Arkansas State 23, Ball State 20

[January 06, 2014]  MOBILE, Ala. — Arkansas State 23, Ball State 20: Fredi Knighten tossed a 13-yard touchdown pass to Allen Muse with 32 seconds left and the Red Wolves blocked a 38-yard field goal try as time expired to stun the Cardinals at the GoDaddy Bowl.

Knighten relieved the injured Adam Kennedy at quarterback early in the second quarter and passed for 115 yards and the touchdown and ran for another 97 yards to lead the Red Wolves (8-5). J.D. McKissic was the top target, catching 10 passes for 82 yards for Arkansas State.

Jahwan Edwards rushed for 146 yards and his 1-yard touchdown run with 1:33 remaining seemed like it might hold up until Arkansas State’s final drive. Keith Wenning passed for 215 yards and a touchdown in his final college game for the Cardinals (10-3), connecting nine times with Willie Snead for 87 yards and a touchdown.

After Edwards gave Ball State a 20-16 lead with his touchdown run, Knighten completed a 26-yard pass to McKissic to move the ball to the Ball State 19 and, two players later, Knighten connected with Muse for a 23-20 lead.

Wenning was able to move the ball near midfield with 11 seconds left, then got a break when Arkansas State was called for a 15-yard personal foul after a 10-yard completion to Snead, putting the ball at the 21-yard line. Secor lined up for his third field-goal try of the game but the kick was blocked by Ryan Carrethers, dropping Ball State’s record to 0-7 in bowl games.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Ball State came in 11th in the nation at 40.1 points and had scored no less than 27 in every previous game this season. … Edwards surpassed the 1,000-yard mark for the second straight season. … Kennedy re-aggravated a knee injury suffered in the regular-season finale and Knighten took all the snaps at quarterback after the opening drive of the second quarter.

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