Ball State Cardinals
Mid-American
0-0 (0-0 conf)
SP+ #132
Ratings
2025 final
- SP+
- -23.0 (#132)
- SP+ Offense
- 13.4
- SP+ Defense
- 34.4
- SRS
- -19.1
- FPI
- -19.4
- Elo
- 1010
- Talent
- 495
- Recruiting
- —
2026 Outlook
Projected wins
4.0p10 3.0 — p90 6.0
| Round | Prob | |
|---|---|---|
| Win conference | 0.1% | |
| Make CFP | 0.0% | |
| Quarterfinal | 0.0% | |
| Semifinal | 0.0% | |
| Natl. final | 0.0% | |
| Natl. champ | 0.0% |
Schedule
proj record 4.2–7.8
Schedule
120th
toughest of 136
Offenses faced
129th
toughest of 136
Defenses faced
83rd
toughest of 136
Strength of schedule — how tough this team's opponents are, ranked 1 (hardest) to 136 (easiest) · by 2025 SP+ · 2 FCS games.
| Wk | Opponent | SP+ | Score | Proj | Win% | Res |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | @Ohio State | +30.1 | 9-55 | -45.2 | 0% | — |
| 2 | vsStony Brook | FCS | 36-13* | +23.0 | 92% | — |
| 3 | @Liberty | -9 | 18-33 | -14.6 | 15% | — |
| 4 | @Kent State | -19.3 | 26-31 | -5.1 | 36% | — |
| 5 | vsToledo | +6 | 20-39 | -18.9 | 9% | — |
| 6 | @Northwestern | +5.8 | 14-38 | -24.0 | 5% | — |
| 7 | @Bowling Green | -12.6 | 21-30 | -8.3 | 28% | — |
| 8 | vsSacramento State | FCS | 33-19 | +13.4 | 82% | — |
| 10 | @Massachusetts | -36.6 | 30-25 | +5.2 | 63% | — |
| 11 | vsBuffalo | -7.5 | 25-29 | -4.1 | 39% | — |
| 12 | @Ohio | -4 | 17-31 | -14.2 | 15% | — |
| 13 | vsCentral Michigan | -8.8 | 23-28 | -4.4 | 38% | — |
* FBS-vs-FCS estimate from the SP+ gap — no per-game model for FCS opponents.
Quarterbacks · 4
2026 · 72
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB | 1st | Kiael Kelly | SR | 6'2" | 186 | — |
| QB | 2nd | Keldric Luster← Texas State | SO | 5'10" | 225 | ★★★ |
| QB | — | Aidan Leffler | JR | 6'1" | 209 | — |
| QB | — | Tyler Mizzell← Concord University | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Running Backs · 6
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RB | 1st | Qua Ashley | JR | 5'10" | 191 | — |
| RB | 2nd | TJ Horton | SO | 5'10" | 205 | ★★★ |
| RB | 3rd | Jalen Bonds | FR | 6'0" | 200 | — |
| RB | 4th | Johnny Thompson Jr.← Kansas | SO | 5'11" | 200 | ★★★ |
| RB | 5th | Elijah Jackson | SO | 5'8" | 178 | — |
| RB | 6th | Jalen Alexander | FR | 5'11" | 188 | ★★★ |
Wide Receivers · 12
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | 1st | Eric Weatherly | JR | 5'8" | 173 | — |
| WR | 2nd | Qian Magwood | SR | 6'0" | 184 | — |
| WR | 3rd | Donovan Hamilton | FR | 6'3" | 215 | — |
| WR | 4th | Jamarion McDougle | SO | 6'0" | 178 | — |
| WR | 5th | Isaiah Thacker | SO | 5'11" | 202 | ★★★ |
| WR | 6th | Elisha Durham | FR | 6'1" | 165 | ★★★ |
| WR | 7th | Dahya Patel | JR | 6'1" | 186 | — |
| WR | 8th | Eli Hohlt | SO | 6'0" | 175 | — |
| WR | — | Corey Thompson Jr.← Utah State | JR | 5'10" | 160 | ★★★ |
| WR | — | Jabari Smith Jr.← Florida Atlantic | — | — | — | ★★★ |
| WR | — | CJ Nelson← Eastern Illinois | — | — | — | ★★★ |
| WR | — | DJ Young← Siena Heights | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Tight Ends · 6
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TE | 1st | Koby Gross | SR | 6'2" | 245 | — |
| TE | 2nd | Maximus Webster | SO | 6'2" | 226 | ★★ |
| TE | 3rd | Drew Cassens | SR | 6'3" | 250 | — |
| TE | 4th | Tate Hoover | SO | 6'2" | 240 | — |
| TE | — | Alex Scherle← Rice | JR | 6'4" | 234 | ★★★ |
| TE | — | Sean Ward← Dartmouth | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Offensive Line · 1
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OT | — | Misael Sandoval← Vanderbilt | JR | 6'6" | 337 | ★★★ |
Defensive Line · 12
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DE | 1st | Nathan Voorhis | SR | 6'3" | 247 | ★★ |
| DE | 2nd | Ben Marsh | SO | 6'2" | 257 | ★★★ |
| DE | 3rd | Ashton Nawrocki | JR | 6'2" | 242 | — |
| DE | 4th | George Okorie | FR | 6'2" | 222 | — |
| DL | — | Kendrick Gilbert← Louisville | SO | 6'5" | 265 | ★★★ |
| DL | — | Keilan Smith← Cincinnati | SO | 6'2" | 330 | ★★★ |
| DT | 1st | Drew Hughes | SR | 6'2" | 288 | ★★★ |
| DT | 2nd | Scott Hudson | SR | 6'2" | 274 | — |
| DT | 3rd | Ameir Glenn | FR | 6'0" | 295 | ★★★ |
| EDGE | 1st | Jared Badie← San Diego State | JR | 6'3" | 230 | ★★★ |
| EDGE | 2nd | Maverick Gracio← Pittsburgh | SO | 6'4" | 245 | ★★★ |
| EDGE | — | Austin Stief← Davenport | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Linebackers · 15
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LB | 1st | Alfred Chea | SR | 6'2" | 221 | ★★★ |
| LB | 2nd | Joey Stemler | SR | 6'1" | 236 | ★★★ |
| LB | 3rd | Jack Beebe | SR | 6'1" | 220 | — |
| LB | 4th | Caden Johnson | JR | 6'2" | 228 | ★★★ |
| LB | 5th | Jackson Wiegold | SR | 6'2" | 228 | ★★★ |
| LB | 6th | Micah Wing | JR | 6'2" | 229 | ★★★ |
| LB | 7th | Layton Starks | FR | 6'4" | 235 | ★★ |
| LB | 8th | Justin Thomas | JR | 6'0" | 231 | — |
| LB | 9th | Sam Feeney | SO | 6'2" | 197 | ★★★ |
| LB | 10th | Cincear Lewis← Cincinnati | JR | 6'1" | 218 | ★★★ |
| LB | 11th | Zavier Simpson | SR | 6'1" | 217 | ★★ |
| LB | 12th | Mikeah Webster | FR | 6'1" | 230 | ★★★ |
| LB | — | Jovan Clark← Washington State | FR | 5'11" | 195 | ★★★ |
| LB | — | Gavin Forsha← Tennessee State | — | — | — | ★★★ |
| LB | — | Carsen Burckhardt← Valparaiso | — | — | — | ★★★ |
Defensive Backs · 11
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CB | 1st | Chris Jackson← Colorado State | JR | 6'0" | 155 | — |
| CB | — | Diante Griffin← Ohio State | SR | 5'9" | 187 | ★★★ |
| CB | — | Cedric Franklin II← Arkansas State | — | — | — | ★★★ |
| DB | 1st | Michael Gravely Jr. | SR | 6'0" | 195 | — |
| DB | 2nd | Muheem McCargo | SR | 5'10" | 215 | ★★★ |
| DB | 3rd | Willizhuan Yates | SO | 6'0" | 161 | ★★ |
| DB | 4th | Joedrick Lewis | SR | 5'11" | 190 | — |
| DB | 5th | Derek Fields | SO | 6'1" | 191 | ★★★ |
| DB | 6th | Tobi Adewoyin | FR | 5'11" | 185 | ★★★ |
| DB | 7th | Deondre Shepherd | FR | 5'10" | 193 | ★★★ |
| DB | 8th | Jalon Jones | JR | 5'10" | 182 | — |
Special Teams · 5
| Pos | Depth | Player | Cl | Ht | Wt | ★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LS | 1st | Caden Britton | JR | 5'10" | 207 | — |
| P | 1st | Adam Saul | SR | 6'6" | 192 | — |
| PK | 1st | DC Pippin | SR | 6'0" | 195 | — |
| PK | 2nd | Carson Holmer | JR | 6'1" | 215 | — |
| PK | 3rd | Brody Boehm | FR | 6'1" | 191 | — |
Season History · last 12
0 AP top-10 · 2 postseason
| Season | Record | Conf | SP+ | AP | Post |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 4-8 | 3-5 | #132 | — | — |
| 2024 | 3-9 | 2-6 | #126 | — | — |
| 2023 | 4-8 | 3-5 | #118 | — | — |
| 2022 | 5-7 | 3-5 | #113 | — | — |
| 2021 | 6-6 | 4-4 | #107 | — | 0-1 |
| 2020 | 6-1 | 6-1 | #97 | — | 1-0 |
| 2019 | 5-7 | 4-4 | #86 | — | — |
| 2018 | 4-8 | 3-5 | #119 | — | — |
| 2017 | 2-10 | 0-8 | #121 | — | — |
| 2016 | 4-8 | 1-7 | #96 | — | — |
| 2015 | 3-9 | 2-6 | #113 | — | — |
| 2014 | 5-7 | 4-4 | #91 | — | — |
Recruiting Classes
avg #109 · 0 blue-chip
■ 5★■ 4★■ 3★117 rated signees
| Class | Natl | Pts | 5★ | 4★ | 3★ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #119 | 119 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| 2024 | #112 | 140 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| 2023 | #108 | 127 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| 2022 | #97 | 127 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| 2021 | #95 | 140 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| 2020 | #122 | 132 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| 2019 | #125 | 123 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 2018 | #119 | 116 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 2017 | #90 | 129 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 2016 | #113 | 111 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
247Sports composite · class rank vs all FBS
Roster Talent
2026
Portal in 24net +6Out 18
Portal avg stars (in / out)3.0 / 2.9
Notable Portal Moves
| ▲ | Jabari Smith Jr. | WR | 3★ | ← Florida Atlantic |
| ▲ | Tyler Mizzell | QB | 3★ | ← Concord University |
| ▲ | Jared Badie | EDGE | 3★ | ← San Diego State |
| ▲ | Kendrick Gilbert | DL | 3★ | ← Louisville |
| ▼ | Kameron Anthony | TE | 3★ | → Rutgers |
| ▼ | Walter Taylor III | TE | 3★ | → Vanderbilt |
| ▼ | Roman Pearson | CB | 3★ | → Kansas |
| ▼ | Darin Conley | DL | 3★ | → Washington |
returning PPA · portal · talent composite · 2026
Injury Report · 0
No injuries reported.
Team News
0 items
No recent news.