Pinned
Link copied
Game Recap
Saturday, the Toledo Rockets were out to avenge their 52-14 loss to the Ball State Cardinals from their previous meeting last October, but they had no such luck. It was close but no cigar for the Rockets as they fell 27-24 to Ball State. What made the defeat an especially bitter pill for Toledo to swallow was that they had been favored by 10 points coming into the contest.
The Cardinals' success was spearheaded by the efforts of QB Drew Plitt, who passed for two TDs and 304 yards on 35 attempts in addition to punching in one rushing touchdown, and WR Yo'Heinz Tyler, who was on the other end of those TDs and tacked on 79 yards receiving. WR Justin Hall also helped out with an impressive 127 receiving yards in the victory.
Ball State's defense was a presence as well, as it got past Toledo's offensive line to sack the QB four times total. It was a group effort with four guys contributing.
WR Bryce Mitchell hadn't helped Toledo's cause all that much against the Eastern Michigan Eagles last week, but the same can't be said for this matchup. The Rockets' defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Mitchell, who caught five passes for two TDs and 94 yards, and QB Eli Peters, who passed for two TDs and 363 yards on 36 attempts.
The loss dropped Toledo back to even at 2-2. The win -- their third in a row -- raised the Cardinals' record to 3-1.
Toledo will square off against the Northern Illinois Huskies at noon ET next week at Brigham Field at Huskie Stadium. NIU lost a close one recently, falling 30-27 to the Western Michigan Broncos Saturday. Ball State is staying on the road next week to face off against the Central Michigan Chippewas at noon ET Dec. 5 at Kelly/Shorts Stadium. Ball State is heading into an offensive buzzsaw as that team is averaging 36 per game.
