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BSU football’s defensive improvement in 2020 proved its coaches’ and players’ confidence was not unfounded

MUNCIE, Ind. — Speaking less than a week after Ball State’s first ever bowl victory, Cardinals cornerback Amechi Uzodinma II revealed a key source of motivation he and his teammates used to propel their team to a win.

While San Jose State had already come into the New Year’s Eve contest ranked and as the favorite, Uzodinma said SJSU players began to talk trash before the game. Uzodinma felt the Spartans, especially one wide receiver in particular, weren’t showing the Cardinals any level of respect. And while Uzodinma said a “heated” confrontation never rose to the level of punches being thrown, from that point on Uzodinma thought, “This game is going to get ugly for them.