SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 22, 2012
Ball State 31, South Florida 27: Keith Wenning connected with Willie Snead deep in the left corner of the end zone for a 19-yard touchdown with 1:02 remaining as the host Cardinals came back to beat the Bulls.
Wenning passed for 244 yards and two scores, taking Ball State (3-1) on 75-yard drive to beat its first team from a BCS conference other than Indiana. Snead had 11 receptions for 135 yards.
The Bulls (2-2) drove to the Ball State 28, but Tampa native Eric Patterson intercepted Daniels and ran out the clock. South Florida had driven 99 yards, capped by a 29-yard scoring strike from B.J. Daniels to Lindsey Lamar with 4:12 left and converted the two-point conversion to take a 27-24 lead.
Daniels threw for 312 yards – 267 of it in the second half. Lamar, a running back, had five catches for 80 yards and two touchdowns.
Jahwan Edwards (98 yards rushing) scored on a 3-yard run to give Ball State a 10-3 lead midway through the second quarter, but South Florida responded. Lamar took a shovel pass from Daniels and went 15 yards into the end zone with 3:27 left in half, but Joel Cox blocked the extra point and the Cardinals led 10-9 at halftime.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Ball State gave up its first points in the third quarter (10) after outscoring opponents 45-0 the first three games. … South Florida had 206 yards rushing, three below its season high. … The Bulls beat Ball State 37-7 last year in Tampa.