Ball State quarterback Ozzie Mann stood eight yards from the end zone and took the snap, trailing by seven, just 19 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.
He quickly scrambled to his right. Nobody came open. Seeing a lane, he took off and was hit hard by two defenders, falling forward to the two yard line.
13 seconds.
Cardinals' offensive lineman Jeremiah Harvey picked up the ball and looked for an official to hand it to as precious seconds ticked off the clock.
Nine seconds.
The ball was tossed to umpire Tony Smith, who fumbled, the ball rolling into the backfield.
Five, four, three, two, one.
Zero.
Ball State fell to Indiana State 27-20, two agonizingly close yet still very far yards away for Ball State head coach Pete Lembo and his team.
“You either have to throw it away, or you have to throw it to the end zone,” Lembo said. “You can’t sugarcoat it, it wasn’t a great decision to scramble.”
Indiana State struck first to start the game, when kicker Eric Heidorn hit a 42-yard field goal on his team’s first drive. Ball State immediately responded when Eric Patterson returned the ensuing kickoff 61 yards. Facing a third and four, Mann hit KeVonn Mabon for 15 yards. Three plays later, running back Jahwan Edwards punched the ball in from one yard out, giving Ball State a 7-3 lead.
With offenses beginning to stall, Ball State came back to life early in the second quarter. Mann found receiver Jordan Hogue in the end zone for a 23-yard touchdown.
The Sycamores responded, however, when quarterback Mike Perish found A.J. Johnson for a 25-yard pass on the next drive, cutting Ball State’s lead to four. After Ball State’s Aaron Hepp muffed a punt and Indiana State recovered, Perish hit Isaac Beverstock for a two-yard touchdown with just four seconds left in the first half.
Perish finished the game completing 25 of 43 passes for 317 yards and three touchdowns, no interceptions.
“Coach put us in a good position to win the game, we just didn’t execute,” Ball State strong safety Brian Jones said.
After Indiana State tacked on another field goal to start the third quarter to take a 20-14 lead, Ball State’s offense woke up.
Mann found Chris Shillings for a 37-yard gain, setting up the first of two field goals from Scott Secor. On the next drive, Mann hit tight end Dylan Curry for a 38-yard gain, setting up Secor’s second field goal, tying the game at 20.
Mann finished 24 of 46 for 266 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions.
With Indiana State backed up and facing third and 19, Perish hit Robert Tonyan Jr. for 18 yards, setting up fourth and one. Running back Buck Logan took the carry for nine yards, extending the drive.
“The third and longs where we let them off the hook, the third and 19 when they gained 18 was a killer,” Lembo said. “That was their touchdown drive, and I thought that play gave them a lot of momentum.”
Perish found Kyani Harris in between two Cardinal defenders in the end zone for a touchdown, giving Indiana State the 27-20 lead it wouldn’t relinquish.
Ball State had one last chance in its final drive, as Mann found Shillings, Mabon, Hepp and Corey Lacanaria on his way down the field.
The drive fell two yards short, Indiana State defenders leaping into the air as the rest of the team rushed the field.
It’s the first time Indiana State beat an FBS team since 2011, when it defeated Western Illinois, an FBS team at the time.
“Nobody’s happy. Disappointed,” Lembo said. “This is where we’re at, there’s going to be very little margin for error, there’s going to be a lot of close games, and mistakes are going to get magnified.”
Ball State falls to 1-2 on the season.
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