As Ohio coach Tim Albin predicted, the Mid-American Conference title race has come down to the season's final week. With a win against Ball State, Ohio will clinch a spot in the MAC Championship game and complete an undefeated season at home for the second time in three years.
The Cardinals come in with little to play for other than their pride. The program fired former long-time coach Mike Neu prior to their most recent game against Bowling Green. However, despite a 2-8 record, Ohio can not overlook Ball State.
Here is all you need to know for Ohio’s must-win game against Ball State:
Head Coach
Interim head coach Colin Johnson will travel to Athens with one game of head coaching experience - a game that saw the Cardinals losing 38-13 against Bowling Green.
Prior to being named interim head coach, Johnson was in charge of the Ball State running game and served as the team's offensive line coach.
Quarterback
Despite its record, Ball State features one of the most proficient passers in the MAC in Kadin Semonza. The redshirt freshman quarterback leads the MAC in passing touchdowns with 22 and has the second most passing yards with 2,571.
Semonza has led Ball State to have one of the best offenses in the conference, scoring 31.4 points per game since conference play began.
Running back
Opposite to Ohio, Ball State is a pass-first offense. Running back Braedon Sloan ranks toward the bottom of the conference in terms of most rushing statistics.
Sloan averages 50 rushing yards a game with only three rushing touchdowns in 11 starts.
Receivers
Semonza’s favorite pass-catching option is without a doubt his tight end, Tanner Koziol, who averages a team-leading 72 receiving yards per game. Koziol also leads the team with seven receiving touchdowns.
Redshirt sophomore Cam Pickett has been the best of the wide receivers for Ball State but still averages just over 34 receiving yards per game with two total touchdowns.
Perhaps the team's most skilled receiver, junior Justin Bowick, will not play against Ohio after self-redshirting earlier in the season.
Similar to Ohio, the Ball State offense is a little unpredictable, and any given receiver could have a big game at any time.
Defense
Ball State does not have a good defense.
The Cardinals have lost games where their offense has scored 42, 48 and 34 this season. With one game to go, only Kent State has a worse defense in terms of scoring as Ball State allows over 36 points per game.
Ball State also comes in allowing over 450 total yards per game, which is worse than any team in the MAC other than Kent State.
