Conquering the MAC - A Ball State Dynasty

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Offense heading up, but defensive struggles continue

Summary:
It was over when...
Truthfully, it was over before it even started. Iowa scored in under two minutes to start the game, and never looked back.

Game ball
Colin Sandeman torched the weak Ball State secondary for two huge pass plays, one resulting in a touchdown. Being the slot receiver, he was often covered by a much smaller and slower opponent, resulting in a great game for him.

Key Stat
This time is going to be two key stats. First we have Kelly Page who threw for over 200 yards against a good secondary. Granted, he did throw two picks extremely early in the game (which may or may not have cost them the game) he calmed down and got into a rhythm. The second key stat is MiQuale Lewis who pounded out over 100 yards rushing for the second time this season.

NCAA Scoreboard - Ball State Cardinals (1-2) at Iowa Hawkeyes (3-0)

September 18, 2010 1 2 3 4 OT F Ball State Cardinals 3 0 7 7 -- 17 #7 Iowa Hawkeyes 14 7 7 3 -- 31 Top Performers Ball State Cardinals - Stats K. Burch 5 Tkls, 1 INT, 2 FF Iowa Hawkeyes - Stats C. Sandeman 5 Rec, 132 Yds, 2 TD	Team Stats Comparison Ball Iowa First Downs 14 17 3rd Down Efficiency 18% 20% 4th Down Efficiency 40% -- Total Yards 310 410 Passing Yards 204 201 Rushing Yards 106 209 Penalties-Penalty Yards 3-25 6-45 Turnovers 2 4 Time of Possession 17:40 16:00
Scoring Summary First Quarter Ball Iowa Iowa 5:45 D. Koulianos, 1 Yd pass from J. Vandenberg (D. Murray kick) 0 7 Ball 1:41 S. Schott, 37 Yd FG 3 7 Iowa 0:28 A. Robinson, 41 Yd run (D. Murray kick) 3 14 Second Quarter Ball Iowa Iowa 3:12 C. Sandeman, 53 Yd pass from J. Vandenberg (D. Murray kick) 3 21 Third Quarter Ball Iowa Iowa 5:02 C. Sandeman, 18 Yd pass from J. Vandenberg (D. Murray kick) 3 28 Ball 2:25 M. Lewis, 2 Yd run (S. Schott kick) 10 28 Fourth Quarter Ball Iowa Iowa 2:56 D. Murray, 46 Yd FG 10 31 Ball 2:10 B. Orsbon, 19 Yd pass from K. Page (S. Schott kick) 17 31
Ball State Cardinals Passing C/ATT YDS TD INT K. Page 12-35 204 1 2 Rushing ATT YDS AVG TD M. Lewis 20 104 5.2 1 C. Sykes 3 13 4.3 0 K. Page 3 -11 -3.6 0 Receiving REC YDS AVG TD B. Orsbon 5 145 29.0 1 T. Gibson 3 29 9.6 0 C. Sykes 2 11 5.5 0 D. Ifft 1 12 12.0 0 M. Lewis 1 7 7.0 0 Defense TKL SACK INT TD K. Hoke 6 0 1 0 T. Freeman 5 0 1 0 K. Burch 5 0 1 0 A. Morris 3 2 0 0 J. Woodard 3 0 0 0 A. Dawson 2 0 0 0 T. Dixon 2 0 0 0 P. Rolf 2 1 0 0 D. Jones 2 0 0 0 J. Howard 2 0 1 0 R. Perry 1 0 0 0 Kick Returning NO. YDS TD LONG B. Orsbon 2 38 0 22 M. Lewis 1 20 0 20 Punt Returning NO. YDS TD LONG M. Lewis 2 28 0 15 Kicking FGM/A XPM/A PTS LONG S. Schott 1-1 2-2 5 38 Punting NO. YDS AVG IN 20 S. Kovanda 3 127 42.3 2 Iowa Hawkeyes Passing C/ATT YDS TD INT J. Vandenberg 9-22 201 3 4 Rushing ATT YDS AVG TD A. Robinson 13 140 10.7 1 J. Hampton 10 95 9.5 0 J. Vandenberg 7 -26 -3.7 0 Receiving REC YDS AVG TD C. Sandeman 5 132 26.4 2 D. Koulianos 2 34 17.0 1 A. Robinson 1 18 18.0 0 A. Reisner 1 17 17.0 0 Defense TKL SACK INT TD B. Greenwood 5 0 0 0 J. Bernstine 5 0 2 0 T. Johnson 4 0 0 0 B. Binns 3 0 0 0 G. Castillo 3 0 0 0 J. Hunter 3 0 0 0 T. Sash 2 0 0 0 C. Olson 2 0 0 0 S. Parter 2 0 0 0 A. Clayborn 2 1 0 0 J. Swanson 2 0 0 0 Kick Returning NO. YDS TD LONG K. Davis 1 21 0 21 C. Sandeman 1 3 0 3 Punt Returning NO. YDS TD LONG C. Sandeman 3 12 0 8 Kicking FGM/A XPM/A PTS LONG D. Murray 1-1 4-4 7 46 Punting NO. YDS AVG IN 20 R. Donahue 2 92 46.0 0

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Top Stories:
#4 Texas stunned by unranked UCLA
UCLA put 14 points on the board in the fourth quarter, including a pick six with 1:21 in the game, to top Texas.

West Virginia demolished SEC opponent LSU
The Mountaineers hang 46 in front of LSU faithful to top the Tigers 46-15.

#17 Penn State keeps their fans in their seats till the end
The Nittany Lions score a touchdown with 36 seconds left to top Temple 27-24.

Heisman Watch:
1. Mark Ingram - Alabama - >>>
Last game at Arkansas: 36 carries, 146 yards, 1 touchdown
2. Terrell Pryor - Ohio State - ^^^
Last game vs Eastern Michigan: 21-23, 272 yards; 6 carries, 30 yards, 4 total touchdowns
3. Case Keenum - Houston - VVV
Last game vs Tulane: 27-36, 338 yards; 15 carries, 59 yards; 5 TDs
4. Josh Nesbit - Georgia Tech - ^^^
Last Game vs North Carolina State: 18-29, 192 yards; 17 carries, 83 yards, 5 total touchdowns
5. Noel Devine - West Virginia - ^^^
Last game at LSU: 36 carries, 141 yards, 1 touchdown; 1 catch, 30 yards, 1 touchdown

Dropped out -
Kellen Moore - Boise State
Last Game vs Oklahoma State : 19-25, 161 yards, 2 touchdowns

DeMarco Murray - Oklahoma
Last Game at Cincinnati: 9 carries, 43 yards 1 touchdown

Players of the Week:
NCAA:
Offense -
Tandon Woods - Indiana
Last game vs Akron: 6 catches, 115 yards, 4 touchdowns
Defense -
Erik Benjamin - Ohio
Last game at Marshall: 6 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 4 assisted tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, 3 fumble recoveries

MAC:
Offense -
Ryan Radcliff - Central Michigan
Last game at Northwestern: 25-49, 362 yards, 4 touchdowns
Defense -
Erik Benjamin - Ohio
Last game at Marshall: 6 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 4 assisted tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, 3 fumble recoveries

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Quote: Originally Posted by Matt_GoBlue

A couple of tough losses. Keep with it. I like this. Iowa will probably be pretty tough.

Thanks! It's good to know somebody's actually reading it!

And Iowa was tough. I just kept pounding the ball on the left side to avoid their key players which were all on the right side of the ball.

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Week 5 Preview
(1-3) @ (3-1)

Ball State Statistics - Central Michigan Statistics
Points per Game: 16.5 (#96) - 22.0 (#71)
Total Offense: 1057 (#107) - 1491 (#48)
Rush Offense: 342 (#90) - 348 (#87)
Pass Offense: 715 (#78) - 1143 (#17)
Total Defense: 1595 (#112) - 925 (#32)
Rush Defense: 611 (#116) - 329 (#46)
Pass Defense: 984 (#106) - 596 (#26)
Turnover Diff: 6 (#6) - 1 (#57)

bold notes advantage

What Ball State needs to do
Kelly Page needs to get on track this game. He is going up against a pretty tough pass defense, but if he can keep his composure early on, it can open up the run game for MiQuale Lewis. Defensively, the Cardinals need to try to hold the two time MAC Player of the Week Ryan Radcliffe in check. It's not going to be easy, but if they can shut down the passing game, the Cardinals have a good chance of winning this one.

What Central Michigan needs to do
Central Michigan needs to get on the board early. Ball State has struggled to compete with teams when they are forced into a deficit early on. If Ryan can lead his team to some quick scores, it may be over before you know it for Ball State.

Prediction: Central Michigan 24-13

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Recruiting News -
Ball State has signed their first recruit of the year just after the tough loss to Iowa. Wide receiver Josh Higgins out of Circleville, Ohio committed to Ball State to play for the Cardinals in the 2011 season. One of the big selling points was how close Ball State was to his home. Josh said that his parents haven't missed one of his games yet, and they aren't going to miss watching him in college either. Hopefully the speedy receiver can add some offense to the Cardinals next season.

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Ball State ends three game losing skid, topping CMU in OT.

Summary:
It was over when...
Tim Phillips was stuffed on 4th and goal from the two yard line in OT. Terrance Freeman blasted through the A-gap and stuffed Tim before he could even make it back to the line of scrimmage.

Game ball
MiQuale Lewis ran for over 200 yards and four touchdowns to help aid his team to victory. Granted, he sat out the last two sessions of OT with a dislocated thumb, his play still helped lead the Cardinals over the Chippewas.

Key Stat
Although Ball State let up almost 700 yards of offense, they still managed to force 6 turnovers. The Cardinals forced 3 fumbles on running back Tim Phillips, as well as 5 against quarterback Ryan Radcliffe. In the big picture, it's really what pushed Ball State over Central Michigan.

NCAA Scoreboard - Ball State Cardinals (1-3) at Central Michigan Chippewas (3-1)

September 18, 2010 1 2 3 4 OT F Ball State Cardinals 7 0 14 14 21 56 Central Michigan Chippewas 7 6 7 15 13 48 Top Performers Ball State Cardinals - Stats M. Lewis 29 Car, 204 Yds, 4 TD Central Michigan Chippewas - Stats R. Radcliff 28-49, 479 Yds, 6 TD	Team Stats Comparison Ball CMU First Downs 15 24 3rd Down Efficiency 30% 22% 4th Down Efficiency -- 0% Total Yards 471 697 Passing Yards 245 479 Rushing Yards 226 218 Penalties-Penalty Yards 2-25 3-42 Turnovers 3 6 Time of Possession 18:33 12:53
Scoring Summary First Quarter Ball CMU Ball 2:28 M. Lewis, 38 Yd run (S. Schott kick) 7 0 CMU 0:00 J. Harris, 64 Yd pass from R. Radcliffe (P. Mudgett kick) 7 7 Second Quarter Ball CMU Ball 3:57 P. Mudgett, 22 Yd FG 7 10 Ball 0:00 P. Mudgett, 30 Yd FG 7 13 Third Quarter Ball CMU Ball 6:03 C. Wilson, 31 Yd pass from R. Radcliffe (P. Mudgett kick) 7 20 Ball 3:16 J. Hill, 10 Yd pass from K. Page (S. Schott kick) 14 20 Ball 2:08 M. Lewis, 1 Yd run (S. Schott kick) 21 20 Fourth Quarter Ball CMU Ball 4:58 B. Orsbon, 30 Yd pass from K. Page (S. Schott kick) 28 20 Ball 3:46 M. Lewis, 1 Yd run (S. Schott kick) 35 20 CMU 2:18 J. Wilson, 13 Yd pass from R. Radcliffe (2-Pt) 35 28 CMU 1:41 C. Wilson, 58 Yd pass from R. Radcliffe (P. Mudgett kick) 35 35 Overtime Ball CMU Ball -- M. Lewis, 21 Yd run (S. Schott kick) 42 35 CMU -- C. Fraser, 32 Yd pass from R. Radcliffe (P. Mudgett kick) 42 42 CMU -- C. Fraser, 25 Yd pass from R. Radcliffe (2-Pt failed) 42 48 Ball -- C. Sykes, 1 Yd run (2-Pt failed) 48 48 Ball -- C. Sykes, 25 Yd run (2-Pt) 56 48
Ball State Cardinals Passing C/ATT YDS TD INT K. Page 14-34 245 2 2 Rushing ATT YDS AVG TD M. Lewis 29 204 7.0 4 C. Sykes 6 22 3.6 2 K. Page 3 0 0.0 0 Receiving REC YDS AVG TD J. Hill 4 87 21.7 1 T. Gibson 3 61 20.3 0 R. Hartke 3 47 15.6 0 B. Orsbon 2 45 22.5 1 C. Sykes 1 4 4.0 0 Defense TKL SACK INT TD T. Freeman 8 0 0 0 C. Todd 7 0 1 0 K. Hoke 4 0 0 0 T. Dixon 4 0 1 0 K. Burch 4 0 1 0 K. Obyc 3 0 0 0 P. Rolf 3 1 0 0 J. Cruz 3 0 0 0 D. Jones 3 0 0 0 R. Perry 2 1 0 0 A. Dehaney 2 0 0 0 Central Michigan Chippewas Passing C/ATT YDS TD INT R. Radcliffe 28-49 479 6 3 Rushing ATT YDS AVG TD T. Phillips 22 202 9.1 0 R. Radcliffe 7 10 1.4 0 S. Skergen 2 6 3.0 0 Receiving REC YDS AVG TD C. Wilson 6 158 26.3 2 J. Harris 5 137 27.4 1 C. Fraser 5 72 14.4 2 K. Problah 4 43 10.7 0 L. Williams 2 19 9.5 0 Defense TKL SACK INT TD B. Seay 7 0 0 0 D. Bolden 5 0 1 0 M. Berning 5 0 0 0 N. Bellore 5 0 0 0 L. Williams 5 0 0 0 K. Zelinsky 5 1 0 0 D. Scott 4 0 0 0 K. Fraser 3 0 0 0 J. Harris 2 0 0 0 J. Carr 2 0 0 0 T. Bradley 2 0 1 0

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Top Stories:
#4 curse continues
#4 Oregon falls to PAC-10 foe Stanford in a blowout, 40-13.

LSU bounces back against #25 Tennessee
The Tigers end their 3 game losing skid to top Tennesse 16-14.

#6 Iowa rolls Big Ten opponent
Iowa holds nothing back as they walk all over #17 Penn State, 35-3.

Heisman Watch:
1. Brandon Saine - Ohio State - ^^^
Last game at Illinois: 19 carries, 89 yards, 2 touchdowns; 4 catches, 75 yards, 2 touchdowns
2. Mark Ingram - Alabama - VVV
Last game vs Florida: 20 carries, 93 yards; 1 catch, 12 yards
3. Roddy Jones - Georgia Tech - ^^^
Last game at Wake Forest: 25 carries, 174 yards, 3 touchdowns; 5 catches, 59 yards, one touchdown
4. Julio Jones - Alabama - ^^^
Last Game vs Florida: 13 catches, 145 yards, 2 touchdowns
5. Terrell Pryor - Ohio State - VVV
Last game at Illinois: 14-28, 264 yards, 3 touchdowns; 11 carries, 18 yards

Dropped out -
Case Keenum - Houston
Last game : BYE

Josh Nesbit - Georgia Tech
Last game at Wake Forest: 11-13, 134 yards, 2 touchdowns; 21 carries, 117 yards

Noel Devine - West Virginia
Last game: BYE

Players of the Week:
NCAA:
Offense -
Roddy Jones - Goergia Tech
Last game at Wake Forest: 25 carries, 174 yards, 3 touchdowns; 5 catches, 59 yards, one touchdown
Defense -
Kendrick Presley - Southern Miss
Last game vs Marshall: 3 tackles, 4 assisted tackles, 3 forced fumbles, one fumble recovery

MAC:
Offense -
MiQuale Lewis - Ball State
Last game at Central Michigan: 29 carries, 204 yards, 4 touchdowns
Defense -
Charlie Todd - Ball State
Last game at Central Michigan: 7 tackles, one tackle for loss, 2 assisted tackles, one forced fumble, one interception

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Recruiting News -
Ball State reeled in their second recruit of the year, free safety Ernest Smith. Ernest currently plays for New Albany Senior High School where he has led his team to a 4-1 start to the year. When asked why he chose Ball State, he responded, "I've grown up watching the Cardinals. My dad played quarterback there back in the early 80's, and I want to continue the family tradition." Ernest committed with Ball State just after their overtime win against Central Michigan.