ATHENS, Ohio – Linebackers Travis Freeman and Aaron Morris sat in their Athens, Ohio, hotel room Friday night watching San Jose State and Hawaii play a wild, back-and-forth game that wasn't decided until the final minute.
The game also featured a crucial blocked extra point by San Jose State that it returned for a safety. The blocked kick and return kept the Spartans within a touchdown, setting up the winning score with 58 seconds left. Junior Freeman told sophomore Morris he believes whenever you want to get pressure on the opposing team's kicker late in games, you can do it.
He also felt like Ball State would be in a similar situation the next day at Ohio.
"Tomorrow, we might end up in a position like that," Freeman told Morris.
When Ohio had a chance to kick a 41-yard field goal to tie the game in the final minute Saturday, Ball State didn't block it, but did pressure reigning All-Mid-American Conference kicker Matt Weller enough for him to push the attempt wide left. The miss allowed the Cardinals to close out a 23-20 victory, which brought them out of their doldrums after back-to-back blowout losses. Ball State is now 4-3, 2-1 in the MAC as it prepares to finish its season with five straight games against fellow West Division members.
Having matched the win total from last season, coach Pete Lembo remains committed to fostering his coaching philosophy with the Cardinals.
"We continue to just take it a day at a time," Lembo said. "We're dealing with our own challenges in terms of depth and injuries and trying to find some playmakers."
Ball State's success at Ohio was largely attributable to big plays on defense. The Cardinals twice intercepted Bobcats quarterback Tyler Tettleton, forced a fumble in the fourth quarter and blocked an extra point.
It was just the kind of performance Ball State's coaches had been looking for, especially with All-MAC senior safety Sean Baker sitting out his second consecutive game with a sprained shoulder.
"[Defensive coordinator Jay] Bateman has been preaching for quite some time now — that we don't create enough turnovers," Freeman said. "Anytime you get turnovers, get off the field, put your offense in good field position and things like that, it's always a good deal. The turnovers are a huge, huge bit of confidence."
In addition to their confidence boost following the win against Ohio, Ball State's defense will likely receive another against Central Michigan on Saturday. Baker has returned to the starting lineup and is not listed on the Cardinals' injured list for the first time since injuring his shoulder at Oklahoma on Oct. 1.
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