FLORENCE, Ala. – It was a game of ebbs and flows, turnovers and miscues on both sides, and a game of tremendous defense and high-flying offense. In the end, Minnesota-Duluth made the key plays at the end of the game, as David Nadeau nailed his second field goal, a 32-yard effort, as the clock expired to give the Bulldogs (15-0) a 20-17 victory over Delta State and the 2010 NCAA Division II National Championship.

With the game tied at 17-17 and 1:05 left to play, the Statesmen had the ball at their own 46-yard line and it looked like they would have enough time and momentum to at least attempt a game-winning field goal. After completing a quick 5-yard pass to Maurice Moore to put DSU into UMD territory at the 48-yard line, Davis' second attempt sailed long and the Bulldogs' Cody Eich picked off the pass and returned it to midfield with 52 seconds to play.

The Bulldogs took the next four plays, including a 25-yard pass from Chase Vogler to Brian Hanson, to put Nadeau into his comfort zone. The junior from White Bear Lake, Minn., calmly stepped onto the field and put his name in the record books with the game-winning kick.

UMD jumped out to a 3-0 lead on the their first drive of the game on David Nadeau's 32-yard field goal with 11:17 on the clock. The drive covered eight plays and 33 yards in 3:55.

The Statesmen faced an early test after Brandon Lucas fumbled the kickoff, giving the Bulldogs the ball at the DSU 33-yard line. DSU's defense would stand tall, forcing a punt by Alex Miller. On the attempt, the snap sailed over the head of Miller to the UMD 30-yard line, the punt attempt was blocked and the Statesmen took over at the UMD 11-yard line. Three plays later, Davis found Moore on a 7-yard touchdown strike to take a 7-3 lead with 7:56 to go in the first quarter.

UMD would come right back to re-take the lead 10-7 with 2:55 left in the first on Ben Helmer's 14-yard touchdown reception from Chase Vogler. The drive covered 76 yards on nine plays in 5:01.

After both teams stalled on drives in the second quarter, the Statesmen made the most of their last opportunity, marching 90-yard on seven plays, as Davis found L.J. Castile from 28 yards out to take the lead 14-10 with 1:09 left in the half. That's how the half would end.

The Statesmen accounted for 215 yards on 33 plays in the first half, led by Davis' 161 yards passing on 14-of-18 attempts with a pair of touchdowns.

The Bulldogs totaled 214 yards on 36 plays, including 155 yards rushing on 25 attempts. Vogler led the Bulldogs with 62 yards on 12 carries, while Brian Hansen added 59 yards on seven carries.

The Statesmen had their chances throughout the second half, coming up just short on two plays inside the UMD 1-yard line late in the fourth, as DSU had to settle for a Matt Snyder 22-yard field goal to tie it at 17-17.

Minnesota-Duluth had taken their first lead of the second half, 17-14, on Brad Foss' 12-yard speed sweep off right end with 8:20 to play. The drive ate up 4:20 and took eight plays to cover 74 yards.

Neither team managed to produce any points in the third quarter, instead trading viscous hits on defense.

The Bulldogs amassed 358 yards of offense on the day, including 240 on the ground. Vogler completed 11-of-19 passes for 118 yards and touchdown to lead the UMD aerial attack. He also rushed 21 times for 83 yards.

Hanson led all rushers with 98 yards on 16 carries with Foss adding 62 yards on 14 attempts with a touchdown.

Delta State totaled 346 yards on 66 plays with Micah Davis passing for 240 yards on 24-of-35 attempts. The junior from Wesson threw two touchdown passes and one interception in the loss.

Brandon Lucas led the Statesmen ground game with 64 yards rushing on five attempts. L.J. Castile grabbed a game-high seven passes for 80 yards and a score. Chance Dennis added five catches for 63 yards, while Maurice Moore caught five passes for 30 yards and a touchdown.

Garrett Williams led the Statesmen defenders with 15 tackles and two tackles-for-loss. Xavier Triplett also recorded double-digit tackles with 10. He also had a sack and tackle-for-loss.

Cameron Harper led UMD and all defenders with 17 tackles, while Kiel Fechtelkotter tallied 14 tackles.

The Statesmen end the season 11-4, while becoming the first unranked team to ever play for the NCAA Division II National Championship. The Bulldogs completed the 2010 season unblemished at 15-0, claiming their second national title since 2008.