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2023 Ball State Cardinals football team

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2023 Ball State Cardinals football
ConferenceMid-American Conference
DivisionWest Division
Record4–8 (3–5 MAC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorKevin Lynch (4th season)
Offensive schemeMultiple
Defensive coordinatorTyler Stockton (5th season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumScheumann Stadium
Seasons
← 2022
2024 →
2023 Mid-American Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
East Division
Miami (OH) xy$   7 1     11 3  
Ohio   6 2     10 3  
Bowling Green   5 3     7 6  
Buffalo   3 5     3 9  
Akron   1 7     2 10  
Kent State   0 8     1 11  
West Division
Toledo xy   8 0     11 3  
Northern Illinois   5 3     7 6  
Eastern Michigan   4 4     6 7  
Central Michigan   3 5     5 7  
Ball State   3 5     4 8  
Western Michigan   3 5     4 8  
Championship: Miami (OH) 23, Toledo 14
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant

The 2023 Ball State Cardinals football team represented Ball State University during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Cardinals were led by eighth-year head coach Mike Neu and played their home games at Scheumann Stadium in Muncie, Indiana. They competed as members of the West Division of the Mid-American Conference.[1][2] They finished the season 4–8 and 3–5 in conference play[3]

Preseason

[edit]

Preseason polls

[edit]

Coaches Poll

[edit]

On July 20, the MAC announced the preseason coaches poll. Ball State was picked to finish fifth in the West.[4]

East
Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1 Ohio 63 (9)
2 Miami 52 (2)
3 Buffalo 51 (1)
4 Bowling Green 35
5 Akron 26
6 Kent State 19
West
Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1 Toledo 66 (11)
2 Eastern Michigan 55 (1)
3 Northern Illinois 38
4 Central Michigan 37
5 Ball State 27
6 Western Michigan 23
Coaches poll (MAC Championship)
Rank Team Votes
1 Toledo 7
2 Ohio 4
3 Buffalo 1

Schedule

[edit]
DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 212:00 p.m.at Kentucky*SECNL 14–4458,286
September 912:00 p.m.at No. 1 Georgia*SECNL 3–4592,746
September 162:00 p.m.Indiana State*ESPN+W 45–715,054
September 232:00 p.m.Georgia Southern*
  • Scheumann Stadium
  • Muncie, IN
ESPN+L 3–4010,118
September 303:30 p.m.at Western MichiganESPN+L 24–4221,880
October 73:30 p.m.at Eastern MichiganESPN+L 10–2418,696
October 142:00 p.m.Toledo
  • Scheumann Stadium
  • Muncie, IN
ESPN+L 6–137,675
October 213:30 p.m.Central Michigandagger
  • Scheumann Stadium
  • Muncie, IN
ESPN+W 24–1715,171
November 17:30 p.m.at Bowling GreenESPN2L 21–246,091
November 77:00 p.m.at Northern IllinoisCBSSNW 20–176,282
November 182:00 p.m.Kent State
  • Scheumann Stadium
  • Muncie, IN
ESPN+W 34–38,554
November 2512:00 p.m.Miami (OH)
  • Scheumann Stadium
  • Muncie, IN (Red Bird Rivalry)
CBSSNL 15–178,054
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

[5][6]

Game summaries

[edit]

at Kentucky

[edit]
Game One – Ball State Cardinals (0–0) at Kentucky Wildcats (0–0) – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Ball State 7 0 7014
Kentucky 3 20 14744

at Kroger FieldLexington, KY

  • Date: Saturday, September 2, 2023
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: -
  • Game attendance: 58,286
  • TV: SEC Network
Game information
First quarter
  • (13:17) UK – Alex Raynor 41-yard field goal (Drive: 5 plays, 51 yards, 1:43; Kentucky 3–0)
  • (1:35) BALL – Layne Hatcher 2-yard run (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 13 plays, 73 yards, 7:05; Ball State 7–3)
Second quarter
  • (11:31) UK – Ray Davis 2-yard run (Alex Raynor kick) (Drive: 11 plays, 70 yards, 4:58; Kentucky 10–7)
  • (6:58) UK – Jalen Geiger 0-yard fumble return (Alex Raynor kick) (Kentucky 17–7)
  • (1:08) UK – Alex Raynor 46-yard field goal (Drive: 4 plays, 2 yards, 0:10; Kentucky 20–7)
  • (0:00) UK – Alex Raynor 46-yard field goal (Drive: 4 plays, 26 yards, 0:31; Kentucky 23–7)
Third quarter
  • (6:43) UK – Dane Key 5-yard pass from Devin Leary (Alex Raynor kick) (Drive: 7 plays, 89 yards, 2:37; Kentucky 30–7)
  • (0:42) BALL – Ty Robinson 5-yard pass from Kadin Semonza (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 10 plays, 75 yards, 6:01; Kentucky 30–14)
  • (0:28) UK – Barion Brown 99-yard kickoff return (Alex Raynor kick) (Kentucky 37–14)
Fourth quarter
  • (0:06) UK – Ray Davis 30 yard run (Alex Raynor kick) (Drive: 6 plays, 66 yards, 3:16; Kentucky 44–14)
Statistics BALL UK
First downs 18 17
Total yards 71–295 51–354
Rushing yards 41–72 20–113
Passing yards 223 241
Passing: Comp–Att–Int 22–30–0 18–31–1
Time of possession 38:16 21:44
Team Category Player Statistics
Ball State Passing Kadin Semonza 15/21, 165 yards, TD
Rushing Marquez Cooper 15 carries, 33 yards
Receiving Ty Robinson 5 receptions, 90 yards, TD
Kentucky Passing Devin Leary 18/31, 241 yards, TD, INT
Rushing Ray Davis 14 carries, 112 yards, 2 TD
Receiving Dane Key 5 receptions, 96 yards, TD

at No. 1 Georgia

[edit]
Game Two – Ball State Cardinals (0–1) at No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs (1–0) – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Ball State 0 0 033
No. 1 Georgia 0 31 14045

at Sanford StadiumAthens, Georgia

  • Date: Saturday, September 9, 2023
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: -
  • Game attendance: 92,756
  • Referee: Jason McArthur
  • TV announcers (SEC Network): Taylor Zarzour (play-by-play), Matt Stinchcomb (color) and Alyssa Lang (sideline)
Game information
First quarter

no scoring

Second quarter
  • (14:32) UGA – Mekhi Mews 69-yard punt return (Peyton Woodring kick) (Georgia 7–0)
  • (10:16) UGA – Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint 7-yard pass from Carson Beck (Peyton Woodring kick) (Drive: 6 plays, 78 yards, 2:25; Georgia 14–0)
  • (8:45) UGA – Dillon Bell 21-yard run (Peyton Woodring kick) (Drive: 2 plays, 30 yards, 0:51; Georgia 21–0)
  • (1:49) UGA – Peyton Woodring 35-yard field goal (Drive: 12 plays, 42 yards, 5:28; Georgia 24–0)
  • (0:37) UGA – Kendall Milton 1-yard run (Peyton Woodring kick) (Drive: 4 plays, 20 yards, 1:04; Georgia 31–0)
Third quarter
  • (6:27) UGA – Cash Jones 27-yard pass from Carson Beck (Peyton Woodring kick) (Drive: 8 plays, 80 yards, 4:14; Georgia 38-0)
  • (0:46) UGA – Roderick Robinson II 12-yard run (Peyton Woodring kick) (Drive: 3 plays, 67 yards, 1:21; Georgia 45–0)
Fourth quarter
  • (9:05) BALL – Jackson Courville 27-yard field goal (Drive: 15 plays, 55 yards, 6:41; Georgia 45–3)
Statistics BALL UGA
First downs 13 22
Total yards 65–224 61–386
Rushing yards 28–77 28–99
Passing yards 147 287
Passing: Comp–Att–Int 18–37–3 24–33–1
Time of possession 31:28 28:32
Team Category Player Statistics
Ball State Passing Layne Hatcher 10/16, 82 yards
Rushing Charlie Spegal 4 carries, 32 yards
Receiving Ahmad Edwards 4 receptions, 47 yards
Georgia Passing Carson Beck 23/30, 283 yards, 2 TD, INT
Rushing Roderick Robinson II 6 carries, 38 yards, TD
Receiving Arian Smith 2 receptions, 50 yards

Indiana State

[edit]
Game Three – Indiana State Sycamores (0–2) at Ball State Cardinals (0–2) – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Indiana State 0 0 707
Ball State 0 10 72845

at Scheumann StadiumMuncie, IN

  • Date: Saturday, September 16, 2023
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: -
  • Game attendance: 15,054
  • TV: ESPN+
Game information
First quarter

No scoring

Second quarter
  • (12:13) BALL – Rico Barfield 16-yard pass from Kadin Semonza (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 11 plays, 73 yards, 5:20; Ball State 7–0)
  • (1:34) BALL – Jackson Courville 23-yard field goal (Drive: 9 plays, 69 yards, 4:24; Ball State 10–0)
Third quarter
  • (6:45) BALL – Rico Barfield 24-yard run (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 3 plays, 55 yards, 1:24; Ball State 17–0)
  • (5:48) ISU – Dakota Caton 49-yard pass from Elijah Owens (Stephen Ruiz kick) (Drive: 2 plays, 61 yards, 0:50: Ball State 17–7)
Fourth quarter
  • (13:12) BALL – Marquez Cooper 11-yard run (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive:13 plays, 75 yards, 7:29; Ball State 24–7)
  • (11:32) BALL – Tanner Koziol 8-yard pass from Kadin Semonza (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 2 plays, 23 yards, 0:54: Ball State 31–7)
  • (9:20) BALL – Keionte Newson 66-yard fumble return (Jackson Courville kick) (Ball State 38–7)
  • (3:13) BALL – Charlie Spegal 1-yard run (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 5 plays, 35 yards, 2:49; Ball State 45–7)
Statistics ISU BALL
First downs 12 26
Total yards 53–261 66–425
Rushing yards 32–104 42–288
Passing yards 157 137
Passing: Comp–Att–Int 9–21–1 18–24–0
Time of possession 26:59 33:01
Team Category Player Statistics
Indiana State Passing Elijah Owens 9/21, 157 yards, TD, INT
Rushing Tee Hodge 9 carries, 46 yards
Receiving Harry Van Dyne 3 receptions, 80 yards
Ball State Passing Kadin Semonza 17/22, 137 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Marquez Cooper 22 carries, 177 yards, TD
Receiving Tanner Koziol 7 receptions, 60 yards, TD

Georgia Southern

[edit]
Game Four – Georgia Southern Eagles (2–1) at Ball State Cardinals (1–2) – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Georgia Southern 14 9 10740
Ball State 0 0 033

at Scheumann StadiumMuncie, IN

  • Date: Saturday, September 23, 2023
  • Game time: 2:00 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: -
  • Game attendance: 10,118
  • TV: ESPN+
Game information
First quarter
  • (11:51) GASO – Evan Lester Jr. 1-yard pass from Davis Brin (Michael Lantz kick) (Drive: 9 plays, 52 yards, 3:04; Georgia Southern 7–0)
  • (8:47) GASO – Keaton Upshaw 9-yard pass from Davis Brin (Michael Lantz kick) (Drive: 4 plays, 63 yards, 1:30; Georgia Southern 14–0)
Second quarter
  • (12:37) GASO – Michael Lantz 41-yard field goal (Drive: 6 plays, 16 yards, 1:37; Georgia Southern 17–0)
  • (6:36) GASO – Michael Lantz 26-yard field goal (Drive: 9 plays, 55 yards, 3:18; Georgia Southern 20–0)
  • (0:00) GASO – Michael Lantz 37-yard field goal (Drive: 8 plays, 57 yards, 0:43; Georgia Southern 23–0)
Third quarter
  • (8:47) GASO – Khaleb Hood 21-yard pass from Davis Brin (Michael Lantz kick) (Drive: 4 plays, 56 yards, 1:10; Georgia Southern 30–0)
  • (1:03) GASO – Michael Lantz 35-yard field goal (Drive: 8 plays, 28 yards, 2:11; Georgia Southern 33–0)
Fourth quarter
  • (13:42) GASO – Anthony Queeley 8-yard pass from Davis Brin (Michael Lantz kick) (Drive: 4 plays, 55 yards, 1:06; Georgia Southern 40–0)
  • (7:15) BALL – Jackson Courville 23-yard field goal (Drive: 12 plays, 69 yards, 6:27; Georgia Southern 40–3)
Statistics GASO BALL
First downs 25 10
Total yards 77–530 55–197
Rushing yards 27–167 28–37
Passing yards 363 160
Passing: Comp–Att–Int 36–50–0 14–29–2
Time of possession 30:41 29:19
Team Category Player Statistics
Georgia Southern Passing Davis Brin 34/46, 344 yards, 4 TD
Rushing OJ Arnold 9 carries, 90 yards
Receiving Khaleb Hood 7 receptions, 107 yards, TD
Ball State Passing Kadin Semonza 11/23, 123 yards, 2 INT
Rushing Marquez Cooper 9 carries, 16 yards
Receiving Rico Barfield 2 receptions, 50 yards

at Western Michigan

[edit]
Game Five – Ball State Cardinals (1–3) at Western Michigan Broncos (1–3) – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Ball State 3 7 7724
Western Michigan 7 21 7742

at Waldo StadiumKalamazoo, MI

  • Date: Saturday, September 30, 2023
  • Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: -
  • Game attendance: 21,880
  • TV: ESPN+
Game information
First quarter
  • (8:37) BALL – Jackson Courville 27-yard field goal (Drive: 10 plays, 70 yards, 4:25; Ball State 3–0)
  • (5:06) WMU – Anthony Sambucci 18-yard pass from Treyson Bourguet (Palmer Domschke kick) (Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 3:31; Western Michigan 7–3)
Second quarter
  • (13:06) WMU – Zahir Abdus-Salaam 1-yard run (Palmer Domschke kick) (Drive: 10 plays, 92 yards, 3:57; Western Michigan 14–3)
  • (7:50) WMU – Jalen Buckley 12-yard run (Palmer Domschke kick) (Drive: 7 plays, 43 yards, 2:29; Western Michigan 21–3)
  • (5:04) BALL – Maximus Webster 2-yard pass from Layne Hatcher (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 6 plays, 73 yards, 2:45; Western Michigan 21–10)
  • (0:01) WMU – Anthony Sambucci 2-yard pass from Treyson Bourguet (Palmer Domschke kick) (Drive: 10 plays, 59 yards, 1:27; Western Michigan 28–10)
Third quarter
  • (11:52) BALL – Qian Magwood 32-yard pass from Layne Hatcher (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 6 plays, 75 yards, 3:08; Western Michigan 28–17)
  • (10:14) WMU – Anthony Sambucci 31-yard pass from Treyson Bourguet (Palmer Domschke kick) (Drive: 5 plays, 75 yards, 1:38; Western Michigan 35–17)
Fourth quarter
  • (14:15) BALL – Ahmad Edwards 57-yard pass from Layne Hatcher (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 4 plays, 69 yards, 1:38; Western Michigan 35–24)
  • (8:53) WMU – Zahir Abdus-Salaam 2-yard run (Palmer Domschke kick) (Drive: 6 plays, 85 yards, 3:22; Western Michigan 42–24)
Statistics BALL WMU
First downs 19 26
Total yards 63–364 75–461
Rushing yards 26–48 36–133
Passing yards 316 328
Passing: Comp–Att–Int 26–37–0 24–39–0
Time of possession 29:37 30:23
Team Category Player Statistics
Ball State Passing Layne Hatcher 26/37, 316 yards, 3 TD
Rushing Marquez Cooper 15 carries, 82 yards
Receiving Qian Magwood 9 receptions, 110 yards, TD
Western Michigan Passing Treyson Bourguet 24/39, 328 yards, 3 TD
Rushing Zahir Abdus-Salaam 8 carries, 53 yards, 2 TD
Receiving Anthony Sambucci 5 receptions, 73 yards, 3 TD

at Eastern Michigan

[edit]

Toledo

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Central Michigan

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at Bowling Green

[edit]
Game Nine – Ball State Cardinals (2–6) at Bowling Green Falcons (4–4) – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Ball State 0 7 7721
Bowling Green 7 7 01024

at Doyt Perry StadiumBowling Green, OH

  • Date: Wednesday, November 1, 2023
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: Cloudy, 37 °F (3 °C) • Wind: SW 7 mph (11 km/h)
  • Game attendance: 6,091
  • Referee: Matt Packowski
  • TV announcers (ESPN2): Mike Corey, Rocky Boiman
Game information
First quarter
  • (07:43) BGSU – Harold Fannin Jr. 23-yard pass from Connor Bazelak (Alan Anaya kick) (Drive: 4 plays, 31 yards, 1:20; Bowling Green 7-0)
Second quarter
  • (14:06) BSU – Kiael Kelly 6-yard run (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 17 plays, 74 yards, 8:27; Tied 7-7)
  • (04:40) BGSU – Terion Stewart 54-yard run (Alan Anaya kick) (Drive: 2 plays, 54 yards, :20; Bowling Green 14-7)
Third quarter
  • (05:04) BSU – Marquez Cooper 5-yard run (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 13 plays, 62 yards, 8:03; Tied 14-14)
Fourth quarter
  • (13:20) BGSU – Ta'ron Keith 10-yard pass from Connor Bazelak (Alan Anaya kick) (Drive:12 plays, 75 yards, 5:43; Bowling Green 21-14)
  • (09:07) BSU – Kiael Kelly 44-yard run (Jackson Courville kick) (Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 4:13; Tied 21-21)
  • (03:14) BGSU – Alan Anaya 22-yard field goal (Drive: 11 plays, 39 yards, 5:43; Bowling Green 24-21)
Statistics Ball State Bowling Green
First downs 16 13
Plays–yards 283 281
Rushes–yards 49–217-3 34–104
Passing yards 66 177
Passing: compattint 9–19–0 15-23-0
Time of possession 33:34 26:26
Team Category Player Statistics
Ball State Passing Kiael Kelly 9/19, 66 yards
Rushing Marquez Cooper/Kiael Kelly 25 carries, 90 yards, 1 TD/ 25 carries, 90 yards, 2 TDS
Receiving Ahmad Edwards 3 receptions, 25 yards
Bowling Green Passing Connor Bazelak 13/21, 128 yards, 2 TDS
Rushing Terion Stewart 15 carries, 92 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Harold Fannin Jr. 5 receptions, 92 yards, 1 TD

at Northern Illinois

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Kent State

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Miami (OH)

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Scheumann Stadium". Ball State Athletics.
  2. ^ "Mike Neu". Sports Reference.
  3. ^ "MAC College Football Standings - 2023". espn.com. ESPN. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
  4. ^ "MAC football preseason poll: Toledo picked to win conference championship; BGSU tabbed to finish fourth in MAC East". wtol.com. WTOL 11. July 20, 2023. Retrieved August 11, 2023.
  5. ^ "2023 Ball State Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  6. ^ "Ball State Cardinals Schedule 2023". ESPN.