Ball State picked up its first Mid-American Conference (MAC) win over Kent State 37-35.
The Cardinals now move to 2-4 on the season after the win. Here are three takeaways from the road win.
What a start.
How the Cardinals started the game would make every coach tear up.
Ball State’s true freshman defensive back Willizhuan Yates picked off Kent State quarterback Tommy Ulatowski on the game's third play.
The Cardinals immediately gained momentum and put the ball into the offense's hands.
The offense only needed five plays to punch it in the end zone. Senior running back Braedon Sloan only needed to carry it one yard to put Ball State on the board first.
Head coach Mike Neu has continued to preach strong starts, and the Cardinals set themselves up in position to win in just the first eight plays of the game.
Ball State continued its scoring streak into their second drive when sophomore kicker Jackson Courville nailed a 38-yard field goal.
The offense strung together solid drives throughout the game and redshirt freshman quarterback Kadin Semonza finished with 215 yards and one touchdown.
The offense finished with 25 first downs and had an impressive 5.58 yards per play.
One of the biggest offensive contributors for the Cardinals ended up being Courville. His field goal with 3:19 left in the fourth quarter gave Ball State a much-needed two-possession lead late in the game.
After a Golden Flashes score, redshirt Junior Vaughn Pemberton sealed the game with his 41-yard touchdown rush to put Ball State up nine points with just 1:13 reaming.
The defense does just enough to get the job done.
Ball State only let up seven points in the first half, tying its season-best against Missouri State in week one.
As mentioned, an interception three plays into the game was huge for the defense, but they also continued to put pressure on the Golden Flashes throughout the game.
The Cardinals were consistent with their tackles and continued to make open-field tackles. Ball State has struggled with that in the past weeks, so cleaning it up is big for the Cardinals.
The defense also picked up a pair of tackles for loss in third and fourth-down situations to stop Kent State from continuing its drive.
The defense did falter in the second half but still managed to pull through. The Cardinals allowed 28 points in the second half and were gashed by over-the-top passes. Kent State redshirt sophomore wide receiver Chrishon McCray finished with 213 receiving yards on eight catches and three touchdowns.
The 35 points Kent State scored today was also its season high.
Senior linebacker Brandon Berger racked up three sacks in the second half to help Ball State beat the Golden Flashes. His sacks amounted to 20 yards lost for Kent State.
POE: Where to next?
On paper, Ball State was always going to beat Kent State today. It is still important to realize the Cardinals went on the road and picked up a win they badly needed. Although it was an ugly win, it is still a win regardless.
Honestly, Kent State was one block on their recovered onside kick away from winning the football game.
The Ball State defense looked turned around at some points and the offense put together solid drives. Again, it was almost expected they do so against arguably the worst team in college football.
In what could have been a springboard for the Cardinals, they will now have to turn around and face Vanderbilt in seven days. A Southeastern Conference (SEC) opponent, away and it is a night game.
While Ball State could not have anticipated Army to drop out of this year’s schedule, playing Vanderbilt in the middle of MAC play could hurt the Cardinals. Injuries are always a part of football, but get put on a platter against usually bigger, faster and stronger SEC teams.
Not to mention, the Commodores just beat the No. 1 team in the nation, Alabama.
Contact Elijah Poe via email at elijah.poe@bsu.edu or on X@ElijahPoe4.
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