Ball State Cardinals 2018 Football Preview

Ball State Cardinals 2018 Football Preview

Opening Statement: Mike Neu may have bitten off more than he could chew by agreeing to return to his Alma Mater, and it showed with a 2-10 season in 2017 that was as much a disaster as it looked on paper. With more changes coming in 2018, specifically changing personnel on defense to a 3-4 look, Ball State has got to pray to the health Gods that they can keep some bodies on the field, especially QB Riley Neal, who missed all but 3 games last fall. Injuries aside, the staff has to just simply do a better job getting this roster prepared for what could be another long slog this season.

Breakdown Offense: Everything went wrong for the Cardinals on offense in 2017, as they scored just 17.9 points per game on the season. They passed for just 177.2 yards per game, and managed to run for 158.

It all starts and ends for Ball State at QB, where the Cardinals had to play 3 different players, and a 4th saw limited action. Riley Neal's healthy return should make all the difference, but he played in just 3 games last fall, passing for 659 yards, 6 TDs, and 3 INTs. The reality is that Neal has never been great (13 TDs, 12 INTs in 2016), but he represents their best chance to win more than 2 games, which would be tough anyway. Drew Plitt played in 5 games last season, but passed for just 430 yards with 3 TDs and 3 INTs, and he completed just 50% of his passes. Hank Hughes is a transfer from Texas A&M, but may not figure into the bigger picture just yet.

Caleb Huntley had a strong freshman campaign in 2017, rushing for 1003 yards, but his average of 4.78 yards per carry and 3 rushing scores were pedestrian in measure, and need to improve as a sophomore. There is little depth behind him outside of junior Malik Dunner, who rushed for just 440 yards, or 36.67 yards per game. He did manage to score 8 times, however.

Justin Hall leads a receiving corps that returns mostly intact. Hall posted a line of 78-801-3 last fall, and is joined by Riley Miller, who posted 30-300-1. Khalil Newton is the 3rd receiver, but posted just a line of 12-183-1. Antwan Davis finished 4th on in receiving and returns to add some depth. Hassan Littles, who caught just 2 passes, returns as well, as does Devin Reece. Nolan Givan caught 25 passes for mostly short yardage as the starting TE last fall, but does return as well. Kyle Schrank projects to win the backup role, but will have a battle with Keidran Davis in the fall. Dylan Koch is looking for some reps as well.

Malik King (LT), Zac Ricketts (LG), Chris Beech (C), Curtis Blackwell (RG), and Kadin Booker (RT) all project as starters on the line. Grant Williamson and Anthony Todd will provide relief at OG, while Andrew Poentisch is the reserve at C. OT is thin, with just TJ Beltavski solid enough to lend any real support.

Breakdown Defense: The news was far worse on defense for Ball State than on offense, as this side of the ball completely derailed last fall. The Cardinals allowed 40.7 points per game last fall, and overall, was one of the worst defenses in the nation. Teams passed for 233.6 yards per game, while they also ran for 188 yards per game.

With the change to a 3-4 set, several DEs will be switching to OLB this fall, but adding inexperience to an already flammable situation may be more than they wish to take on. Christian Albright and James Jennette II both looked to be in the hunt for a starting DE job, but now, the loser of that battle will either back up, or move to OLB and start over. Albright appears to be an early leader, as he finished with 4 TFLs last season as a freshman. Sean Hammonds, Akeem Hutchinson, and Frank Burton all appear to be in a situation where they will provide depth at DE, move to OLB, or move back and forth. This was also a severely young group last season, so finding a footing for these guys will be imperative in fall camp.

Fred Schroeder will likely take the starting DT job, while Chris Crumb, a junior this fall, projects as the starter at NT. There is very little depth inside, so this could, once again, be a major issue area. They combined for 5.5 TFLs last fall.

Damon Singleton and Brandon Martin looked like the starters at the OLB spots before the change over to the 3-4 set, and that could still be true, as Ball State tries to find someone in the middle to pair with projected starter Jacob White. White led the team in tackles last fall with 72, while Singleton added 49 tackles in just 9 games played. White also missed one game last season. Martin finished with 55 tackles, last fall, so this group does have some potential. Jeremiah Jackson is trying to find some reps, and will be in the equation during the battle of fall camp to settle the 4th starter for this group. He finished with 26 tackles as a reserve last fall. Jaylin Thomas and Michael Robinson add some depth outside, and could be moved in and out of the lineup as well, wither as potential starters, or as rotational reserves.

Josh Miller is the star of the secondary, as he finished with 13 PBUs and 2 INTs at CB last fall. Verenzo Holmes, who got in some time as a freshman last fall, is projected to step up and start at the opposite corner spot. Marc Walton is the primary backup, and could battle with Holmes for the starting RCB spot as a senior. Romero Wade and Bryce Cosby are the starters at the Safety spots. Wade finished with 39 tackles last fall, while Cosby was 2nd on the team as a freshman with 59 tackles. If the battle irons out early in camp for the open CB spot, this could be one of the most improved units in the MAC last season, as long as the young linemen get their job done, and the LB situation eases out with the scheme change. Brett Anderson and Lamar Anderson are the reserves at Safety.

Breakdown Special Teams: Morgan Hagee returns at PK, but struggled badly last season at just 9/16 on FG attempts for a 56.3% success rate. He finished 26/27 on PATs. Nathan Snyder is back as the Punter, but struggled badly as well, averaging just 37.3 yards per punt.

Riley Miller will take over as the Punt Return man this fall after the departure of Cory Lacanaria. He returned just 3 punts last fall for zero yards. Dunner is the KR man this fall, and is fairly dangerous. He averaged 24.45 yards per return last fall, and took one to the house.

Final Analysis: With the uncertainties that anyone on offense can stay healthy, and the scheme change on defense effecting an already exposed D line, the Cardinals are in a situation where they are looking hard to find someone, anyone, to carry them above the debacle of last season, but the problem is, other than some improving parts at LB and S, and a decent RB, the Cardinals are devoid of that kind of talent on the roster right now. Neal coming back at QB helps, but he has never really been a star for this program, and he has much to prove on the field and with his health. With all of the change and the questions coming back this fall, I just do not see much room for improvement in Muncie for the 2018 season.