Ball State Deserves More

First appeared on December 3rd, 2008
in The Lebanon Reporter

At one time Ball State was best known for simply being a teacher’s college founded by five brothers who had made their fortune in the canning industry. It took a lovable gap-toothed talk show host armed with quirky gimmicks like “Stupid Pet Tricks” and the “Top Ten reasons you will never go to Muncie” to put the university on the national map. This season however, Ball State is garnering national attention for reasons altogether foreign to fans and alums alike.
To illuminate the spectacular season Ball State’s football team has had we felt obliged to pay homage to the genius of BSU alum David Letterman by offering now our Top Ten things you may or may not have known about the undefeated Cards.
10. Before the season started the powers that be picked Ball State to finish second in the MAC conference’s western division (that means third overall in the conference); leaving us to ponder if there has ever been a time in recorded history where a preseason prediction in any sport has ever been correct.
9. Cardinal Defensive end Brandon Crawford is a 32 year old Junior and former marine. Last spring Crawford added to his unique resume by winning the Terry Award which is given to players who show courage as football student athletes.
8. Ball States high octane offense is piloted by quarterback Nate Davis who is ranked sixth nationally in passer rating. This puts him just behind the likes of Sam Bradford and Tim Tebow (both of which are in the current national discussion for the Heisman Trophy Award).
7. For much of the season, the Cardinals standout quarterback has been protected by a Lebanon Tiger. Red shirt freshman and former All State tackle Kreg Hunter has seen time on the offensive line for the Cards.
6. At 5’6 and 184 pounds, junior running back MiQuale Lewis barrels through linebackers like a bowling ball pounding through a 9-10 split. After 12 games the life sized Brunswick Avalanche Slide (oddly placed bowling ball reference) is ranked fourth nationally with 1,570 rushing yards and is third overall in scoring with 20 touchdowns.
5. The conversation about the future of Cards coach Brady Hoke, one of only 18 men nationally to be coaching their Alma matter, has already begun. Cardinal fans should rest safe in the knowledge that Hoke is a proud Ball State alum and, beyond this, his wife and only daughter are both former graduates as well.
4. There have only been two Ball State teams that have ever won 10 games in a season and Brady Hoke has been a part of both. In case you’ve chosen to start reading the column here-Hoke coaches this year’s undefeated Cardinal team. He was also a four year letterman and member of the 1978 squad that went 10-1.
3. For our left brain readers Ball State has gone 44 games without being shut out. They are ranked in the top 20 nationally in both total yards and points scored. They are seventh overall in 3rd down conversions and have punched it in nearly 88% of the time from the proverbial red zone. They have never trailed at the half of any game this season and have been pounding opponents by an average of 21 points per game.
2. Ball State is pretty good.
1. Despite their outstanding season, and due largely to the totalitarian wisdom of the faceless entity that shall be forever known as the BCS, the Cardinals and their undefeated record seem destined for an unglamorous match up with some mediocre school nobody cares about come January. This is the injustice the BCS needs to address and soon.