SAN JOSE, Calif. — Lamon Muldrow rushed for a career-high 184 yards and scored a touchdown as San Jose State ended its three-game losing streak with a 19-9 victory over visiting Cal Poly on Saturday.

Muldrow, a junior college transfer making his first career start at San Jose State (1-3), ripped off a 71-yard, fourth-quarter run to the Mustangs' 2-yard-line, setting up his own touchdown which put the game away.

It was a much-needed turnaround for San Jose State's rushing attack, which came into Saturday ranked last among 120 Football Bowl Subdivision teams with an average of 18.3 yards per game.

"We've got the talent," Muldrow said. "There's no reason why we should have been 0-3. We just had to settle down and play how we're supposed to play. When we do that, big things happen."

Jono Grayson gained a career-high 138 yards on 15 carries for Cal Poly (1-2), including a 53-yard touchdown midway through the first quarter that gave the Mustangs an early 6-0 lead. They extended that advantage to 9-0 on a 30-yard field goal by Chris Pinto before San Jose State regained its bearings.

Jordan La Secla threw for 172 yards and two touchdowns for the Spartans. He connected with Jalal Beauchman on an 8-yard touchdown just before halftime and hit Marquis Avery for a 7-yard score in the third to give San Jose State the lead for good.

Kevin Jurovich caught seven of La Secla's passes for 108 yards.

"This is the first time we've really deserved to win," Spartans coach Dick Tomey said. "This is the first time we've really done enough late in the game to win. And we did that in spades tonight."