ATHENS, Ohio – Having escaped the shadow of its own goalposts, Ohio was driving past midfield. Down three points late in the fourth quarter, the Bobcats were moving the ball well and were fast approaching field goal range. Running back Donte Harden had just squirted past the first down marker when defensive end Ryan Hartke caught up with him.
With the help linebacker Aaron Morris, Hartke stood Harden up and started reaching for the ball. He found it, and ripped it free. Safety Josh Howard came up with the loose ball, and Ball State had its third takeaway of the day in its 23-20 victory Saturday at Peden Stadium.
It was just the kind of play coach Pete Lembo said this week Ball State needed to make to beat Ohio. And while that wouldn't be assured until Matt Weller pushed a 41-yard field goal attempt wide left with 36 seconds left, the Cardinals' defense came up with enough big plays to ruin the Bobcats' Homecoming.
The victory was Ball State's fourth of the season, equaling their win total from last year. The Cardinals are a part of a four-way tie for second place in the Mid-American Conference West Division, one game behind Toledo.
Hartke said the coach's weeklong insistence on the need to create turnovers had him thinking about ripping the ball out.
"A couple guys had him wrapped up, so I was just in there going straight for the ball," Hartke said.
After two difficult games against No. 3 Oklahoma and Temple, Ball State's defense was finally able to return to being the unit that gave up 103 points in the first four weeks of the season instead of the one that gave up 104 points in the last two weeks.
"We challenged them all week," Lembo said. "Guys were going to have to step up and make plays to beat an established opponent like this and they did."
Still, the Bobcats had a chance to send the game to overtime in the final minute of the fourth quarter. Weller, who was All-Mid-American Conference last year, entered the game 12-of-15 on field goals this season. As Ohio lined up to attempt the kick, Lembo said he didn't think about calling Ball State's final timeout in an attempt to ice Weller.
"I was just praying that we wouldn't line up offsides," Lembo said.
Ball State didn't, and when the kick went wide left, all that was left for the Cardinals to do was run out the clock.
While it was the offense that was on the field at the end of the game, it was Ball State's defense that had controlled the game. It created a season-high three turnovers, blocked an extra point and matched its lowest total of points allowed of the year.
Besides the fumble forced by Hartke, the Cardinals' other takeaways were interceptions by middle linebacker Travis Freeman and Howard. Though the Cardinals only scored three points off the turnovers, Freeman pointed out that three points was the difference in the game.
"To me, that's what changed the game," Freeman said. "The turnovers were huge. I can't talk about it enough because we've been preaching it all season."
Offensively, the Cardinals had a lot of success running the ball. Jahwan Edwards rushed for 123 yards and a touchdown, raising his season total to 543 yards and seven touchdowns. Keith Wenning added 23 rushing yards and a touchdown to go with his 179 passing yards.
But punter Scott Kovanda's contribution Saturday was just as important as any offensive player. Kovanda pinned Ohio inside its own 10-yard line three times in the fourth quarter, giving Ball State's defense a big advantage as it closed out the game.
"You can't ask for anything more," Freeman said. "Scott gets my game ball today for sure."
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