Ball State
Cardinals

This year, Ball State is a bottom feeder in the MAC and has been reduced to a spoiler role in the conference going into its first November game on the 12th.

The Cardinals will play MAC West title challenger Northern Illinois on the road that day, and then take on West favorite Central Michigan at home on Nov. 18. A win in either game by Ball State could crush their opponent's hopes of winning the West and advancing to the MAC championship game.

"This is a chance to mix it up with those guys," defensive end Brandon Crawford told the Muncie (Ind.) Star Press. "We're trying to win, and if we spoil someone's dreams or aspirations, better for us."

Ball State hasn't played since Oct. 31, so it should be fully rested for the Huskies. Coach Stan Parrish says his team also seems to be re-energized after getting four days off in a seven-day span.

"We've played hard," Parrish said. "We haven't always played well, but ... it's not like we've been getting knocked out of the stadium by teams."

--TB MiQuale Lewis needs 297 yards rushing in the last three games to pass Bernie Parmalee for second in school history. Lewis, a senior, has 3,187 yards.

SERIES HISTORY: Ball State leads series 20-14-2 (the Cardinals won 45-14 at home last season)

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: Ball State has been unable to threaten opponents by throwing the ball since QB Kelly Page suffered a broken thumb Oct. 15. The Cardinals have done a good job in the run game since then, but they are trying to become more balanced with a tough slate of November games looming against the top three teams in the Mid-American Conference West.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: The Cardinals have made a good reversal in defending the run after being battered on the ground early in the season. Ball State gave up an average of 216.8 yards per game on the ground in its first four games. In five games since then, opponents are averaging only 110.0 yards per game.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "This is going to be smashmouth football. Coach Kill (Northern Illinois coach Jerry Kill) isn't going to run a lot of schemes and do a lot of different stuff. He's going to line up and have his boys come at us to see who's going to play the hardest and the longest." -- Ball State DE Brandon Crawford on the challenge of stopping Northern Illinois' running game when they play Nov. 12.

PLAYERS TO WATCH:

QB Tanner Justice became the starter two games ago and passed for 1 yard in his first game and 78 in the second. Ball State's passing game presents no serious threat to opponents.

TB MiQuale Lewis picked up his play in the running game in recent weeks. After struggling in the first six games of the season with an indecisive mentality, he has rushed for 461 yards in the past three games.

FS Sean Baker made his eighth career interception a timely one in Ball State's last game, against Ohio on Oct. 31. Baker picked off a pass on the goal line on the final play of the third quarter, preserving a 10-9 lead for the Cardinals. He's been particularly big in pass coverage around the goal line during his career.

ROSTER REPORT:

--True freshman Justin Cruz made his first career start at OLB Oct. 31 against Ohio. He became the fourth player to start at the position this year for the Cardinals.

--TB Eric Williams shook off what looked like a scary knee injury Oct. 24 at Eastern Michigan to play against Ohio. Williams only suffered strained ligaments and appeared fine against the Bobcats on Oct. 31, rushing five times for a team-high 59 yards.

--Fullback/defensive end Andrew Puthoff limped off the field late in the game against Ohio. The injury to his knee wasn't serious, and he will play in the Cardinals' game Nov. 12 at Northern Illinois.