MUNCIE, Ind. -- Ball State visits Nashville to battle a Southeastern Conference opponent for the third time in two seasons. Counting its game at Miami (Fla.) last month, Saturday's game reflects the Ball State's fourth matchup against a Power Four opponent the past two years.
**Ball State used seven sacks and a strong run defense to get past Kent State last Saturday. The Cardinals led 27-7 in the third period, but big plays kept Kent State in the game, cutting the lead to 27-21 early in the fourth. Even after Jackson Courville's third field goal of the contest staked the Cardinals to a 30-21 lead with 3:19 to play, the Golden Flashes got two more touchdowns to keep applying pressure to the Ball State lead.