Ball State overtook Eastern Michigan in the fourth quarter Saturday and held off the Eagles in the closing seconds for a 29-23 win at Rynearson Stadium.
The Cardinals (3-3) backed up . . .
"At halftime, we came in, we were down; the mood in the locker room was awesome," Ball State head coach Mike Neu said. "We've been there before. Obviously, we're not trying to repeat that formula, but it certainly says a lot about this football team when you just continue to fight, especially on the road."
BSU gave Eastern Michigan (3-3, 0-2 MAC) a steady dose of Caleb Huntley, just like it did to Northern Illinois last week. The junior back ran 29 times for 152 yards just seven days after grinding out 157 yards on 35 carries against the Huskies.
The Cardinals' defense finished it off from there. Ball State sacked EMU quarterback Mike Glass three times in the fourth quarter, picked him off for the third time and forced a fourth-down, red-zone fumble on the Eagles' final snap of the game.
Jordan Williams' strip sack sealed the win after some tense late moments, including a near touchdown catch from Arthur Jackson. The EMU receiver's toe landed barely out of bounds, a call confirmed by replay.
"We found a way; that's the most important thing," Neu said. "The defense did a great job at the end, bending, not breaking and causing a huge play on fourth down with the fumble. Very proud of the guys. Great effort."
Ball State scored the final 15 points after trailing 23-14 following Glass' second quarterback sneak touchdown with 7:32 to play in the third quarter. The Cardinals' defense surrendered just one second-half score for the third straight game.
Antonio Phillips and Ray Wilborn picked off Glass in the second half to go along with a Bryce Cosby interception in the endzone that kept Eastern Michigan from scoring on its first drive of the game.
Hall finished with a season highs of 11 catches and 109 receiving yards. In addition to his touchdown grab, Tyler set up Ball State's first touchdown of the day with a 39-yard catch-and run. Antwan Davis set up the go-ahead score with back-to-back catches.
(Courtesy of BSU Athletics) (More on EMU HERE)