EVANSTON, Ill. (Interstat) — Aidan Chiles accounted for four touchdowns and Northwestern rolled past Ball State 45-14 on Saturday at Ryan Field in an NCAA Football Bowl Division game before an attendance of 25,629. The Wildcats improved to 4-1, while the Cardinals dropped to 1-5. Northwestern controlled the game from the opening quarter and never let Ball State mount a serious comeback. Chiles led the way with a crisp passing performance and added a rushing score, while the Wildcats defense produced a touchdown of its own and repeatedly disrupted Ball State’s offense.

Northwestern opened the scoring at 11:42 of the first quarter when Chiles rushed up the middle for a 1-yard touchdown. Jackson Kleather added the extra point. The Wildcats struck again late in the quarter when Chiles connected with Griffin Wilde on a short middle pass that went 19 yards for a touchdown. Kleather’s kick made it 14-0. Chiles finished the game 17-of-23 passing for 272 yards and three touchdowns, and he ran eight times for 32 yards and another score. Wilde was his top target, hauling in eight receptions for 144 yards and a touchdown.

Northwestern extended its lead early in the second quarter when Caleb Komolafe ran up the middle for a 14-yard touchdown at the 10:52 mark. Kleather’s extra point made it 21-0. Ball State finally broke through at 8:20 of the second quarter when TJ Horton scored on a 1-yard rush up the middle. Brody Boehm kicked the extra point. The Wildcats answered with a 52-yard field goal by Kleather at 4:47, pushing the margin to 24-7. Moments later, Robert Fitzgerald intercepted a Keldric Luster pass at the Ball State 15-yard line and returned it 15 yards for a touchdown. Kleather’s kick made it 31-7. Ball State found the end zone again just before halftime when Luster completed a 2-yard pass to Jamarion McDougle with 12 seconds remaining. Boehm’s extra point cut the deficit to 31-14 at the break.

Northwestern put the game further out of reach in the third quarter. At 10:12, Chiles completed a short left pass to Drew Wagner, who took it 12 yards for a touchdown. Kleather’s kick made it 38-14. Ball State briefly appeared to get a special-teams touchdown when Cole Stumbaugh’s 60-yard punt was returned 96 yards by Wagner, but the score was nullified by a Northwestern holding penalty. The Wildcats added one more touchdown at 0:53 of the third when Chiles hit Alex Honig on a deep left pass for 32 yards. Kleather’s extra point set the final margin at 45-14. In the fourth quarter, Ball State’s best chance to add points ended when Boehm missed a 51-yard field goal attempt at 7:38.

Luster finished 27-of-41 passing for 209 yards with one touchdown and one interception for Ball State. He also ran seven times for 10 yards. Elisha Durham caught two passes for 21 yards, Alex Scherle had one reception for 20 yards and Tayshon Bardo added one catch for 13 yards. The Cardinals’ defense was led by Kaleb Stewart, who recorded eight tackles and one sack. Will Yates added five tackles, Ben Marsh had four tackles and one quarterback hurry, and Anthony Pinnace made three tackles.

Northwestern’s defense spread the production across the field. Braydon Brus led the Wildcats with eight tackles and one quarterback hurry. Montae Pate and Jon Jon Stevens Jr. each had seven tackles, with Stevens adding a quarterback hurry. Kobie McKinzie and Miles Crutchley each finished with four tackles, and McKinzie added a quarterback hurry. Michael Kilbane had three tackles, half a sack and one quarterback hurry. Jack Trautmann recorded two tackles and one sack. Payton Roth had two tackles and half a sack. Mason Mayne registered two quarterback hurries, while Mason Green, Jamaal Johnson and Matthew Smith each added a quarterback hurry. Alijah Jones, Timi Oke, Ore Adeyi, Jack Sadowsky V and Caden O’Rourke also contributed tackles. Brenden Deasfernandes, Tanner Jumpp, Marquet Dorsey Jr., Tito Williams Jr., Brendan Flakes, Troy Regovich, Sean Martin and Frank Covey IV each had one tackle, while Jack Oyola and Tyler Gant each made two tackles for a Northwestern defense that kept Ball State out of the end zone after halftime.

For Northwestern, Wagner finished with four receptions for 61 yards and a touchdown, plus two punt returns for no yards. Honig caught two passes for 48 yards and a touchdown. Hayden Eligon II had one reception for 16 yards, and Ricky Ahumaraeze added one catch for 6 yards. Gavin Sawchuk ran four times for 24 yards and caught one pass for a loss of 3 yards. Sean Morris II carried twice for 10 yards, Ryan Boe ran once for 6 yards and Daniel Anderson had three carries for 4 yards. Nikola Dugandzic punted twice for 82 yards. Kleather handled kicking duties, while Ball State’s Boehm made his extra-point attempts and missed his lone field goal try.

Ball State entered having lost to Toledo, Kent State and Liberty, with a win over Stony Brook and a loss to Ohio State. Northwestern came in off a win over Penn State and had also beaten Colorado and South Dakota State while falling to Indiana. The Wildcats will next play at Michigan State, while Ball State will next play at Bowling Green. Both teams return to conference play looking to build on their current positions.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Northwestern 45, Ball State 18. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Northwestern with a 98.3 percent probability to win. Ball State had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of +35.5. The total score of 59 went under the over/under line of 53.5.