Saturday, October 22
Muncie, Ind.
2:00 PM ET
Ball State University
4-4 , 2-2
16
vs
20
Eastern Michigan
5-3 , 2-2
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
Eastern Mich.
0
10
0
10
20
Ball St.
0
7
9
0
16
Photo by: Ball State University Creative Services
Ball State falls to Eastern Michigan
October 22, 2022 | Football
Cardinals drop Homecoming decision to Eagles
MUNCIE, Ind. – Ball State dropped a tough decision to Eastern Michigan on Homecoming, 20-16, Saturday afternoon at Scheumann Stadium in front of a season-high crowd of 15,698.
The Cardinals (4-4, 2-2 Mid-American Conference) were limited to 292 yards on offense and had three turnovers.
The Eagles (5-3, 2-2) maintained control of the game with a time of possession of 37:09 and ran 81 plays on offense compared to just 60 for Ball State.
"Disappointing loss," head coach Mike Neu said. "Obviously, you can't lose the turnover battle, have the number of self-inflicted wounds that we did, put 16 points on the board and expect to win. The defense fought, but when the time of possession is almost doubled, we didn't do a good enough job offensively sustaining drives. It starts with that.
"It's very disappointing to have that kind of performance here on Homecoming. We've got to regroup. We have a few extra days before we shift to midweek MACtion. We have to play better. Period."
Carson Steele led the way offensively with his sixth 100-yard performance of the season, including each of the last three games. The sophomore racked up 101 yards on 24 carries and added 57 receiving yards on four catches with a touchdown.
Vaughn Pemberton also contributed to the run game with a career-high 39 yards on seven carries.
Jayshon Jackson had a team-high 66 receiving yards on four catches, extending his streak to 33 consecutive games with a reception.
Quarterback John Paddock connected with Brady Hunt three times for 28 yards and a touchdown for the fourth time in the last six games.
Defensively, Cole Pearce registered a career-high 15 tackles, including 1.5 tackles-for-loss, a sack and one pass breakup. Jaquan Amos added a season-best 14 stops.
Brandon Berger and Clayton Coll each recorded a sack, while Joshua Tarango and Tavion Woodard tallied 0.5 sack. Coll added a forced fumble in addition to Malcolm Lee.
Eastern Michigan totaled 25 first downs and went 9-of-15 on third down. The Eagles were led by quarterback Austin Smith, who went 20-of-34 for 197 yards through the air and had 52 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
Eastern Michigan took advantage of three Ball State turnovers and scored 10 points with three points coming on a 55-yard field goal as the first half expired and a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
The Cardinals open the final month of the regular season with three of four on the road, beginning with a trip to Kent State Tuesday, Nov. 1.
The Cardinals (4-4, 2-2 Mid-American Conference) were limited to 292 yards on offense and had three turnovers.
The Eagles (5-3, 2-2) maintained control of the game with a time of possession of 37:09 and ran 81 plays on offense compared to just 60 for Ball State.
"Disappointing loss," head coach Mike Neu said. "Obviously, you can't lose the turnover battle, have the number of self-inflicted wounds that we did, put 16 points on the board and expect to win. The defense fought, but when the time of possession is almost doubled, we didn't do a good enough job offensively sustaining drives. It starts with that.
"It's very disappointing to have that kind of performance here on Homecoming. We've got to regroup. We have a few extra days before we shift to midweek MACtion. We have to play better. Period."
Carson Steele led the way offensively with his sixth 100-yard performance of the season, including each of the last three games. The sophomore racked up 101 yards on 24 carries and added 57 receiving yards on four catches with a touchdown.
Vaughn Pemberton also contributed to the run game with a career-high 39 yards on seven carries.
Jayshon Jackson had a team-high 66 receiving yards on four catches, extending his streak to 33 consecutive games with a reception.
Quarterback John Paddock connected with Brady Hunt three times for 28 yards and a touchdown for the fourth time in the last six games.
Defensively, Cole Pearce registered a career-high 15 tackles, including 1.5 tackles-for-loss, a sack and one pass breakup. Jaquan Amos added a season-best 14 stops.
Brandon Berger and Clayton Coll each recorded a sack, while Joshua Tarango and Tavion Woodard tallied 0.5 sack. Coll added a forced fumble in addition to Malcolm Lee.
Eastern Michigan totaled 25 first downs and went 9-of-15 on third down. The Eagles were led by quarterback Austin Smith, who went 20-of-34 for 197 yards through the air and had 52 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
Eastern Michigan took advantage of three Ball State turnovers and scored 10 points with three points coming on a 55-yard field goal as the first half expired and a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
The Cardinals open the final month of the regular season with three of four on the road, beginning with a trip to Kent State Tuesday, Nov. 1.
Team Stats
EMU
BSU
Total Yards
358
292
Pass Yards
197
178
Rushing Yards
161
114
Penalty Yards
112
62
1st Downs
25
20
3rd Downs
9
6
4th Downs
1
0
TOP
37:09
22:51
2nd Quarter
EMU 0, BSU 7
BSU - Steele,Carson 8 yd pass from Paddock,John (VonGunten,Ben kick) 7 plays, 75 yards, TOP 01:57
EMU 7, BSU 7
EMU - Moss,Bryson 4 yd run (Gomez,Jesus kick), 10 plays, 76 yards, TOP 03:54
EMU 10, BSU 7
EMU - Gomez,Jesus 55 yd field goal 4 plays, 18 yards, TOP 00:19
3rd Quarter
EMU 10, BSU 10
BSU - VonGunten,Ben 24 yd field goal 12 plays, 65 yards, TOP 04:41
EMU 10, BSU 16
BSU - Hunt,Brady 18 yd pass from Paddock,John () 5 plays, 60 yards, TOP 01:46
4th Quarter
EMU 13, BSU 16
EMU - Gomez,Jesus 38 yd field goal 13 plays, 70 yards, TOP 08:05
EMU 20, BSU 16
EMU - Smith,Austin 2 yd run (Gomez,Jesus kick), 8 plays, 28 yards, TOP 02:58
Game Leaders
Passing Leaders
CMP
15
TD
2
YDS
178
INT
2
Players Mentioned
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