Takeaways: Mixed bag for Ball State in 34-23 loss at Georgia Southern

MUNCIE, Ind. — In what was an encouraging performance by Ball State football in the second and third quarters, the team let the game slip away late.

The Cardinals (1-3, 0-1 MAC) led 23-20 in the beginning of the final frame but fell 34-23 at Georgia Southern (3-1). Although the loss was disheartening, BSU put together arguably its best outing of the season thus far.

Here are three takeaways from the game:

Ball State couldn't get key stops on third down

The Cardinals just couldn't get the big stop.

Georgia Southern entered Saturday ranked fourth in the FBS with a 62% conversion rate on third down, and Ball State's defense was 44th (31.8%) in third-down defense. Whichever side of the ball won that battle would likely win the contest, and Georgia Southern was resoundingly superior.

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The Eagles converted 9-of-16 third downs while needing an average distance of 6.1 yards. The Cardinals often thwarted early-down rushing attempts and screen passes, especially after making some first-quarter adjustments, yet only forced their opponent to punt three times.

This deficiency often led to sustained drives by Georgia Southern, particularly in the first half when it ran 46 plays to Ball State's 32 while converting 6-of-10 third downs. For the game, Eagles quarterback Kyle Vantrease completed 8-of-12 third down throws for 121 yards and six first downs, and they rushed four times for 26 yards and three first downs.

Although the Cardinals controlled the ball better offensively in the second half, Georgia Southern's previous long drives seemed to wear down the Cardinals defense by the fourth quarter, which led to two late game-clinching scores by the Eagles.

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Paddock, Steele and Jackson shine amid successful offensive diversity

Ball State's defense may have been hit or miss, but the offense rebounded from a slow start to put together a mostly impressive display.

The offense totaled a season-high 496 yards, and quarterback John Paddock notched his best performance with career highs of 338 passing yards and 33 completions. Seven different receivers caught a pass, led by Jayshon Jackson (10 catches, 122 yards, one TD) and Yo'Heinz Tyler (nine catches, 65 yards).

Paddock had multiple impressive third-down throws and made perhaps the play of the game on a 3rd-and-5 when he hit Jackson in stride down the sideline for a 37-yard completion that eventually led to a TD.

Running back Carson Steele also enjoyed success, continuing his strong start to the year with 23 carries for 119 yards. He did have multiple carries go for negative yardage after never previously being tackled for a loss, but the coaching staff stuck with him after little production early and he eventually began to find running lanes and break tackles.

Ball State's offense stalled, however, at a crucial point in the game. The defense got a pivotal stop after the Cardinals took their first lead, 23-20, early in the fourth quarter, and a good Eagles punt pinned BSU at its own 8-yard line.

Ideally trying to drain some clock and get another score, the Cardinals instead took just 72 seconds to go 3-and-out. A poor 30-yard punt then set up Georgia Southern at Ball State's 43-yard line, which it quickly took advantage of by scoring the go-ahead TD.

When the Cardinals got the ball back, they benefitted from an Eagles roughing the passer penalty, picked up a first down and then were faced with a 4th-and-4 situation at their own 45-yard line with 5:30 minutes remaining. BSU elected to punt, and Georgia Southern took nearly four minutes to score another TD, effectively icing the game.

Ball State looked like a dangerous offense for about two-and-a-half quarters. The team will look to build off those positives heading into its home matchup against 2021 MAC champion Northern Illinois.

Cardinals couldn't punch it in

The teams were a combined 9-for-9 in the red zone. The Cardinals were 5-for-5.

BSU nearly went the entire outing without a turnover, which came late as Paddock tried to force a deep throw to the goal line. The team moved up and down the field fairly easily for most of the contest, so coming away with 23 points is dissapointing.

The Cardinals were set up at the 10-yard line on their first drive of the game after an Eagles facemask penalty, but failed to get in the end zone after a run-run-pass sequence. Paddock threw a TD on their next red zone trip, only to settle for a field goal after another run-run-pass script inside the 10-yard line.

Paddock made a great tight-window throw from 19-yards out on the next trip, and later made a throw just short of the line to gain as BSU settled for a short field goal on 4th-and-2.

Five red zone trips is good. Coming away with more field goals than TD's is not. Whether it's more creative play calling, better blocking or taking a risk on fourth down, the Cardinals need to take better advantage of scoring opportunities, especially in goal-to-go situations.

Gus Martin is a sports reporter at The Star Press. Follow him on Twitter @GusMartin_SP, and contact him at gmartin@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Ball State football: 3 takeaways from 34-23 loss at Georgia Southern