QUARTERBACKS

Neither ankle bothered junior Dan LeFevour in his return to action last week – he rushed for 121 yards and two touchdowns to go along with his 196 passing yards in leading CMU to a 33-30 win over NIU. Ball State’s Nate Davis ranks among the best in the Mid-American Conference in passing efficiency. He completes 68.2 percent of his passes for 20 touchdowns and six interceptions.

ADVANTAGE: Even. This is a matchup between two of the best quarterbacks of the non-Bowl Championship Series schools.

RUNNING BACKS

The Chippewas face their biggest in-conference challenge in BSU’s MiQuale Lewis, who leads the Mid-American Conference with 1,273 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns. Senior Ontario Sneed has yet to rush for 100 yards in a game, but he will have extra energy Wednesday running in his final game at Kelly/Shorts Stadium.

ADVANTAGE: BSU. Lewis has reached triple digits in rushing yards in eight of the last nine games.

CMU OFFENSIVE LINE VS. BSU DEFENSIVE LINE

CMU’s injury-riddled line still struggles at times, giving up 24 sacks this season (second-highest in the MAC), but its run blocking was excellent last week at NIU. Junior end Brandon Crawford, with three sacks, leads an experienced Cardinals defensive line that averages 1.6 sacks per game.

ADVANTAGE: Even. But CMU may have an advantage in creating running room for LeFevour and Sneed should the conditions get too drastic.

BSU OFFENSIVE LINE VS. CMU DEFENSIVE LINE

Seniors Dan Gerberry and Robert Brewster lead one of the best offensive lines in the MAC. Ball State has given up just eight sacks all season and opens up big running lanes for Lewis. Challenging it is junior defensive end Frank Zombo (MAC-leading eight sacks) and a CMU defensive line that has had an up-and-down year in pressuring opposing offenses.

ADVANTAGE: BSU. This is a critical battle for CMU to win Wednesday if it wants to keep the Cardinals from scoring a lot of points.

CMU WIDE RECEIVERS VS. BSU SECONDARY

Juniors Bryan Anderson and Kito Poblah provide the size advantage, while sophomore Antonio Brown provides the speed. These guys may provide Ball State its biggest challenge yet. The Cardinals, led by senior cornerback B.J. Hill (three interceptions), have picked off a MAC-best 13 passes.

ADVANTAGE: CMU. Anderson is a big-game player and Brown should give BSU problems in the short passing game.

BSU WIDE RECEIVERS VS. CMU SECONDARY

Even after losing star wideout Dante Love to a neck injury in September, Ball State’s passing game has not missed a beat. Its biggest X-factor is tight end Darius Hill, who had four catches for 63 yards and a touchdown in last year’s game vs. CMU. While Central’s pass defense is improving, it still is among the worst in the conference and could miss junior Eric Fraser (leg).

ADVANTAGE: BSU. If Davis has time in the pocket, he will find plenty of open receivers – and Darius Hill will cause problems on his own.

SPECIAL TEAMS

The Chippewas should not see any sneak onside kicks this week. Should the game go close and down to the final seconds, they can depend on Andrew Aguila (12-for-14) to kick a late field goal. BSU punter Chris Miller can give opposing teams unfavorable field position, while B.J. Hill (14.8 yards per return) is dangerous in the punt return game.

ADVANTAGE: Even. The key for CMU is to limit Ball State to short returns and force the offense to play on a longer field.

COACHING

Sixth-year coach Brady Hoke built Ball State into a winner. After several subpar years, his team continues to make history this season, starting 10-0 and ranking as high as No. 14 in the country. But second-year coach Butch Jones is on the verge of vaulting CMU (8-2) to a national ranking of its own, as well as a third consecutive MAC West championship.

ADVANTAGE: Even. With the projected weather conditions, this game may come down to the coaching ability of two of the MAC’s best.

INTANGIBLES

BSU has discipline on its side; it is the least-penalized team in the country with 26 penalties, none in the last three games, and has turned the ball over just 10 times. CMU has close-game experience on its side, with its last nine games decided by 10 points or less. It has found new ways to win every week.

ADVANTAGE: CMU. This is not the first time the Chippewas had to clinch the division in unfavorable weather conditions (see the cold rain during their 31-7 win over WMU two seasons ago).

PREDICTION

This is the game the MAC dreamed for. Ball State is playing its toughest game yet, facing an experienced Chippewas team in the cold and possibly snowy Kelly/Shorts Stadium. Meanwhile, CMU, despite its success, has shown glaring weaknesses in its pass defense and could face a long day if Davis gets comfortable.

The biggest difference is experience. CMU has won 17 consecutive MAC games without the division clinched. It has faced big deficits (14-0 vs. Ohio on Sept. 13) and funny weather conditions (last week vs. NIU) already this season. Simply put, LeFevour and the Chippewas have the grind-it-out experience the Cardinals do not have and will find a way to clinch their third consecutive division championship.

CENTRAL MICHIGAN 31, BALL STATE 30

E-mail the author: Brian Manzullo