There's great irony within the staggering offensive numbers posted this season by the Ball State and Toledo football teams.
Toledo coach Tom Amstutz spent 20 seasons coaching defense for the Rockets, including the final seven years in that span as the defensive coordinator, before being named head coach in 2001.Brady Hoke was a career defensive assistant coach before becoming Ball State's head coach in 2003, and he almost exclusively works with the Cardinals' defense.
Yet the teams of those defensive minds have become among the most prolific offensive units in the Mid-American Conference.
"Defensive coaches make their livings studying offenses and figuring a way to stop them," Amstutz said. "Brady and I were looking at all those offenses (as defensive assistant coaches), and we knew which ones were tough and gave us trouble as defensive coaches."
Toledo is the highest-scoring team in the MAC, averaging 36.5 points a game. The Rockets are averaging 55.0 points in their past three games, including a 70-21 win against Northern Illinois.
Toledo leads the conference in rushing yards per game (223.0) and total yards (464.2).
"Offensively, they've been pretty doggone effective most of the year," Hoke said. "They're going to be a challenge for us defensively."
Ball State's offense was slowed in the past two games while losing to Illinois and Indiana.
But even with the downturn, the Cardinals are third in the MAC in scoring (31.1), second in passing offense (282.2) and second in total offense (436.4).
Hoke, true to his defensive roots, won't admit that tonight's game could be something of an offensive free-for-all.
"If you look on paper what it could be, there's some truth to that," Hoke said. "But also there's a lot of pride with their kids and our kids defensively. We're second in the league in scoring defense, which is the most important (stat), in my opinion."
Hoke would rather his team stand toe-to-toe with an opponent and slug it out in a defensive battle.
Amstutz no longer yearns for that kind of game.
"Um, no. No," he said. "I'd rather not play 10-7 games. As a defensive coordinator, a 10-7 game would thrill me. But I have a different hat on now."
Toledo quarterback Aaron Opelt, who was offered a scholarship by Ball State the same year the Cardinals signed Davis, has passed for seven touchdowns and no interceptions in the past three games. He sat out the previous two games with an injury.
While Opelt has been effective, tailback Jalen Parmele has been among the best runners in the MAC. Parmele rushed for at least 106 yards in each of the past six games, averaging 164.2 yards in those contests.
"He's definitely an all-conference style runner," Amstutz said of Parmele, who is second in the MAC in rushing. "He's a very solid football player."
Ball State's running game has had difficulty providing balance to its passing game.
The Cardinals have rushed for 75 yards or less in three of their past four games. Leading rusher Frank Edmonds is playing with a broken right wrist.
The lack of productivity on the ground has put a stronger emphasis on the passing game. Illinois and Indiana paid more attention to the pass than the run the past two games.
Hoke said Davis was pressured too much at Indiana.
"The bad part is when you don't establish a good enough running game teams load up on the throwing game," Hoke said.
Toledo coach Tom Amstutz spent 20 seasons coaching defense for the Rockets, including the final seven years in that span as the defensive coordinator, before being named head coach in 2001.Brady Hoke was a career defensive assistant coach before becoming Ball State's head coach in 2003, and he almost exclusively works with the Cardinals' defense.
Yet the teams of those defensive minds have become among the most prolific offensive units in the Mid-American Conference.
"Defensive coaches make their livings studying offenses and figuring a way to stop them," Amstutz said. "Brady and I were looking at all those offenses (as defensive assistant coaches), and we knew which ones were tough and gave us trouble as defensive coaches."
Toledo is the highest-scoring team in the MAC, averaging 36.5 points a game. The Rockets are averaging 55.0 points in their past three games, including a 70-21 win against Northern Illinois.
Toledo leads the conference in rushing yards per game (223.0) and total yards (464.2).
"Offensively, they've been pretty doggone effective most of the year," Hoke said. "They're going to be a challenge for us defensively."
Ball State's offense was slowed in the past two games while losing to Illinois and Indiana.
But even with the downturn, the Cardinals are third in the MAC in scoring (31.1), second in passing offense (282.2) and second in total offense (436.4).
Hoke, true to his defensive roots, won't admit that tonight's game could be something of an offensive free-for-all.
"If you look on paper what it could be, there's some truth to that," Hoke said. "But also there's a lot of pride with their kids and our kids defensively. We're second in the league in scoring defense, which is the most important (stat), in my opinion."
Hoke would rather his team stand toe-to-toe with an opponent and slug it out in a defensive battle.
Amstutz no longer yearns for that kind of game.
"Um, no. No," he said. "I'd rather not play 10-7 games. As a defensive coordinator, a 10-7 game would thrill me. But I have a different hat on now."
Toledo quarterback Aaron Opelt, who was offered a scholarship by Ball State the same year the Cardinals signed Davis, has passed for seven touchdowns and no interceptions in the past three games. He sat out the previous two games with an injury.
While Opelt has been effective, tailback Jalen Parmele has been among the best runners in the MAC. Parmele rushed for at least 106 yards in each of the past six games, averaging 164.2 yards in those contests.
"He's definitely an all-conference style runner," Amstutz said of Parmele, who is second in the MAC in rushing. "He's a very solid football player."
Ball State's running game has had difficulty providing balance to its passing game.
The Cardinals have rushed for 75 yards or less in three of their past four games. Leading rusher Frank Edmonds is playing with a broken right wrist.
The lack of productivity on the ground has put a stronger emphasis on the passing game. Illinois and Indiana paid more attention to the pass than the run the past two games.
Hoke said Davis was pressured too much at Indiana.
"The bad part is when you don't establish a good enough running game teams load up on the throwing game," Hoke said.
