MOBILE, Ala. – Backup quarterback Fredi Knighten threw a 13-yard pass to Allen Muse with 32 seconds remaining to lift Arkansas State past Ball State 23-20 at the GoDaddy Bowl on Sunday night.
Ball State had a chance to tie at the end of regulation, but Scott Secor’s 38-yard field goal attempt was blocked as time expired.
Arkansas State (8-5) won the GoDaddy Bowl for a second consecutive season despite losing starting quarterback Adam Kennedy to a knee injury in the second quarter. It was the Red Wolves’ third consecutive trip to Mobile.
Knighten had 115 yards passing and 97 yards rushing.
Ball State (10-3) pushed ahead 20-16 with 1:33 remaining on a 1-yard touchdown run by Jahwan Edwards but couldn’t hold the lead. Edwards finished with a game-high 146 yards rushing.
Keith Wenning capped his Ball State career with 215 yards passing, one touchdown and one interception.
Arkansas State lost coach Bryan Harsin to Boise State in December. He’s the latest in a string of three ASU coaches, including Hugh Freeze (Mississippi) and Gus Malzahn (Auburn), who have left the program for a more high-profile job.
John Thompson was the team’s interim coach for a second consecutive season, and the veteran defensive coordinator led a staff that managed to cobble together a workable offense without Kennedy.
But the Red Wolves couldn’t turn productive drives into touchdowns, settling for short field goals from 18 and 29 yards during the third quarter to push ahead 16-10.
