Season of Opportunity
Head Football Coach Mike Neu coaching on the sidelines at a Ball State Football game (Photo by Samantha Blankenship,’15)
Ball State Football’s Season of Opportunity
As Mike Neu, ’94, prepares for his seventh season as head coach of Ball State football, one word comes to mind: “opportunity.”
“For the 2022 season, we return five starters on defense and seven on offense, which is the fewest we’ve had for a while,” Coach Neu said. “But that doesn’t mean we’re inexperienced. Many of the kids who’ll become starters have seen a decent amount of playing time. And for every kid on this roster, including those on what I consider to be a very strong recruiting class, there’s an opportunity to step up to a starting role.”
Perhaps the biggest opportunity belongs to redshirt senior quarterback John Paddock from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Entering the Spring, he sat No. 1 on the depth chart, tasked with filling the big shoes of graduated quarterback Drew Plitt. Plitt led the Cardinals for the past three seasons, and he currently stands third in Ball State history in career passing touchdowns (58) and passing yards (9,062).
“John knows our offense, is a great competitor, and has seen some solid game action,” Coach Neu said. “But, we also have some very good young quarterbacks on this roster, and they’ll get their chance to challenge him for the starting role.”
The 2022 season also marks the first full year for the football team to enjoy the new Scheumann Family Indoor Practice Facility, something Coach Neu calls “a game changer.”
“I can’t imagine a better indoor practice facility anywhere,” he said. “It’s already made a major impact for us. We’ve had more recruit visits than ever before, and it’s afforded our team with a huge and much-needed asset to prepare for the season.”
Speaking of, for the past several years, the Cardinals have opened at home against an FCS team. Not so this year. Ball State jumps right into the fire with a Thursday, Sept. 1 trip to Knoxville, Tennessee, and a date with Southeastern Conference power Tennessee.
“Talk about opportunity,” Coach Neu said. “Our kids get to play in front of 100,000-plus fans and show what they can do in one of college football’s most storied stadiums. I can’t think of a better way to start the year.”
For ticket info and game times, visit BallStateSports.com
