MUNCIE, IN -- For the Ball State Cardinals, it was about winning the day. They did -- 41-27.
For the Miami RedHawks, it might have been about surviving the day. The answer to that may come next week
Despite the loss, Miami 7-6, 6-2 MAC) reigns as MAC East champ and will face Central Michigan in the MAC Championship game. Ball State, which broke a four-game slide, finishes 5-7 (4-4 MAC).
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“We made some decisions that were hard, but they were made in the interest of giving us the best chance to win next week,” Miami head coach Chuck Martin said. “It wasn’t like I wasn’t trying to win the game. It’s just (that) I thought we could play well enough. … We didn’t do enough to make it happen.”
With an overwhelming time of possession advantage (38:52 - 21:08 overall), the Cardinals offense began gash MU. Ball State scored four second half touchdowns, with three covering at least 30 yards.
A couple team stats reflected the hosts’ overwhelming advantages.
-- BSU registered 578 yards of total offense to 275 for Miami. The vast majority of the latter came in the first half.
-- Ball State owned 30 first downs to 10 for MU.
Not surprisingly, juniors Drew Plitt and Caleb Hundley keyed the Cardinals comeback.
-- Plitt completed 26-of-40 for 317 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran for 62 yards.
-- Hundley carried 24 times for 134 yards (5.6 ypc) and three scores.
Ball State averaged 4.8 ypc overall, totaling 261 yards with the ground game. Miami managed 107 yards rushing, with Jaylon Bester leading the way on 15 carries for 59 yards and one of two Miami offensive touchdowns.
Gabbert, meanwhile, completed six-of-eight passes for 116 yards and one TD in his two quarters at the helm. Williamson was 4-of-11 for 52 yards with two picks.
Miami opened scoring with a seven-play, 87-yard drive. Bester capped the journey off with a 16-yard run. However, Ball State responded with an 11-play, 75-yard scoring drive. Huntley covered the final three yards.
Special teams helped MU seize momentum early in the second period. It started with Sam Sloman’s 32-yard field goal at 13:41. After the RedHawks defense force a punt, Lonnie Phelps blocked the Cardinals punt. Although the ball subsequently bounced off his facemask and out of bounds, both Miami and Phelps would have their moments.
First, Gabbert hit Jack Sorenson with a slant pass on the very next play. Then, when Emmanuel Rugamba blocked the Cardinals next point, Phelps it ended up in Phelps hands. He returned it 32 yards for the TD, and suddenly the visiting ‘Hawks owned a 24-7 lead.
Eight plays into its next drive, Ball State faced a fourth-and-one near midfield. Eschewing another punt, the Cardinals instead picked up a first down with a one-yard Hunley run. A trick play later in the drive picked up another big chunk, and Plitt found Justin Hall for a seven-yard score with 4:34 left.
Miami’s final points for the day came on a 50-yard Sloman field goal with 4:28 remaining. That left MU holding a 27-14 lead at intermission.
The RedHawks went three-and-out on their first three possessions of the third quarter. Although BSU fumbled away its first possession, it began to roll on its next drive.
Plitt tossed his second touchdown pass of the day later in the period, with Tyler Yo’Heinz pulling down a 40-yard strike.
Although the PAT kicked was missed, Ball State was within one score and it tied the game at 27-all on the first play of the fourth period. Hunley’s second TD came on a five-yard run.
Miami’s next two possessions ended with interceptions. Although MU dodged trouble after the first, Ball State took the lead after capitalizing on the second pick. When Plitt hit Yo’Heinz for 40 yards and a score at 9:25, BSU had its first lead, 34-27.
When a now-swarming Cardinals defense stopped Miami on fourth-and-one at MU’s own 30, that gave BSU’s offense a short field. Hunley proved just how short when he reached the end zone one play later for a score that put the game out of reach.
“We made some decisions that were hard, but they were made in the interest of giving us the best chance to win next week,” Martin said. Ball State “kept playing and competing and took advantage of us not playing very well in the second half. They earned it, and they won the game.”