FLORENCE, Ala. — A shootout was the last thing Delta State coach Steve Campbell wanted.
He didn't think his option attack could win a track meet against high-octane Bloomsburg. Then, his team was off to the races.
Josh Bright rushed for 175 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Statesmen to a 63-34 victory over Bloomsburg on Saturday for their first NCAA Division II title.
"I didn't want it to be a shootout," Campbell said. "I was thinking 24-17, 17-10. Obviously, I was wrong."
With Bright operating the triple-option attack to perfection, the Statesmen (14-1) amassed a championship game-record 524 rushing yards. They didn't have a punt and scored TDs on eight of their first nine possessions, and that one ended with the first half.
The Huskies (12-3) saw their 12-game winning streak end when they finally ran into their offensive match.
"We know we're hard to beat if we execute," said Bright, who carried 22 times and completed 6 of 11 passes for 80 yards. "I thought we were just clicking on all cylinders, and that's what you want to do. You want to have your best game in your last game."
Delta State had gone winless in its only other playoff appearance. The Statesmen gained 649 total yards, another championship game mark, and had six players rush for TDs. They had 69 rushing plays and held onto the ball for nearly 38 minutes.
The previous scoring mark was 58 points by Northwest Missouri in four overtimes last season.
Deforest Hart carried eight times for 84 yards, and Rico McDonald gained 86 yards on 19 rushes to set the school's single-season rushing mark.
Bloomsburg had been averaging 574 yards and 47 points in the playoffs. The Huskies made it to the championship game despite opening the season with two losses.
"When you get into the playoff mode, unless you win it all, you're going to walk away sad," Bloomsburg coach Danny Hale said. "After a short time, we'll reflect on the season and look at the positives."
One positive was Eric Miller, who was 23-of-39 passing for 261 yards and three TDs, and scored on a 1-yard run. Tierell Johnson caught five passes for 101 yards.
The Huskies had overcome a 19-point fourth-quarter deficit against California-Davis in the semifinals. They couldn't pull out another miracle against a team giving up just 14 points per game in the playoffs.
"We were put in a situation which we really don't do that often, where we had to go to the shotgun on every play," Miller said. "Their secondary was real quick, they made a lot of plays and took us out of our gameplan."
The Huskies made it interesting, though. They recovered an onside kick to start the second half, converted a 4th-and-16 and scored on Miller's 1-yard run.
Delta State scored again, but Miller again came through on a fourth-down play. He hit Darryl Williams on a 16-yard scoring pass on 4th-and-10, making it 42-28.
Bright's 25-yard TD run late in the third put the game away.
The Statesmen scored touchdowns on their first five possessions for a 35-14 halftime lead, capitalizing on an onside kick and a fumble recovery. Bright rushed scored on runs of 35 and 7 yards in the first quarter.
"It seems like every week he does something that amazes me," Campbell said. "He turns a bad call into a good call."