Ball State football plays three QB's, loses key player in Week 1 game at Kentucky

MUNCIE, Ind. — Ball State football left Lexington, Kentucky, battered and bruised, but not without optimism.

The Cardinals (0-1) fell to the Wildcats 44-14 in Saturday's season opener. BSU led 7-3 after the first frame before injuries, two costly fumbles and a UK kickoff return touchdown put the game out of reach.

Senior linebacker Clayton Coll was carted off the field late in the second quarter. An air cast was placed on his lower left leg, and players and coaches were emotional during and after the game as they fear a severe injury.

Moments earlier, redshirt sophomore running back Vaugh Pemberton's knee bent unnaturally while being tackled. He was helped off the field and will be evaluated on Monday.

Still, Ball State was in position to cover the 25.5-point spread until Kentucky's 30-yard rushing score with six seconds remaining. BSU played the Southeastern Conference foe tougher than 30 points, and head coach Mike Neu got on the team bus encouraged by what he saw.

“I'm proud of the way our guys fought all the way to the end, kept competing," Neu said. "Those two big turnovers in the first half were costly, and when you're playing against a good football team like this, it's important to play your best football for four quarters and be able to string that together. In saying that, I do feel like there was a lot of positives for our football team that we can build on.”

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The biggest success was the play of freshman quarterback Kadin Semonza, who started the second half after beginning as the backup and completed 15-of-21 passes for 165 yards and a score, and threw for six of the team's nine third-down conversions.

Semonza relished his chance to play, and succeed, in a college football game.

“It was surreal, for sure. I've been praying and dreaming about stuff like this since I can remember. I've been playing football since I was 4 years old," Semonza said. "So I really just took a deep breath and I just thanked God for putting me in the position I was out there.”

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He was significantly more effective than graduate transfer starter Layne Hatcher, who capped a methodical 13-play, 73-yard, 13-minute scoring drive of his own with a QB sneak in the first quarter but was limited to 6-of-8 completions for just 36 yards. He was also frequently under pressure and sacked twice.

Sprinkled midway through several drives was redshirt sophomore quarterback Kiael Kelly, who was either change-of-pace dual threat or a gadget guy alongside either Semonza or Hatcher. Kelly had his moments, most notably on a 13-yard run and a 22-yard completion, but failed to lead the Cardinals to a score when on the field in the red zone.

The quarterbacks' favorite targets were junior receiver Ty Robinson (five catches, 90 yards, one TD) and sophomore tight end Tanner Koziol (eight catches, 66 yards), who missed part of the second quarter after a thunderous hit to his head jarred the ball loose and resulted in a Kentucky defensive TD to take a 17-7 lead.

It was a game-changing sequence, coming after a third-down defensive pass interference call on junior safety Jordan Riley in the red zone put the Wildcats in position for a go-ahead score.

With the game still in the balance, redshirt senior cornerback Tyler "Red" Potts snagged a clutch interception on 4th-and-2, seemingly giving the Cardinals life with 1:22 minutes left in the first half.

But on second down, junior JUCO transfer receiver Malcolm Gillie's lone catch turned into another fumble, one that likely would've resulted in another TD return if not for the referees blowing the play dead before confirming the turnover via replay review.

Kentucky was still able to tally two field goals in the final 90 seconds, outscoring BSU 20-0 in the second frame.

A 99-yard kickoff return following Semonza's TD pass at the end of the third quarter all but ended the Cardinals' chance of a comeback. BSU's defense, however, looked better over the final 30 minutes, holding the Wildcats to just 128 yards before that final breakaway TD run.

“I think we reacted to adversity in a very good way," redshirt senior linebacker Cole Pearce said. "I was really happy about the communication out there today, especially for Week 1. The sky's the limit, really, for our defense."

Ball State also played without star redshirt sophomore tight end Brady Hunt (ankle) and redshirt junior defensive lineman Tavion Woodard (shoulder).

Woodard went through a full pregame warmup but was deemed not ready to play after missing so much practice, according to Neu. Hunt was not cleared, remained in a walking boot on the sideline and is considered "day-to-day."

Neu said he hopes to have both players available for next Saturday's game at defending back-to-back national champion Georgia at noon, Sept. 9.

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 plays three QB's, key injury Week 1 game at Kentucky