CARBONDALE, Ill. (AP) _ Quarterback Sherard Poteete ran for two touchdowns and passed for a third Saturday in leading Southern Illinois to a 52-49 win over Southwest Missouri State.

The Salukis (4-5, 1-4 Gateway) broke a 21-all tie with a 1-yard run by Tom Koutsos in the second quarter and never trailed again.

Jay Rodgers kept Southwest Missouri's Bears (3-5, 1-3) close with 23-of-38 passing for 395 yards and five TDs. His scoring passes: 27 yards to Brad St. Louis; 69 yards to Sean Adams; 31 yards to Chance Thurman; 23 yards to Matt White; and 9 yards to White.

The last Rodgers-to-White TD came with only 34 seconds left. The Bears quarterback was intercepted three times and sacked once.

Poteete was 22-of-39 passing for 331 yards. He suffered an interception and three sacks. He scored on runs of 16 and 12 yards. He also hit Cornell Craig with a 48-yard TD pass. Craig had 10 receptions for 178 yards and Thurman had six for 109.

Southwest Missouri's Jason Ringena led all rushers with 102 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries.