Ball State Plays No. 23 Ranked Toledo Tonight at 8 pm ET on ESPN2

 

SERIES RECORD: Toledo leads, 19-17-1. The Rockets have won three straight, including a 45-28 triumph last season in Muncie.

 

COACHES:

Matt Campbell, 9-1 (1st full year) at Toledo, same overall. 0-0 vs. Ball State.

Pete Lembo, 12-9 (2nd year) at BSU, 91-45 (12th year) overall. 0-1 vs. Toledo.

 

TV: ESPN2. Joe Tessitore (play by play), Desmond Howard (analyst) and Kaylee Hartung (sideline).

 

 

Tuesday, November 6th is Election Night for the country but it’s also a decisive night in the battle for the West Division crown of the Mid-American Conference. The No. 23 Toledo Rockets host Ball State on Nov. 6 in a nationally televised contest at the Glass Bowl (8:00 p.m. / ESPN2) in what could help determine the eventual MAC champion. Toledo (8-1, 5-0 MAC) is a half-game out of first in the MAC West behind Northern Illinois (9-1. 6-0 MAC), while Ball State (6-3, 3-2 MAC) is still in the hunt.

 

The Rockets have won eight consecutive games, most recently a 25-20 rain-soaked battle at Buffalo on Oct. 27. Junior RB David Fluellen carried the Rockets with a career-high 228 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Toledo trailed at halftime, 14-7, but rallied behind Fluellen, who rushed for 144 yards and two scores in the third quarter. Fluellen now ranks third in the nation with 1,181 yards rushing.

 

Ball State has won three straight games following close losses at Kent State and at home to Northern Illinois. The Cardinals knocked off their third non-conference foe on Oct. 27, disposing of Army, 30-22. BSU has also defeated Indiana and South Florida. The Cardinals have the No. 2-ranked offense in the MAC (473.2 yards per game), led by sophomore WR Willie Snead (68 receptions, six TDs) and sophomore RB Jahwan Edwards (949 yards, nine TDs).

 

 

• This will be the 38th meeting between the two schools, with Toledo holding a slight 19-17-1 edge. The two schools first met in 1975 and have met every year since then. Toledo has won three straight. One more victory would match the Rockets’ longest win streak in the series (1981-84).

• Despite not playing last weekend, Toledo moved into the Top 25 for the first time in over a decade. Toledo ranks No. 23 in the most recent Associated Press poll, No. 25 in the USA Today coaches poll.

• The Rockets were last ranked in the Top 25 in the final 2001 AP and USA Today coaches polls. Toledo ended the season 10-2 ranked No. 23 by the AP and No. 22 by the coaches.

• Toledo is 8-1 with eight consecutive wins, marking its best start since the 2001 team also went 8-1 to start the year before losing its second game.

• Toledo is 19-2 in its last 21 Mid-American Conference games.

 

• The Rockets are 8-1, 5-0 MAC following their 25-20 victory at Buffalo on Oct. 27. Toledo has won eight straight games.

• Toledo trails MAC West leader Northern Illinois (9-1, 6-0 MAC) by a half-game.

• The Rockets’ 8-1 start is their best since the 2001 squad also went 8-1. Eight straight wins is the most since the 1997 team opened up the season 8-0.

• Toledo is ranked No. 23 in the latest Associated Press poll, No. 25 in the USA Today coaches poll

• Toledo is 19-2 in its last 21 MAC games.

• Junior RB David Fluellen rushed for a career-high 228 yards on a career-best 35 carries vs. Buffalo, topping the century mark for the fifth straight game and sixth time this season. Fluellen is averaging 178.9 yards rushing over the last five contests.

• Fluellen is sixth in the country with 1,181 yards rushing, sixth in yards per game (131.2).

• Fluellen’s 1,181 yards is his first 1000-yard season, and ranks ninth-best in UT history.

• Senior LB Dan Molls leads the nation with 116 tackles and with 12.9 tackles per game.

• Senior defensive tackle Danny Farr returned to the lineup at Buffalo after missing six games with a knee injury. Farr had one tackle in the game.

 

Toledo leads the series, 19-17-1. Toledo has won three straight, including a 45-28 decision that closed out the regular season last year.

 

Toledo is back in the Top 25 for the first time in over a decade.  The latest Associated Press media poll ranks the Rockets No. 23 with 146 total points. The USA Today coaches poll puts Toledo at No. 25 with 108 points.  The last time Toledo was in the Top 25 was in the final AP and USA Today coaches polls in 2001, the debut season for head coach Tom Amstutz. Led by running back Chester Taylor, the Rockets ended the season 10-2 and were ranked No. 22 in the USA Today poll and No. 23 in the AP poll.  Toledo’s highest ranking ever was No. 12 in the final 1970 AP poll.

 

Toledo’s victory over Eastern Michigan on Oct. 13 was its sixth of the season, thus securing bowl eligibility for the third consecutive season. The Rockets played in the 2010 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl and the 2011 Military Bowl.

 

It took David Fluellen more than two seasons to rush for 100 yards in a game. Now the junior running back can’t stop. Fluellen rushed for a career-high 228 yards in Toledo’s 25-20 win over Buffalo on Oct. 27, his fifth consecutive 100-yard game and sixth of his career.  Over the last five games, Fluellen is averaging 178.9 yards per game to boost his season total to 1,181 yards, the third-highest total in the country. In that span, he has rushed for 213, 104, 188, 161 and 228 yards. In the Buffalo game, Fluellen carried the ball 35 times, 10 more than his previous career high.

 

 

 

Ball State tallied a 30-22 win at Army to improve to 6-3 overall and become bowl eligible for a second straight season . . . Ball State was 6-6 in 2011 . . . The Cardinals were last bowl eligible in back-to-back seasons in 2007 and 2008 and Ball State played in the International Bowl after the 2007 campaign and the GMAC Bowl after the 2008 season.

 

The Cardinals have beaten two teams from the Bowl Championship Series Automatic Qualifying Conferences in the same year for the first time in school history . . . Ball State defeated Indiana from the Big Ten Conference 41-39 Sept. 15, and tallied a 31-27 win over South Florida from the Big East Conference Sept. 22 . . . The win over Indiana marked the third straight meeting between the two teams the Cardinals have won.

 

Ball State has won three games this year on its final possession of the game . . . The Cardinals won on a field goal as time expired at Indiana (Sept. 15) and scored the go-ahead touchdown with 1:02 left in the game in their victory at home over South Florida (Sept. 22) . . . Ball State tallied a 30- 24 overtime win over Western Michigan Oct. 13 on a 15-yard TD run on the final play of the OT.

 

The Cardinals rushed for 224 yards at Army, which marked the fifth time in nine games this year Ball State has rushed for 200 or more yards in a game . . . The Cardinals also rushed for over 200 yards vs. Eastern Michigan (329), at Clemson (252), at Indiana (206) and vs. Central Michigan (233).

 

According to cfbstats.com, Willie Snead leads the nation in scrimmage plays of 10 plus yards, including rushing and receiving . . . Snead has 46 scrimmage plays of 10 or more yards, while Alex Amidon of Boston College is second with 44 . . . Jahwan Edwards is tied for 46th in the nation with 29 . . . cfbstats.com also lists Joel Cox as tied for second in the nation in blocked kicks/punts with three . . . Cox has blocked three extra points this season.

 

• Ball State ranks first in the MAC and 21st in the nation in total offense (473.22) . . . Nationally, Ball State is 29th in rushing offense (202.44), 37th in passing offense (270.78) and 39th in scoring offense (33.67) . . . The Cardinals are fifth in the nation in first downs (28.67 per game) and 17th in time of

possession (32:18)

• Ball State ranks 17th in net punting (40.35) and fourth in punt return yardage defense (1.5) . . . The Cardinals are 20th in the nation in punt returns (12.75) and 31st in kickoff returns (24.00) . . . Ball State is 17th in the nation for fewest sacks allowed per game (0.89).

 

 

• Ball State's football program has been featured in ESPN's family of networks Top Ten Plays three times this season . . . KeVonn Mabon (St. Louis, Mo./DeSmet Jesuit H.S.) was featured for his 13-yard touchdown catch in the back of the endzone from Keith Wenning (Coldwater, Ohio/Coldwater H.S.) in the fourth quarter of the Cardinals' victory at Army . . . Eric Patterson (Tampa, Fla./H.B. Plant H.S.) was featured for his interception of a first quarter pass vs. Western Michigan, which was initially tipped by Travis Freeman (Cleveland, Ohio/Glenville H.S.) and then batted by Ball State until Patterson came up with his second pick of the season . .. Willie Snead (Belle Glade, Fla./Muskegon, Mich. H.S.) was featured for his game winning touchdown reception vs. South Florida Sept. 22.

 

• Ball State junior quarterback Keith Wenning (Coldwater, Ohio/Coldwater H.S.), who made his 31st consecutive career start at Army, completed 18-of-27 passes for 189 yards with two touchdowns against the Black Knights . . . Wenning has thrown 50 touchdown passes in his career, which ranks second on Ball State's all-time charts . . . He has 17 touchdown passes this season, which ties for sixth on the Ball State single-season chart . . . Wenning has thrown at least three TDs in a game 10 times in his career . . . He owns the top four single-game completion totals and the top three single-game attempt totals in Ball State history.

 

• Steven Schott (Massillon, Ohio/Washington H.S.) leads the nation in field goals per game with 2.22 per contest . . . Schott has made 20-of-24 field goals in 2012.

• Travis Freeman is the NCAA leader among current players for total tackles in a career with 432 . . . Manti Te'o of Notre Dame is second with 404, while Toledo's Dan Molls is third with 372. . . Freeman has 161 career solo tackles and 271 career tackle assists . . . He is averaging 9.6 tackles per game in his four year career.

 

• Sophomore running back Jahwan Edwards (Matthews, N.C./Butler H.S.) rushed for 148 yards and one TD on 30 carries at Army . . . It marked his fourth 100-yard rushing performance of the season and the sixth of his career . . . He has recorded 20 TDs in 21 career games.

 

• Willie Snead, who ranks first in the Mid-American Conference in catches and receiving yards, managed six catches for 78 yards at Army . . . He has six TD receptions this season and eight in his career . . . He has caught at least one touchdown pass in five of the past seven games . . . Snead has 68 catches for 901 receiving yards in 2012 . . . The 68 catches are tied for fourth on Ball State's single-season chart, while the 901 receiving yards is the eighth best single season

total in Ball State history.

 

• Barrington Scott (Fort Wayne, Ind./Snider H.S.) rushed for 99 yards and one touchdown on 25 carries plus caught one pass for a seven yard TD at Central Michigan . . . It marked the first two touchdown game of his career . . . He followed that with 15 rushes for 81 yards at Army.