Ed Meierkort believes his team was playing good football during South Dakota’s four-game losing streak in October. But something was missing.

The Coyotes found the missing ingredient last weekend — forcing turnovers. USD forced Southern Utah into five turnovers, including four interceptions, in a 45-21 rout of the Thunderbirds, helping USD end the four-game slide.

“I thought we played extremely well, and, honestly, I thought we’d been playing well the last month; we just haven’t been very fortunate,” Meierkort said. “The difference is, for the first time in four weeks, we were able to force some turnovers. It made a big difference for us.”

The Coyotes will try to close the season with a two-game winning streak, traveling to Cal Poly for a Great West Conference showdown. It is the season finale for USD.

The turnovers were a nice cherry on top last week for USD in a game that saw the Coyote running game dominate the Thunderbirds. The Coyotes rushed for 362 yards on 58 carries, averaging 6.2 yards per carry. USD had two players — Chris Ganious and Isaac Newton — eclipse 100 yards. Ganious finished with 193 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries, while Newton finished with 113 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries.

“I think South Dakota is a much-improved, and a good, football team that lost some tough games in the middle of their season,” Cal Poly head coach Tim Walsh said. “They have come back, and they showed Southern Utah what they were all about.”

The Mustangs, who close out their season next week against

Weber State, are happy to be at home against the Coyotes.

Cal Poly has struggled on the road this season, squandering three-point halftime leads in each of their last four contests away from Spanos Stadium, scoring just six points in the second half of those four games — leading to an 0-5 record on the road this fall. Cal Poly led UC Davis 10-7 last week at halftime, before falling 23-10. The Mustangs have scored just 13 points in the second half on the road this season, compared to 59 points in its four home games.

“They wrote the rules that you have to play 60 minutes, and right now, we are good for about 30 when we play on the road,” Walsh said. “The second half, UC Davis just beat us. I don’t think we executed as well as we did in the first half. We are searching for answers.”

Another problem for Cal Poly (4-5 overall, 1-2 Great West) this season is a lack of pressure its defense is able to get on opposing quarterbacks. Last fall, the Mustang defense notched 37 sacks — No. 2 in the nation — while this season, Cal Poly has recorded just 16 sacks, six against Dixie State and five against Southern Utah.

The Coyotes close their season against the Mustangs with plenty still on the line. A win for the Coyotes (4-5, 1-2) in the season finale would put the Coyotes at .500 overall. South Dakota has never had a losing season in five seasons under Meierkort. A win would also give USD a third-place finish in the conference.