Patterson, Snead get to play in home state for bowl game

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- The drive from Scheumann Stadium to Tropicana Field is 1,070 miles.

But for two players on the Ball State football team, the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl will be like playing in their own backyard.

Wide receiver Willie Snead and cornerback Eric Patterson are both natives of Florida and both are familiar with the St. Petersburg area and playing in a bowl game in their home state couldn't be a better situation for them.

"It's fun cause I get to come back home and play in front of my friends and family," Patterson said. "I thought we would play in this game and I was happy when we found out we were."

Patterson is from Tampa, Fla. and attended H.B. Plant in high school, winning all-conference and all-county accolades his senior year.

His sophomore season at Ball State has been productive. He's started nine games and has recorded 60 total tackles and two interceptions.

His first career interception couldn't have been much sweeter to him, coming in the final seconds against his hometown school in South Florida to seal a Ball State win.

But getting to come home for a bowl game has been an opportunity Patterson has enjoyed.

"We're having a good time and we're meeting new people," he said. "They're treating us like we're first class people. Every event we've gone to has been fun. It feels good to be in the bowl game.

"I'd like to come to one more often now."

For Snead, getting to play a bowl game in Florida meant getting to see his family once again.

He missed out on getting to see his family in the Family Weekend game against South Florida on Sept. 22. He made up for it by grabbing the game-winning touchdown catch with a minute to play.

"It feels great to be back home," Snead said. "I get to see my family tonight. It just feels great to be back in Florida and get away from Indiana."

He's only been able to play in front of a portion of his family throughout his Ball State career, but not the entire family. On Friday night in the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl, he'll get to play in front of his entire family for the first time.

"It's just a blessing," Snead said. "I can't wait to showcase my talent in front of all of my family."

Had the Ball State players got to pick which bowl game they could play in, warm locations such as Florida, Texas and Hawaii would have been popular picks.

In Patterson's case, he's just excited to not be playing in Idaho.

"I thought we were going to the Idaho bowI," Patterson said. "I watched the Toledo game and it was cold."