Cardinals Visit Virginia to Battle Sun Belt Foe James Madison

Ball State (1-2, 0-1 MAC) at James Madison (3-0, 0-0 SBC)
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MUNCIE, Ind. -- Ball State steps away from the MAC this week while traveling to Harrisonburg, Virginia, to face James Madison out of the Sun Belt Conference. It is just the second time the schools have ever met on the gridiron, and the first as FBS opponents.

** Ball State enters the contest at 1-2 following a heartbreaking, gut-wrenching road defeat at Central Michigan last week, in which a five-play, 97-yard two-minute drill touchdown and near victory was snatched from the Cardinals' hands in the final seconds. JMU, meanwhile, welcomes Ball State to Bridgeforth Stadium following the Dukes' rousing 70-50 win at North Carolina.

** The Cardinals got career-high performances in the passing game last weekend, with redshirt freshman Kadin Semonza finishing a lateral-play shy of the first 300-yard pass game of his career; and tight end Tanner Koziol finishing with nine catches for 112 yards and the first 100-yard receiving game of his career.

** At Central Michigan, Ball State proved adept at managing clock and sustaining long drives, but fell victim to big plays on defense. Ball State won the turnover battle for the second time in three games and even blocked two kicks -- a punt and an extra point.

** The 100th anniversary of Ball State's first season in 1924 coincides with the 100th season on the field, given that the Cardinals didn't field a team in 1943 due to World War II. Season-long celebrations of the 100th season will be displayed at Scheumann Stadium this season. Similarly, it is the program's 50th season in the MAC -- formally joining the league in 1973 and playing its first football games in 1975.

WHAT A WIN MEANS:
** The Cardinals will capture their first road win this season, and their first since beating Northern Illinois last season.
** Ball State will snap a two-game skid against Sun Belt Conference opponents and get their first win against the SBC since beating Georgia State in 2016.
** The fifth winningest coach in Ball State football history, Mike Neu will capture his 39th victory as head coach of his alma mater to move within one victory of tying Dwight Wallace (40) with the fourth-most wins in Cardinals history.

BY THE NUMBERS
2 - The Cardinals blocked a punt and a PAT last week at CMU to mark the first time blocking two kicks since 2009 vs. New Hampshire.
112 - Tanner Koziol had career highs of nine catches and 112 receiving yards at CMU. His 16-yard TD staked Ball State to a 34-30 lead.
34:04 - The Cardinals rank eighth nationally while possessing the ball over 34 minutes per game.
304 - Kadin Semonza's pass yards last week prior to a final-play lateral which lost 19 yards and cost him the first 300-yard game of his career.

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Cardinals Visit Virginia to Battle Sun Belt Foe James Madison

Players Mentioned

Tanner Koziol

Kadin Semonza

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