MUNCIE, Ind. - A wave of contentment filled the air on Thursday (Sept. 2) evening, as fanatics everywhere were eager to see the return of college football. For Western Illinois, the Leathernecks began their season with a road test against the reigning Mid-American Conference (MAC) champions, Ball State. An admirable fight ultimately resulted in a 31-21 loss, but WIU undoubtedly turned some heads in its showing across the board.

Oh, and two guys who were responsible for turning those heads? Dennis Houston and Connor Sampson. Way to lead, seniors.

In the opening quarter, Ball State got on the scoreboard first with a long throw on a 49-yard touchdown pass. As a response, Sampson and Houston connected a 49-yard bomb at the start of their third drive that put the Leathernecks in Cardinals territory for the first time of the evening. Feisty defense on both ends kept the teams on their side of the field for the period's remainder.

In the second, Sampson dictated a strong drive by Western as the team pieced together 13 plays, 96 yards, and a Tony Tate rushing touchdown. An extra-point kick by Mason Laramie evened the score at 7-7. Ball State fumbled on the next immediate snap, with just under two minutes left in the quarter, and Michael Lawson was right there to give WIU possession again. The Cardinals made a three-and-out stop, and Adam Fellner dropped a tremendous 52-yard punt right to the Ball State 1-yard line. One final rush happened before the two opponents ran into the halftime break with a tied score.

The third quarter opened in favor of the host, as Ball State completed a 10-play series on a rushing touchdown for 21 yards. Electric play continued when Houston made a 75-yard receiving touchdown look effortless down the WIU sideline. However, Ball State had a quick answer on a 48-yard throw to go ahead again, 21-14. Subsequent stops on traded drives, including an interception from the Cardinals, finished out the quarter.

Likewise to the previous period, it did not take long for Ball State to score underway in the fourth. A 37-yard rushing TD upped the team's lead to 28-14. A 35-yard field goal soon followed. Nevertheless, the Leathernecks would not be finished, as Sampson connected with Daniel Bender on a 34-yard pass to the BSU01 under the two-minute mark. The veteran quarterback then spotted Houston for the latter's second touchdown of the night, and Laramie's kick for an extra point put an end to the setback.

Western jumps on the road again next week for a Saturday (9/11) visit to Montana. The 7 p.m. CT contest will be played as part of the 2021 Missouri Valley Football Conference-Big Sky Challenge Series, one of the most anticipated season series in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).
 

Notes

• Dennis Houston set a new career-high in receiving yards with 237. His previous best was 141 yards against Montana State on Sept. 14, 2019. The savvy team captain has edged his way onto the all-time list for the fourth-best mark within WIU single-game records. Additionally, his 12 receptions were a career-high and tied for fifth-highest in the program's single-game records.

• Connor Sampson started his campaign with a bang -- going for 30 completions, 367 passing yards, a 69.8% passing percentage, two touchdowns, and only one interception. His 367 passing yards fell just one yard short of tying a career-high (368 vs. South Dakota, Nov. 2019). He again slides into the single-game record books for taking the 15th-best spot in that category. It was the sixth career game of 30 or more completions for Sampson.

• Michael Lawson's 14 tackles tied for a personal career-best in a single game. He notched this same mark last season on Apr. 2 versus Youngstown State. Lawson also forced two fumbles and was credited for securing Western's first fumble recovery of the year.

• In his first game as a Leatherneck, Darius Joiner finished with 12 tackles, seven of which were solo.

• WIU totaled 367 receiving yards, compared to Ball State's 188.