Irish touchdowns trump Ball State field goals
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Notre Dame scored touchdowns, while Ball State kicked field goals for nearly three quarters Saturday as the Irish ultimately posted a 24-16 victory.
It wasn't exactly the start Ball State was looking for on the road against the No. 8 team in the country.
Notre Dame's five-play, 74-yard drive in less than two minutes was like an early jab to the nose. But the Cardinals took it and fought back with a series of body blows, driving 85 yards in 19 plays. While the drive resulted only in a field goal, it seemed to show this game wouldn't be as one-sided as the pre-game projections or the opening Notre Dame drive suggested.
And, as things turned out, it was a one-possession game.
Ball State created havoc for the Notre Dame offense throughout the day, picking off quarterback Brandon Wimbush three times. The Cardinals controlled the clock and held their own in their first-ever trip to Notre Dame Stadium despite coming up on the short end, 24-16.
"I am proud of my guys because we prepared all week to make sure that we'd just fight, scratch and claw, and make sure that you just leave everything you've got on the field for 60 minutes," Ball State head coach Mike Neu said. "I know without a doubt after looking at those guys in the locker room and as we left the field that we left everything we had on the field."
It was the Ball State defense that stood up time and time again to keep the game close. After surrendering the game-opening touchdown, the Cardinals really settled in.
BSU racked up 10 tackles for loss, sacked Wimbush four times and hurried him on four other occasions. The pressure led directly two of the interceptions – picks by Josh Miller in the first half and Ray Wilborn in the second. Antonio Phillips added his first career interception for the other takeaway.
The pressure came across the board from the linebackers in Ball State's new 3-4 defense. Jacob White had nine tackles and got into the backfield twice. Jaylin Thomas set a career high with nine stops of his own. Thomas, Wilborn and Christian Albright all registered tackles for loss, while Brandon Martin had two.
"They rose to the occasion and rose to the challenge," Neu said of his defense. "I thought they did a good job on the quarterback Wimbush. He's tough to contain. He makes a ton of plays with his feet, and I thought our guys were just relentless in their pursuit, trying to contain him and keep him inside the pocket."
Ball State's offense found the sledding even tougher against a Notre Dame defense regarded as one of the nation's best. After the opening drive, the Fighting Irish spent much of the afternoon chasing Riley Neal from the pocket and making it difficult for BSU's junior quarterback to distribute the ball to his bevy of playmakers.
The Cardinals managed only a pair of field goals in the first half, the second coming after Miller's interception set them up with good field position. Still, they trailed just 14-6 at the half.
The lead stretched to 21-6 early in the third quarter on Tony Jones Jr.'s second rushing touchdown of the game, and it looked like Notre Dame might break the game open.
But it didn't happen that way. Ball State limited the Irish to just a field goal over the final 25 minutes of the game.
The offense started to find some momentum again late in the third quarter, starting at their own 21-yard line. Over the next five minutes, Malik Dunner on the ground and Neal to Justin Hall through the air jump-started the attack. With 12:01 to play, Neal pumped and found tight end Nolan Givan for a 10-yard score that cut the lead to 24-13.
The Cardinals moved the ball on each of their next two possessions, as well, but both resulted in Hagee field goal attempts. The first missed wide left, while the second was down the middle from 49 yards, a career best.
Ball State nearly had a first-and-goal from the 1-yard line on the second of those two drives. Neal hit Corey Lacanaria down the sidelines for 36 yards, but the play was called back for Lacanaria stepping out of bounds before touching the ball.
The Cardinals eventually settled for Hagee's field goal with 1:30 left to cut the deficit to one possession. They tried to get the ball back with an onside kick, but Notre Dame recovered it and ran out the clock.
"Again, it was hard fought but we're disappointed," Neu said. "I told the team to blame me. I gave Notre Dame a lot of credit and adjusted a few things that we were doing from a scheme standpoint offensively. At the end of the day, once the second half came around and we started to do some of the things that we did, that's when we started to have some effective drives."
Neal finished the day 23-for-50 for 180 yards. He hit six of his first eight passes before the Irish clamped down through the middle of the game. But he found his rhythm again late in the game as the Cardinals started to move the ball.
The Cardinals ran an astonishing 97 plays, the fourth most in school history. Neal and the Cardinals' three running backs combined for 169 yards on the ground, led by James Gilbert with 73.
Wimbush finished 17-for-31 for 287 yards for Notre Dame. He hit Mile Boykin six times for 119 yards. Jafar Armstrong, who scored the game's first touchdown, finished with 66 yards on the ground.
Ball State will return to action next Saturday, Sept. 15, at Indiana. Kickoff is slated for noon on the Big Ten Network from Memorial Stadium in Bloomington.
It wasn't exactly the start Ball State was looking for on the road against the No. 8 team in the country.
Notre Dame's five-play, 74-yard drive in less than two minutes was like an early jab to the nose. But the Cardinals took it and fought back with a series of body blows, driving 85 yards in 19 plays. While the drive resulted only in a field goal, it seemed to show this game wouldn't be as one-sided as the pre-game projections or the opening Notre Dame drive suggested.
And, as things turned out, it was a one-possession game.
Ball State created havoc for the Notre Dame offense throughout the day, picking off quarterback Brandon Wimbush three times. The Cardinals controlled the clock and held their own in their first-ever trip to Notre Dame Stadium despite coming up on the short end, 24-16.
"I am proud of my guys because we prepared all week to make sure that we'd just fight, scratch and claw, and make sure that you just leave everything you've got on the field for 60 minutes," Ball State head coach Mike Neu said. "I know without a doubt after looking at those guys in the locker room and as we left the field that we left everything we had on the field."
It was the Ball State defense that stood up time and time again to keep the game close. After surrendering the game-opening touchdown, the Cardinals really settled in.
BSU racked up 10 tackles for loss, sacked Wimbush four times and hurried him on four other occasions. The pressure led directly two of the interceptions – picks by Josh Miller in the first half and Ray Wilborn in the second. Antonio Phillips added his first career interception for the other takeaway.
The pressure came across the board from the linebackers in Ball State's new 3-4 defense. Jacob White had nine tackles and got into the backfield twice. Jaylin Thomas set a career high with nine stops of his own. Thomas, Wilborn and Christian Albright all registered tackles for loss, while Brandon Martin had two.
"They rose to the occasion and rose to the challenge," Neu said of his defense. "I thought they did a good job on the quarterback Wimbush. He's tough to contain. He makes a ton of plays with his feet, and I thought our guys were just relentless in their pursuit, trying to contain him and keep him inside the pocket."
Ball State's offense found the sledding even tougher against a Notre Dame defense regarded as one of the nation's best. After the opening drive, the Fighting Irish spent much of the afternoon chasing Riley Neal from the pocket and making it difficult for BSU's junior quarterback to distribute the ball to his bevy of playmakers.
The Cardinals managed only a pair of field goals in the first half, the second coming after Miller's interception set them up with good field position. Still, they trailed just 14-6 at the half.
The lead stretched to 21-6 early in the third quarter on Tony Jones Jr.'s second rushing touchdown of the game, and it looked like Notre Dame might break the game open.
But it didn't happen that way. Ball State limited the Irish to just a field goal over the final 25 minutes of the game.
The offense started to find some momentum again late in the third quarter, starting at their own 21-yard line. Over the next five minutes, Malik Dunner on the ground and Neal to Justin Hall through the air jump-started the attack. With 12:01 to play, Neal pumped and found tight end Nolan Givan for a 10-yard score that cut the lead to 24-13.
The Cardinals moved the ball on each of their next two possessions, as well, but both resulted in Hagee field goal attempts. The first missed wide left, while the second was down the middle from 49 yards, a career best.
Ball State nearly had a first-and-goal from the 1-yard line on the second of those two drives. Neal hit Corey Lacanaria down the sidelines for 36 yards, but the play was called back for Lacanaria stepping out of bounds before touching the ball.
The Cardinals eventually settled for Hagee's field goal with 1:30 left to cut the deficit to one possession. They tried to get the ball back with an onside kick, but Notre Dame recovered it and ran out the clock.
"Again, it was hard fought but we're disappointed," Neu said. "I told the team to blame me. I gave Notre Dame a lot of credit and adjusted a few things that we were doing from a scheme standpoint offensively. At the end of the day, once the second half came around and we started to do some of the things that we did, that's when we started to have some effective drives."
Neal finished the day 23-for-50 for 180 yards. He hit six of his first eight passes before the Irish clamped down through the middle of the game. But he found his rhythm again late in the game as the Cardinals started to move the ball.
The Cardinals ran an astonishing 97 plays, the fourth most in school history. Neal and the Cardinals' three running backs combined for 169 yards on the ground, led by James Gilbert with 73.
Wimbush finished 17-for-31 for 287 yards for Notre Dame. He hit Mile Boykin six times for 119 yards. Jafar Armstrong, who scored the game's first touchdown, finished with 66 yards on the ground.
Ball State will return to action next Saturday, Sept. 15, at Indiana. Kickoff is slated for noon on the Big Ten Network from Memorial Stadium in Bloomington.
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