the third quarter and closed out the Mountaineers (3-2) by getting interceptions from Drew Schuler and Seth Miller. SOU's defense added to all-conference quarterback Kai Quinn's frustration with six sacks, getting three apiece from Ika Ngauamo and Alejandro Sanchez. It had been four years since a Raider last recorded three sacks in a single outing, and two Raiders had never done it in the same Frontier game.

Sanchez finished with a team-high 10 tackles, helping to limit the Mountaineers to 51 rushing yards on 29 attempts and 284 yards total.

The win was the Raiders' first at home against EOU since 2015. It came on a day when all three of the Frontier's ranked teams went down – No. 20 Montana Western against Rocky Mountain (Mont.), No. 23 College of Idaho against Carroll (Mont.), and EOU with fewer points against the Raiders than in any head-to-head matchup since 1999 – leaving them in a tie for second place.

They got it done with just 262 yards of total offense, receiving a boost from Shane McLaughlin and his 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown that essentially put the game away at 24-3 with 11:39 remaining.

To initially get on the board, quarterback Matt Struck led the Raiders on an 11-play, 75-yard drive capped by Avery McCuaig's 12-yard TD rush with 8:26 left in the third. Struck's 32-yard completion to Bryce Goggin sparked it and helped Goggin turn in his third consecutive 100-plus-yard game; he tallied 112 on seven receptions.

Three plays after the score, Bryce Kasch tipped a Quinn pass that then shot up and into the hands of Schuler, whose interception set the Raiders up 33 yards from another score. They got it a couple minutes later on Struck's seven-yard completion to Christian Graney.

After another three-and-out for EOU, SOU's offense put kicker Cesar Ruiz in position to cash in a season-long field goal from 41 yards out.

Struck finished 19-of-33 for 208 yards, also completing six passes to Graney for 32 yards and three to McLaughlin for 48. McCuaig rushed 15 times for 54 yards.

Schuler added seven tackles and Tua Laolagi had two for losses for the Raider defense, which had previously held just two Frontier opponents without a touchdown since joining the circuit in 2012.

The Moutaineers, who were picked in the preseason to win the Frontier title, have scored two touchdowns in their last three games.

SOU travels next Saturday to Montana Western – which along with the Raiders, College of Idaho and EOU stands one game behind first-place Rocky Mountain at the halfway point of conference play.