Behind nearly impeccable execution in all three phases of the game, the No. 2-ranked University of Sioux Falls football team won its second national championship in three years and its third in school history by defeating No. 1 Carroll College, 23-7, Saturday afternoon in Rome, Ga.

The Cougars scored a touchdown on offense, defense and special teams in front of a sold-out crowd of 6,500 at Barron Stadium.

The victory marked the first win in four attempts against Carroll, who won five of the previous six national championships, including a 17-9 win over Sioux Falls in the 2007 NAIA Football National Championship game in Savannah, Tenn.

Sioux Falls snapped the Fighting Saints' 28-game winning streak and USF improved to 29-11 all time in the postseason.

The game eerily resembled last year's contest as steady rain made for less-than-ideal circumstances. This year, however, Sioux Falls had the stronger running game behind perhaps the best offensive line in school history and a dynamic quarterback. The Cougars racked up 184 yards on 43 carries while the Fighting Saints were limited to 62 yards on 38 attempts.

USF opened the scoring with a 24-yard field goal by senior Matt Lindgren (Clark, S.D.) after beginning the drive on its own 43. The Cougars moved the ball primarily through the efforts of junior quarterback Lorenzo Brown (Bristol, Conn.). He had two runs of 15 yards and another of 10 with a 15-yard completion to senior back Erik Cimpl (Dante, S.D.) to get inside the Carroll 10 before the drive stalled and USF had to settle for three points.

Sioux Falls special teams made the first big play of the game. After Carroll's first drive of the second quarter ended deep in its own territory, USF called for the punt block. Kyle Cummings (Buffalo, Wyo.) came through, and Joe Moen (Cheyenne, Wyo.) recovered and dove into the end zone with 3:16 left in the first quarter for a 10-0 Cougar advantage.

Cummings was named Defensive Player of the Game for his five-tackle performance, which included a sack in addition to the blocked punt.

At that point, Sioux Falls relied on its No. 1 defense to protect the lead, which it did. Last year's Offensive Player of the Game, Gabe Le, struggled to get going, recording 15 yards on eight carries.

The game remained 10-0 until the fourth quarter when Brown found sophomore wide receiver Jon Ryan (Watertown, S.D.) down the left sideline on a go route. Ryan evaded a defender and sprinted into the end zone for a 54-yard touchdown pass.

It was just one of two completions for Brown, who finished 2 of 8 for 69 yards. But, on the ground, the dual-threat rushed for a game-high 129 yards on 19 attempts. He was named Offensive Player of the Game as Carroll struggled to coral the elusive junior.

USF attempted to tie an NAIA record with eight shutouts, but Travis Browne reeled in a 39-yard touchdown on a post pattern from freshman quarterback Matt Ritter with 6:15 to go in the game, cutting the deficit to 17-7.

Defensively, Sioux Falls squashed any possibility of a comeback. On Carroll's ensuing drive following the touchdown, Tyler Newman (Aberdeen, S.D.) picked off Ritter's first-down pass. It was the first-career interception for the senior linebacker.

Ritter fumbled on Carroll's next drive, and defensive lineman Drew DeGroot (Doon, Iowa) picked it up and raced 30 untouched yards to the end zone to cap the scoring with 2:44 remaining. The touchdown was DeGroot's second of the season.

Carroll's final drive fittingly ended on an interception by junior safety Trevor Holleman - his third of the postseason - (New Holland, S.D.) in the final minute.

In the biggest game of the year, the Cougars played their most disciplined. USF came into the contest maligned by penalties, having been flagged 126 times for 1,162 yards. Saturday they had three penalties for 15 yards, including no infractions in the first half. Most importantly, Sioux Falls committed zero turnovers in the game.

The USF defense, which led the nation in every major statistical category in 2008, allowed just 83 points all season, a new school record.

The championship win marks the final contest for 12 Cougar seniors: Drew Anderson; Jeremy Barnes; Bret Beachner; Nick Benedetto; Tyson Brown; Doug Carlson; Erik Cimpl; Shawn Flanagan; Matt Lindgren; Brad Maag; Tyler Newman; Demetrius Washington.