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Ohio seemed to have Ball State's kickoff return strategy figured out last Saturday.

The Cardinals like to run their return to the right, so the Bobcats kicked off to the left after their first score. By the time Dante Love fielded the ball and ran back to the right where his blocking was set up, Ohio's Todd Koenig blew up the play by tackling Love for a meager 11-yard return at the 14-yard line.

Time to adjust.

Ohio put the ball to the left again on its next kickoff. But this time, the Cardinals executed better. When Koenig came barreling down the field, he was blocked out of the play.

That was all Love needed.

"I ran all the way across the field to the hole, and I just hit it," the true freshman from Cincinnati said. "I had to make a move on the kicker, and once I did, I knew I was gone after that."

Love returned the kick 94 yards for a touchdown, only the second such score for the Cardinals in the past four seasons.

Plays like that are why Love found his way into the lineup this season. He brings a level of excitement to the game when he touches the ball.

Love is tied for the team lead with two touchdown receptions, and his 42-yard run on a flanker reverse against Bowling Green is the Cardinals' longest rush of the year. He is third in the Mid-American Conference in kickoff returns with an average runback of 24.6 yards.

"He's just a guy who has good vision, can accelerate, has great balance, and loves to play," Ball State coach Brady Hoke said.

The Cardinals' offensive coaches have attempted to get Love involved in numerous ways this season.

He took over kickoff return duties against Western Michigan. He's third in receiving with 12 catches. And Love, a quarterback in high school, has played for brief periods in several games at quarterback, completing 3-of-6 passes and rushing nine times for 48 yards.

Hoke likes the change of pace Love provides at quarterback, but he longs for more production.

"Have we seen the results we want? Not totally, but he gives you something there," Hoke said. "We need to get him throwing the ball a little more from that position. You can't make him one-dimensional (with the run) because then it's easier to defend."

Love's most memorable moment before his kickoff return touchdown was the 42-yard run on a reverse against Bowling Green in the second game of the year. That's the game he first played at quarterback, and Bowling Green's defense appeared to be caught off guard when he lined up in the shotgun.

"They were saying, '86 - 86 at quarterback,' and started shifting their defense," Love said.

He surprised just about everybody that day.

Love has no regrets about not playing quarterback full time. He loves the receiver position.

"It's so much easier than quarterback because at quarterback you have to worry about everybody coming at you," he said. "Receiver is easier for me now. I'm not even worried out there."

But opponents seem to be.