Dixie State dropped its second-straight game to a Big Sky opponent as the Trailblazers came out of the wrong end of a 41-3 decision against in-state foe No. 10 Weber State on Saturday night inside Greater Zion Stadium.

Playing in front of an NCAA-era record home crowd (8,280), which was treated to a patriotic pre-game ceremony to commemorate the 20^th-anniversary of the September 11^th attacks on the United States, the Trailblazers held their own with the ranked Wildcats for most of the first half.

Weber State (1-1) drew first blood on the opening possession of the game with a quick four-play, 63-yard drive that ended with a Dontae McMillan 52-yard touchdown scamper as the Wildcats jumped out to a 7-0 lead just 1:42 into play.

The Blazers (0-2) answered right back with a sustained drive of their own, marching 61 yards on nine plays to get inside the WSU red zone. Facing third and six near midfield, junior quarterback Kody Wilstead hooked up with senior running back Drew Kannely-Robles for a big 30-yard pitch and catch to the Weber 24 yard line.

Wilstead followed that up with a 10-yard scramble, but the Trailblazer drive stalled from there as DSU settled for a 31-yard Connor Brooksby field goal to make a 7-3 game.

After both teams swapped empty possessions later in the frame, Dixie State collected the first turnover of the night when junior corner Colby Williams picked off Weber's Bronson Barron to set the Blazers up at the Wildcat 33-yard line.

However the Wildcats returned the favor when on third and 10 at the Weber 11, Weber State's George Tarlas sacked Wilstead and knocked the ball away. Weber State defender Kalisi Moli then pounced on the loose ball to turn away the DSU scoring chance.

With under 30 seconds to play in the half and after a Wilstead interception, Dixie State thought it had turned the tables when Malaki Malaki intercepted Bronson on the very next play.

Unfortunately for DSU, the junior linebacker was flagged for pass interference, and the Wildcats cashed in their second chance with a Bronson 32-yard touchdown strike to Ty MacPherson with six seconds remaining to spot WSU a 14-3 lead at the intermission.

Dixie State went three-and-out on its first drive of the second half, and the Trailblazer defense forced Weber State in a punt situation seven plays later. On fourth and six on the Wildcat 34, Weber State punter Mackenzie Morgan faked the punt and found a wide-open Doug Schiess across the middle for a 25-yard completion to keep the drive alive.

WSU turned that trick play into points six plays later when Kris Jackson scored on a 3-yard run to make it a 20-3 game after the two-point run attempt failed.

From there it was all Wildcats as they added another score later in the third, and two more in the fourth on their way to their first win of the year.

Dixie State was held to just 253 yards of offense on the night. Wilstead accounted 119 of those yards with a team-high 52 yards on the ground, though the junior finished with 67 yards in the air on 8-of-13 passing. Wilstead did however become the second Trailblazer in the program's four-year era to surpass the 3,500-yard plateau for total offense (3,583).

Sophomore quarterback and UNLV transfer Kenyon Oblad saw his first action of the year in the fourth quarter, during which he completed five of his 14 attempts for 94 yards.

Weber State ran for 280 of its 497 total yards in the win, with McMillan rushing for 151 of those yards on 16 carries to go with his first-quarter touchdown.

Dixie State will now play three-straight games on the road, starting with a date at another Big Sky member, No. 12 UC Davis, next Saturday night at 7 p.m. (PT), in Davis, Calif.