Saturday's game against the University of Illinois at Memorial Stadium must have felt like "Groundhog Day" for Ball State University - it was the same bad movie with a slightly different script.
For the fourth consecutive time, the Cardinals competed against a BCS opponent into the second half and held a lead. However, Ball State was unable to make a few plays that could have changed the outcome in a 28-17 loss to Illinois.
As has become customary in such defeats, senior captain and linebacker Cortlan Booker said he found no solace after the game in the competitive level his team showed against a Big Ten opponent.
"It's not a surprise when we come out and compete against big teams because that's our expectation," Booker said. "Not getting a win on any given Saturday - that's a big problem to us. There's not something we're going to take away from here and say we did a pretty good job."
One issue for Ball State was the field goal kicking of redshirt freshman Jake Hogue, who missed two attempts of 26 and 35 yards. Successful conversions would have kept Ball State within a touchdown down the stretch.
Cardinals' coach Brady Hoke said Hogue, who is 11-of-19 this season, would be re-evaluated as the starter.
"Missed field goals is something we've fought all year and it has become frustrating for everybody," Hoke said. "At this point in time I don't know what I'm going to do, but I know I'm going to evaluate it. Kids are playing very hard, and that's what I like about our team. But everybody has to be accountable."
Ball State had a chance to grab momentum before entering halftime after Illinois punted the ball with 1:19 remaining in the second quarter. The Cardinals had all three timeouts, but ran the ball three times to begin the drive.
Following a seven-yard completion to running back Chris Clancy, Ball State had a second and eight at its 49-yard line with approximately 20 seconds left. Rather than calling a timeout to stop the clock and throwing down the field to get into field goal range, the Cardinals didn't run another play and saved all three timeouts as the first half ended.
Hoke said two false start penalties on the drive played into his decision to sit on the ball at the end of the first half.
"We thought we didn't play great offensively in the first half," Hoke said. "We survived the first half, and we were still in the football game. So I thought it was best to focus on the second half."
The Cardinals took their only lead of the game at 10-7 less than two minutes into the third quarter after senior linebacker Mike Dorulla's 36-yard interception return for a touchdown. However, Illinois responded on its next drive with a 30-yard touchdown run by Rashard Mendenhall, and the Illini led the rest of the game.
"It was very disappointing because we get the momentum off a defensive touchdown, and we just let them come right down the field," Dorulla said. "We had the momentum, and then we took it right back."
The loss moved Ball State's record against BCS opponents to 0-40 in program history. Despite the disappointment, Booker said it's crucial that his team moves on with its season.
"This is definitely one of those games where we're going to sit down after season and say, 'Hey, this game was disappointing,'" Booker said. "But as for the season right now, it moves way too fast to dwell on a single game. So we have to put this game away, pack it up and pull it back out when the season is over."
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