Ball State - Team statistics
First downs - 26
Rushing yards - 278
Passing yards - 194
Yards per play - 5.55
Third downs - 8-19
Fourth downs - 3-4
The Cardinals rushed for 278 yards in the contest.
“I felt pretty good tonight,” freshman quarterback Riley Neal said. “Our offensive line blocked amazing all game, so that makes it pretty easy when they're doing that."
The Cardinals went through a quarterback change at the end of the first quarter, with Neal replacing Jack Milas. But Darian Green was on fire from the start; his first carry went for 42 yards.
Coming into the game, Green was averaging 8.9 yards per carry. He finished the contest against Eastern with 25 carries for 166 yards.
In addition to Green's solid performance, Neal rushed for 93 yards, to go along with 194 passing yards and a touchdown, while freshman James Gilbert ran for 39 yards and a pair of short touchdowns.
The success in the running game helped Ball State come back from a 17-0 deficit to score 28 unanswered points.
"Being able to stay on the field and moving down the field really was big for us to take control of the game," head coach Pete Lembo said.
Gilbert also played a key role in helping the Ball State offense stay on the field. He had 15 carries and was able to convert on multiple third and fourth downs.
The Cardinals converted eight of 19 third downs and three of four fourth downs.
Ball State's ability to stay on the field paid off for its defense, also. The Cardinals kept the high-powered Eastern Michigan offense off the field and allowed just 319 total yards and 196 yards through the air, where it had struggled.
It also picked up two interceptions, both by linebacker Sean Wiggins. Lembo was pleased with the defense overall.
With the win, Ball State improves to 2-1 on the season overall and 1-0 in Mid-American Conference play. The Cardinals will look to get off to a faster start next week against the Northwestern Wildcats.
“You could kind of say it's a statement, but, then again, they came out and scored 17 [points] really quick,” Wiggins said. “We got to work on when we come out earlier, because if we would have stopped them at that it would have been a way better outcome.”
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