FACTS & STATS: Site: Jordan-Hare Stadium (87,451) -- Auburn, Alabama. Television: FSN-South. Home Record: Ball State 0-2, Auburn 3-0. Away Record: Ball State 0-1, Auburn 0-0. Neutral Record: Ball State 0-0, Auburn 0-0. Conference Record: Ball State 0-0, Auburn 1-0. Series Record: Auburn leads, 2-0.
GAME NOTES: First-year head coach Gene Chizik has led his Auburn Tigers to a 3-0 start, and they will attempt to remain undefeated this weekend as they clash with the Ball State Cardinals in non-conference action.
Ball State, a member of the Mid-American Conference, is still in search of its first win of the season. The Cardinals, under the guidance of fifth-year head coach Stan Parrish, fell to 0-3 with a 24-17 loss to Army last Saturday. Clearly, the level of competition spikes significantly this weekend.
Auburn is fresh off a 41-30 victory over West Virginia, a powerful team from the Big East Conference. All three victories for the Tigers have come at home, and they are 1-0 in SEC play thanks to a romp over Mississippi State two weeks ago. While Chizik's group did not enter the season with expectations of challenging for the SEC title, confidence among the players and fans is clearly growing.
Auburn has won both previous meetings with Ball State, the most recent of which took place in 2005.
Ball State is far from explosive on offense, as the team is averaging a mere 14.3 ppg and 270.3 total ypg this season. Nate Davis put up big numbers while running the show at quarterback for the Cardinals in recent years, but he has taken his game to the NFL. Kelly Page has been chosen as his replacement, and Kelly has struggled mightily in the first three games of this season. He has completed only 45.7 percent of his passes for 408 yards with two touchdowns and five interceptions. As a runner, he has posted 97 yards and a score, but there is obviously room for improvement. MiQuale Lewis is the club's top rusher, but it is hard to get excited about 141 yards and a 3.4 ypc average through 12 quarters of football. He is also the team's top receiver, but his 11 catches have resulted in only 34 yards. Against Army last week, Ball State posted 20 first downs and 375 total yards, but the 17 points scored simply weren't enough. Kelly threw three interceptions, and backup Tanner Justice tossed one as well. Those giveaways were the most obvious reason for the defeat.
Opponents are scoring 22.3 ppg against Ball State, which is yielding 366.3 total ypg. The Cardinals have been particularly weak against the run, as they are surrendering 204.3 ypg on the ground. They have registered just three takeaways in three outings and will have their hands full with the mighty Tigers on Saturday. Davyd Jones has been an active defender for Ball State, as he leads the team with 33 tackles. Another player to watch is Robert Eddins, who has eight TFLs already, including three sacks. Eddins has forced three fumbles and blocked a kick, impressive to say the least. Last week against Army, Ball state surrendered only 265 total yards, but the defense was often put in bad spots by a Cardinal offense that committed four turnovers. Army only threw the ball eight times, completing just three passes, but one of the completions resulted in a 24-yard touchdown. The score was tied 17-17 in the fourth quarter when Army returned an interception 18 yards for what proved to be the game-winning touchdown.
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