Sat., Nov. 28 - Noon ET
Glass Bowl - Toledo, OH
ESPN3
In a league with plenty of offensive firepower, Ball State and Toledo are certainly in that conversation. Those to teams will meet Saturday, with Toledo looking to avenge last year's 52-14 drubbing in Muncie.
It was the first Ball State win in the series since 2013, but the Cardinals would like to keep BSU wins rolling and certainly have enough offensive weapons to prevail on a given day. Toledo, meanwhile, bounced back from its only loss of the 2020 season to register a road win at Eastern Michigan last week.
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Ball State (2-1)
· The Cardinals return many of the key figures in last year's route. RB Caleb Huntley totaled 119 yards on 20 carries against UT last year. He has eclipsed the century mark inall three outings and gouged Eastern Michigan for 204 yards and three TDs two weeks ago.
· Quarterback Drew Plitt tossed three TDs in BSU's 2019 win over Toledo, and has exceeded 200 yards passing in all three games this season. He was 17-of-25 for 214 yards with two TDs and one interception against Northern Illinois last week.
· Plitt has plenty of dangerous threats among Ball State receivers. Yo'Heinz Taylor has 19 catches for 238 yards and two TDs. Justin Hall's 18 receptions provided 252 yards and one TD. That 66-yarder came against Miami in the season opener. His 39-straight games with at least one catch is the longest in the country. Antwan Davis owns 15 catches for 197 yards and a score.
· Like Toledo, the Cardinals trail West Division leading Western Michigan by one game, but Ball State still has a future date with WMU.
· Eight of Ball State’s past 11 games have been decided by a touchdown or less, including all three games this season. BSU is 4-4 in those eight games, including single-score wins the past two weeks over Eastern Michigan (38-31) and Northern Illinois (31-25) in the annual Battle for the Bronze Stalk.
· Senior SAF Bryce Cosby (14) and senior ILB Jaylin Thomas (13) combined for 27 tackles in last week’s win over NIU. Thomas is the MAC’s active leader in career tackles with 244, while Cosby is second with 243.
TOLEDO (2-1)
· Toledo ranks among the top 25 nationally in both total offense (504.7, 14th) and total defense (327.3, 21st). The Rockets are averaging 40.3 points and allowing only 24.0. Toledo’s time of possession average (36:40) ranks third in the country.
· Toledo is coming off a 45-28 win at Eastern Michigan on Nov. 18. • Eli Peters completed 11-of-15 passes for 190 yards and two TDs before coming out of the game in the second quarter with a leg injury. Carter Bradley took over for Peters, connecting on 5-of-8 passes for 108 yards and two touchdowns.
· Bryant Koback rushed for 149 yards and one TD on 24 attempts. Koback’s 102 first-half rushing yards was more than Eastern’s entire offensive output (97 yards).
· Senior wide receiver Ronnie Blackman caught a career-high five passes for 88 yards and a touchdown. Danzel McKinley-Lewis’ 68-yard TD reception in the second quarter was the longest TD reception of his career. His longest overall reception was an 82-yard catch vs. EMU in 2019.
· Toledo’s defense forced three turnovers and held EMU to just 277 yards of total offense. In the first half, the Eagles managed just 97 yards of offense and four first downs.
· Junior defensive end Jamal Hines return an interception for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. It was the first defensive TD of his career and the first pick-six by a Rocket since Tyler Taafe against Central Michigan (Nov. 23, 2018).