One of the biggest concerns a head football coach faces with a young quarterback is the lack of confidence following a tough loss.
But Ball State's head coach Pete Lembo isn't concerned with how redshirt freshman Jack Milas will respond after throwing three interceptions in a 35-21 loss to Northern Illinois on Nov. 5.
"Jack is a very even-keeled guy. He's shown the ability to move on after a good play and a bad play," Lembo said. "One of his strengths is that he is pretty resilient and easy going in relative of playing the next play."
Since becoming the starting quarterback three games prior to facing the Huskies, Milas helped lead the Cardinals to a 2-1 record, throwing for 749 passing yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions, while averaging a quarterback efficiency rating of 122.92.
Against Northern Illinois, Milas threw for 174 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions, while posting a efficiency rating of 71.58. A part from the touchdown, all marked season lows.
"I was throwing off my back foot a lot," Milas said. "I wasn't stepping into it, and that was really the whole thing. It's easily fixed."
The match up with Northern Illinois was also the first time Ball State failed to score at least 30 points under Milas, a feat accomplished only once in the season's first five games.
Moving forward, Lembo doesn't expect the offensive game plan to be altered because of one subpar performance.
"We tweak the game plan every week based on the strengths and weakness of our opponent and how they defend us," Lembo said. "The biggest thing with the interceptions last week was we gave up too much pressure toward the end of the game."
Milas will look to prove his resilience at 8 p.m. Wednesday, when Ball State travels to Amherst, Mass., to play Massachusetts.
Despite its 2-7 record, Massachusetts boasts the fifth-ranked scoring offense in the Mid-American Conference at 30.8 points per game.
Where the Minutemen struggle is in stopping the opposition, allowing 35 points a game, giving Milas a favorable match up to get the Cardinals back in the win column.
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