Saturday, September 17
Muncie, Ind.
2:00 PM ET
Ball State University
1-2 , 0-1
31
vs
0
Murray State
0-3 , 0-0
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
Murray St.
0
0
0
0
0
Ball St.
7
7
10
7
31
Photo by: Ball State University Creative Services
Ball State dominates from start to finish, shuts out Murray State
September 17, 2022 | Football
Cardinals complete first shutout since 2008
MUNCIE, Ind. - From the opening kickoff to the final whistle, Ball State dominated Murray State, winning by a final score of 31-0 Saturday afternoon at Scheumann Stadium.
It marks the first shutout for the Cardinals (1-2) since also winning 31-0 vs. Toledo on Oct. 4, 2008.
"Great win," head coach Mike Neu said. "I'm obviously proud of our football team to get a win and a shutout. I'm really proud of the effort of our defense overall for four quarters.
"It's a great win for us. We're going to enjoy it. We have some things that we're going to clean up, but there are lot of things to build on. We're just going to keep trying to get better."
Ball State's defense limited Murray State (0-3) to just 155 yards on 53 plays, forced three turnovers and held the Racers to go just 3-of-14 on third down.
Of Murray State's 53 plays, only nine came in Ball State's side of the field with four coming on one drive in the second quarter and four more off a Cardinal turnover.
Nic Jones provided three of the biggest plays on the afternoon after picking off two passes and blocking a punt.
Sidney Houston Jr. and Joshua Tarango led the defense with seven tackles apiece. Clayton Coll contributed six and Malcolm Lee and Cole Pearce chipped in with four each.
Offensively, Ball State racked up 476 total yards, led by Carson Steele's 141 rushing yards. John Paddock went 27-of-44 with 227 yards and three touchdowns through the air. In total, 10 different players caught a pass, guided by Jayshon Jackson and Tanner Koziol, who each hauled in six passes and a touchdown.
The Cardinals scored a touchdown in all four quarters and got started with Brady Hunt's first career score from 13 yards out on their first drive of the game.
Fellow tight end Tanner Koziol recorded his second touchdown of the season on an 18-yard pass from Paddock to give Ball State a 14-0 lead heading into the locker room.
The Cardinals broke it open in the third with a pair of scoring drives that went 75-plus yards. Paddock found Jackson from 14 yards out and Ben VonGunten chipped in a 27-yard field goal to remain perfect on the season to make it 24-0.
Steele punched it in from one yard out early in the fourth to complete the rout, 31-0.
Ball State welcomed its largest crowd of the season for Family Weekend with an attendance of 14,413.
"Thank you to the crowd," Neu added. "What a great setting at Scheumann Stadium. We're very appreciative of that. When you looked at the home stands, it was full. The student section was full. The band was awesome, especially on third down."
The Cardinals hit the road for their next game at Georgia Southern, Sept. 24. Ball State returns home Oct. 1 for a Mid-American Conference showdown with Northern Illinois.
It marks the first shutout for the Cardinals (1-2) since also winning 31-0 vs. Toledo on Oct. 4, 2008.
"Great win," head coach Mike Neu said. "I'm obviously proud of our football team to get a win and a shutout. I'm really proud of the effort of our defense overall for four quarters.
"It's a great win for us. We're going to enjoy it. We have some things that we're going to clean up, but there are lot of things to build on. We're just going to keep trying to get better."
Ball State's defense limited Murray State (0-3) to just 155 yards on 53 plays, forced three turnovers and held the Racers to go just 3-of-14 on third down.
Of Murray State's 53 plays, only nine came in Ball State's side of the field with four coming on one drive in the second quarter and four more off a Cardinal turnover.
Nic Jones provided three of the biggest plays on the afternoon after picking off two passes and blocking a punt.
Sidney Houston Jr. and Joshua Tarango led the defense with seven tackles apiece. Clayton Coll contributed six and Malcolm Lee and Cole Pearce chipped in with four each.
Offensively, Ball State racked up 476 total yards, led by Carson Steele's 141 rushing yards. John Paddock went 27-of-44 with 227 yards and three touchdowns through the air. In total, 10 different players caught a pass, guided by Jayshon Jackson and Tanner Koziol, who each hauled in six passes and a touchdown.
The Cardinals scored a touchdown in all four quarters and got started with Brady Hunt's first career score from 13 yards out on their first drive of the game.
Fellow tight end Tanner Koziol recorded his second touchdown of the season on an 18-yard pass from Paddock to give Ball State a 14-0 lead heading into the locker room.
The Cardinals broke it open in the third with a pair of scoring drives that went 75-plus yards. Paddock found Jackson from 14 yards out and Ben VonGunten chipped in a 27-yard field goal to remain perfect on the season to make it 24-0.
Steele punched it in from one yard out early in the fourth to complete the rout, 31-0.
Ball State welcomed its largest crowd of the season for Family Weekend with an attendance of 14,413.
"Thank you to the crowd," Neu added. "What a great setting at Scheumann Stadium. We're very appreciative of that. When you looked at the home stands, it was full. The student section was full. The band was awesome, especially on third down."
The Cardinals hit the road for their next game at Georgia Southern, Sept. 24. Ball State returns home Oct. 1 for a Mid-American Conference showdown with Northern Illinois.
Team Stats
MSU
BSU
Total Yards
155
476
Pass Yards
68
227
Rushing Yards
87
249
Penalty Yards
35
73
1st Downs
9
26
3rd Downs
3
9
4th Downs
0
0
TOP
23:32
36:28
1st Quarter
MSU 0, BSU 7
BSU - Hunt,Brady 13 yd pass from Paddock,John (VonGunten,Ben kick) 4 plays, 43 yards, TOP 01:10
2nd Quarter
MSU 0, BSU 14
BSU - Koziol,Tanner 18 yd pass from Paddock,John (VonGunten,Ben kick) 8 plays, 55 yards, TOP 02:11
3rd Quarter
MSU 0, BSU 21
BSU - Jackson,Jayshon 14 yd pass from Paddock,John (VonGunten,Ben kick) 9 plays, 75 yards, TOP 04:03
MSU 0, BSU 24
BSU - VonGunten,Ben 27 yd field goal 10 plays, 76 yards, TOP 04:04
4th Quarter
MSU 0, BSU 31
BSU - Steele,Carson 1 yd run (VonGunten,Ben kick), 11 plays, 53 yards, TOP 04:52
Game Leaders
Passing Leaders
CMP
27
TD
3
YDS
227
INT
1
Players Mentioned
ILB
/ Football
OLB
/ Football
TE
/ Football
WR
/ Football
TE
/ Football
S
/ FootballQB
/ Football
ILB
/ Football
RB
/ Football
DL
/ Football
K
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