BLOOMSBURG - Slippery Rock University's football team was on a roll - then got rolled over.

Trailing The Rock 24-6 with 10 minutes left in the third quarter of a mutual season opener Saturday at Redman Stadium, Bloomsburg scored three touchdowns in less than four minutes en route to a 40-24 victory.

"It all came apart in seven minutes," SRU coach George Mihalik said. "We lost our confidence and everything snowballed."

SRU ran off 42 plays in the first half to Bloomsburg's 22. It put together scoring drives of 15 plays and 14 plays, leading to a 31-yard Ryan Daniel field goal and a 2-yard Josh Kniess touchdown run.

With 2:51 left in the first half, Luke Wetzel blocked a Bloomsburg punt and The Rock took possession on the Huskies' 32-yard line.

On third-and-8 from the 14, quarterback Nate Crookshank hooked up with John Benca for a touchdown pass in the left corner of the end zone with 56 seconds left.

SRU took a 17-6 lead into halftime.

"Big crowd here, it's our home opener, we only play 11 games to start with … and we had no emotion," Bloomsburg coach Danny Hale said of the first half. "I mean, we were flat as could be.

"I told the guys in the locker room … Start playing with some fire or they're gonna blow us out of here."

Crookshank completed 12 of 17 passes for 158 yards in the first half, connecting with eight different receivers. He picked up where he left off as The Rock received the second-half kickoff.

On third-and 10 from the SRU 20, Crookshank found receiver Paul Favers for 55 yards down the right sideline. On third-and-13 from the Bloomsburg 28, he found Colin Golden for 19 yards.

On fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line, he play-faked to Kniess and found Wetzel in the end zone for a touchdown. The toss completed a 10-play, 80-yard march.

"We were in control of the game," Mihalik said.

Hale agreed.

"I'm not surprised they threw the ball so well, but I was afraid of it," the Bloomsburg coach said. "Kniess sliced and diced us (for 179 yards rushing) last year and we weren't gonna let that happen again.

"The passing game was there and they took it. They have an entirely new offensive package this year and you can't look at films from preseason."

Crookshank threw for a career-high 311 yards, completing 23 of 38 passes. Kniess was held to 60 yards on 21 carries.

"I can't stand here and say this will be our offense," SRU offensive coordinator Vic Campagna said. "We can do a lot of things and we're going to do what gives us the best chance to win each week."

Bloomsburg wins by running the football. The Huskies averaged 299 yards per game on the ground last year.

They beat that Saturday.

Jamar Brittingham's 3-yard run capped a 68-yard drive with 7:28 left in the third quarter. He had scored on a 28-yard run in the first period.

A shanked punt gave the Huskies possession at their own 41. Two plays later, Josh Heck scored on a 59-yard run with 5:55 left in the quarter.

Phil Riccardi intercepted a Crookshank pass moments later and Bloomsburg had possession at The Rock 24. Jack Lydic connected with Kevin Keating for a 9-yard TD pass and Bloomsburg had a 27-24 lead with 3:43 left in the quarter.

"Football is all about emotion and we found some," Hale said.

With a stiff wind at its back in the fourth quarter, The Rock threatened to at least tie the game twice. On third-and-15 from the Huskie 31, Crookshank was sacked for a 9-yard loss and SRU had to punt with 12:48 remaining.

On second-and-11 from the Bloomsburg 29, Crookshank was intercepted by Keith Davis with 6:33 left.

The Rock did not threaten again.

"We played well offensively today, but not for four quarters," Crookshank said. "I didn't play well for four quarters."

Brittingham scored on a 12-yard run to cap a 43-yard drive after the Davis interception. Bloomsburg gained possession again after SRU fumbled a snap and Brittingham scored on a 37-yard run.

The sophomore tailback had 25 carries for 250 yards and four TDs. He rushed for 991 yards last season.

"He's a physical back with breakaway speed," Hale said. "That kid is the real deal."

The Huskies rushed for 361 yards Saturday. The two teams combined for 863 yards of offense and 40 first downs.

Bloomsburg defeated The Rock for the eighth consecutive time in a series the Huskies lead by a 9-3 margin.

"You saw how good we can be we when we play with confidence and enthusiasm," Mihalik said. "You saw how bad we can be when we play without confidence and intensity.

"Hopefully, our kids saw that, too."

The Rock travels to Youngstown State for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff Thursday.

Slippery Rock 3 14 7 0-24Bloomsburg 6 0 21 13-40First QuarterSRU - Ryan Daniel 31 field goal, 8:17B - Jamar Brittingham 28 run (kick failed), 3:23Second QuarterSRU - Josh Kniess 2 run (Daniel kick), 12:34SRU - John Benca 14 pass from Nate Crookshank (Daniel kick), :56Third QuarterSRU - Luke Wetzel 1 pass from Crookshank (Daniel kick), 10:01B - Brittingham 3 run (Garrett Bloom kick), 7:28B - Josh Heck 59 run (Bloom kick), 5:55B - Kevin Keating 9 pass from Jack Lydic (Bloom kick), 3:43Fourth QuarterB - Brittingham 12 run (Bloom kick), 2:17B - Brittingham 37 run (kick blocked), 1:40Individual StatisticsPassing: SRU, Nate Crookshank 23-37-311-2, Team 0-1-0-0. Bloomsburg, Jack Lydic 9-17-77-0Rushing: SRU, Corey Manfull 12-63, Josh Kniess 21-60, Nate Crookshank 13-(-9). Bloomsburg, Jamar Brittingham 25-250, Josh Heck 9-99, Jack Lydic 4-10, Jay Collins 1-3, Team 1-0.Receiving: SRU, Paul Favers 7-127, Luke Wetzel 4-53, Colin Golden 3-37, Steve Fullerton 3-30, Josh Kniess 2-21, Frank Cremonese 1-19, Corey Manfull 1-15, John Benca 1-14, Nick Carimi 1-(-5). Bloomsburg, Greg Masters 3-31, Kevin Keating 2-22, Donny Patrick 2-17, Jamar Brittingham 1-4, Luke Kuklick 1-3.