Ball State comes up 8 yards short in 42-38 loss to Western Michigan
Cardinals freshman quarterback Jack Milas debuts with 326 yards, 4 touchdowns
Ball State comes up 8 yards short in 42-38 loss to Western Michigan Cardinals freshman quarterback Jack Milas debuts with 326 yards, 4 touchdowns Check out this story on IndyStar.com: http://indy.st/1w07OC8
IndyStar Published 8:47 p.m. ET Oct. 11, 2014
Quarterback Jack Milas. Ball State football held it's first day of practice in pads Friday at Scheumann Stadium.(Photo: Kurt Hostetler/The Star Press, Kurt Hostetler/The Star Press)Buy Photo
MUNCIE – Sometimes college football is just plain weird.
Sometimes you have a quarterback, we'll call him Jack Milas, who spent a spring and summer looking somewhat overwhelmed. Sometimes he admits he didn't deserve to start the season, could often count a day's practice snaps as Ball State's No. 3 passer on one hand and had never stepped foot on a college field during a game. Then that player steps on the field and looks like starting him should have been the most obvious thing in the world.
But for Ball State, the out-of-nowhere debut went for naught in a wash of explosive plays from Western Michigan. That's how a resurgent offensive day becomes a 42-38 homecoming loss, capped by a first-time starter leading a last-minute drive that managed to fall 8 yards short.
"We're just hurting on defense right now," coach Pete Lembo said. "That's it. We're hurting, and it's showing. "We are not there yet and we are not the same defense we were against Colgate and Iowa."
How impactful were those explosive plays? An early 52-yard Daniel Braverman jet sweep scored one touchdown, and a 75-yard pass to Corey Davis produced another. Early in the third quarter, Darius Phillips took a reverse 52 yards to the 2 to set up a score, and in the fourth tailback Jarvion Franklin rumbled 54 yards for his third touchdown run.
So that's 4-of-6 touchdowns coming on plays of 52 or more yards, accounting for 233 yards on their own. That's how a team rallies from trailing by 17 at halftime and 10 points entering the final quarter.
On most of those, there was a Cardinal in position to limit the damage. But none could take the right angle or finish off the tackle. After holding WMU (3-3, 1-1 Mid-American Conference West) to 2.4 yards per carry in the first two quarters, Ball State (1-5, 0-2) was gashed for 10.9 after the intermission.
"There were a couple of times that some missed tackles were really impactful," Lembo said. "I don't care who's out there on the field, starter, backup, we've still got to make those plays."
Ball State tossed out some different defensive looks, both to account for injuries that have devastated the middle of the defensive backfield and to tweak the way Western quarterback Zach Terrell (290 passing yards) adjusted plays. But the Broncos' defense is built on executing simple concepts to stress defenses, and they certainly out-executed the Cardinals.
It meant the team and Milas walked off the Scheumann Stadium turf with a loss despite him producing possibly the finest first start for any passer in school history. Afterward, he focused on the little spots where he had issues and how they contributed to scoring once on seven second-half drives.
But he also threw for 326 yards and four touchdowns, by far the most for a Ball State passer this year. Under his guidance, the Cardinals had more points at halftime than they'd had in any game this season and tied the season high for third-down conversions (they finished 10-for-19).
Keep in mind this was his first college game, replacing Ozzie Mann, against one of the top secondaries in the conference playing man coverage all day.
"I did some things well, but I've definitely got to improve," said Milas, noting timing was an issue in spots. "I missed a lot of easy reads and just easy throws that I usually make."
He was also put in some difficult positions, facing more than a few second- or third-and-longs, though he managed to convert more than a few.
But the most difficult spot he fell into came with 1:18 left in the game. The Broncos had scored back-to-back touchdowns to take a 4-point lead, and 64 yards separated Ball State from the end zone.
Milas calmly led them downfield, keeping the no-huddle organized, surviving a sack and hitting passes to Jordan Williams (179 yards), Corey Lacanaria and KeVonn Mabon to guide his team to the WMU 8.
After a first down spike, he was under pressure and fired a pass to the end zone low past Williams. The coaches called the same play again, but a blitz resulted in the pass being batted down. On fourth down, he saw Mabon pressed and thought it was a matchup he could win. But his arching pass sailed high.
"I've just got to make a better throw," Milas said.
Despite his day, it's another loss, the team's fifth in a row. Lembo said he implored his players to keep perspective and ignore the happenings on the periphery.
"They've got to focus on getting better," Lembo said. "I'll take the heat for our record and where were at the end of the day. That's on me."