Lembo's Language is a weekly article, where chief football reporter David Polaski dissects statements made by Ball State head football coach Pete Lembo in his press conference.
Do you anticipate making any changes to the defense after some of the missed tackles Saturday?
Lembo: “There are not a whole lot of changes to make relative to our health right now. We need to get guys back. I think there’s a chance we get a few back this week.”
David: There’s not much that the Ball State coaching staff can do to address missed tackles, other than to emphasize wrapping up and waiting until players get back from injury. So far, Ball State has been bitten by the injury bug on defense, and Lembo is hopeful that Quintin Cooper can play against Central Michigan.
Is it a different challenge facing off against an offense that’s so pro style?
Lembo: “We’ve been in a fair amount of two [running back sets] ourselves … our defense has seen some of that from us. They’ve seen a little bit of it from other teams this year.”
David: Central Michigan’s offense doesn’t operate how many Mid-American Conference offenses do. They run a lot of players with the quarterback under center, as opposed to in the shotgun. This allows for the offense to show different looks to the defense and changes how play-action looks from the defensive side of the ball.
After [quarterback] Jack Milas’ game on Saturday, is it difficult to temper expectations considering he’s still young?
Lembo: “We need him to play well, and certainly the way we played offensively on Saturday gives us a chance … we can’t throw our hands up in the air if he throws an interception.”
David: Milas is still a young quarterback and had an impressive first outing against Western Michigan, throwing four touchdowns and no interceptions. After that performance, Lembo knows he and his staff must keep their heads level regarding him, understanding he’s still inexperienced and will most likely make mistakes due to that inexperience.
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