Ball State Kicks Off 2021 Season vs. Western Illinois
September 01, 2021 | Football
Cardinals host Leathernecks in season opener Thursday night at Scheumann Stadium
MUNCIE, Ind. – The 2021 season is finally here.
After months of training and preparation, Ball State is set to kick off its 2021 campaign when it hosts Western Illinois Thursday night. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. inside Scheumann Stadium.
"There's no question we're excited about getting ready to a play a football against somebody else," Ball State head coach Mike Neu said. "We had a very intense training camp and we got to the point where we are tired of going against each other and tired of seeing the same guy every single day. We're fired up to be playing here Thursday night against Western Illinois. It's been a great week of preparation and a great offseason."
The Cardinals are coming off one of the best seasons in program history that featured a Mid-American Conference championship and the first bowl victory all-time. However, every year is a new year, and the team's focus has been razor sharp heading into Week 1.
"We tried to make sure our guys knew that night No. 1 of training camp that last year is in the past," Neu said. "All we're really focused on is one game at a time."
Ball State has one of the most experienced teams returning to the field in 2021 as it returns 20 starters and 10 of 12 All-MAC honorees from a year ago.
With that much experience and leadership coming back, the Cardinals will be prepared what will come their way Thursday night and during the season.
"Any time that you can return a significant number of guys like we do that have played a lot of football, that definitely helps," added Neu. "They've experienced a lot of situations over the years. They certainly know the opponents in our conference. They know how competitive it is from top to bottom. They know what it's like to prepare. They know what the process is like when you start out for your week of preparation. They know how to balance being a student and being an athlete. It's great on so many levels to have experience."
The Ball State Radio Network trio of Joel Godett, Rich Spisak and Jack McMullen will call Thursday night's game live locally on 104.1 WLBC and online at BallStateSports.com. The game will also be available on ESPN+ will Michael Reghi and Je'Rod Cherry in the booth.
Tickets are available online or by calling the Ball State ticket office at 888-BSU-TICKET.
Pregame Shows
In addition to the Ball State Radio Network's regular coverage, the ISC Sports Network duo of Jake Query and Derek Schultz will host "Query & Schultz from The Scheu presented by Ball State Athletics and Northwest Bank" Thursday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the lead-up to the Ball State football home opener vs. Western Illinois at Scheumann Stadium.
Fans can view the program live via ISCSportsNetwork.com, Xfinity Channel 81 as well as the ISC Network's Twitter and Facebook pages.
Sports Link will also host a pregame show live from Scheumann Stadium prior to kickoff Thursday night. Sports Link GameDay will stream live anywhere, on any platform and any device through Sports Link's social media platforms.
Inside the Series: Western Illinois
Ball State and Western Illinois have met on the gridiron four times in series history. The Leathernecks hold a 3-1 advantage all-time. Thursday's meeting will be the first between the two programs since 2000.
Ball State has won six straight vs. teams from the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) ranks. The Cardinals have defeated Fordham (2019), Central Connecticut (2018), Tennessee Tech (2017), Eastern Kentucky (2016), VMI (2015) and Colgate (2014). Ball State's last loss to an FCS team came in 2014 to Indiana State, 27-20.
Coach Neu on Western Illinois…
"It's a football team that – I don't care what their record says – got better every single week. They return some very talented players. If you look just on the offensive side of the ball, Connor Sampson has played a lot of football for them. He led the conference in passing yards and he's got some tremendous weapons around him in Tony Tate and Dennis Houston. We've focused on those guys a lot. They're very explosive in terms of the big-play ability that they have from an offensive standpoint. Those guys have played a lot of college football. When you flip over to the defensive side of the ball, they got better every week. They play hard. The guy that I circle when I watch the tape is the safety Michael Lawson. He was at Lamar with defensive coordinator Cam Clark. He's a physical dude, he plays downhill and he's a tone setter. It'll be a tough opponent here Thursday night, make no mistake about it."
Familiar Faces
Three members of the Ball State coaching staff have experience at Western Illinois in defensive coordinator/inside linebackers coach Tyler Stockton, cornerbacks coach Vic Hall and passing game coordinator/defensive backs coach Josh Zidenberg.
Stockton served as the defensive line coach/run game coordinator from 2016-17 before being promoted to defensive coordinator/outside linebackers coach in 2018. Hall was a graduate assistant coach working with cornerbacks in 2018, while Zidenberg was the special teams coordinator/defensive backs coach in 2018.
Home Openers
Ball State has won 11 consecutive home openers dating back to 2010, including all five under head coach Mike Neu. In those 11 contests, the Cardinals have scored an average of 40.9 points per game, while surrendering 22.4 points per tilt.
Just Win, Baby
The Cardinals are riding a seven-game winning streak, which is tied for the fourth-longest run in the country with Louisiana. Only Alabama (14), Oklahoma (eight) and Texas A&M (eight) are ahead of the Ball State.
In addition, the Cardinals' streak is tied for the eighth-longest in program history.
Ball State closed out the 2020 season by winning its final six league games. The Cardinals currently boast the eighth-longest league winning streak in the country behind only Ohio State (21), Alabama (11), Coastal Carolina (nine), San Jose State (eight), Cincinnati (seven), Oklahoma (seven) and Texas A&M (seven). Ball State is tied with Iowa with six.
After months of training and preparation, Ball State is set to kick off its 2021 campaign when it hosts Western Illinois Thursday night. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. inside Scheumann Stadium.
"There's no question we're excited about getting ready to a play a football against somebody else," Ball State head coach Mike Neu said. "We had a very intense training camp and we got to the point where we are tired of going against each other and tired of seeing the same guy every single day. We're fired up to be playing here Thursday night against Western Illinois. It's been a great week of preparation and a great offseason."
The Cardinals are coming off one of the best seasons in program history that featured a Mid-American Conference championship and the first bowl victory all-time. However, every year is a new year, and the team's focus has been razor sharp heading into Week 1.
"We tried to make sure our guys knew that night No. 1 of training camp that last year is in the past," Neu said. "All we're really focused on is one game at a time."
Ball State has one of the most experienced teams returning to the field in 2021 as it returns 20 starters and 10 of 12 All-MAC honorees from a year ago.
With that much experience and leadership coming back, the Cardinals will be prepared what will come their way Thursday night and during the season.
"Any time that you can return a significant number of guys like we do that have played a lot of football, that definitely helps," added Neu. "They've experienced a lot of situations over the years. They certainly know the opponents in our conference. They know how competitive it is from top to bottom. They know what it's like to prepare. They know what the process is like when you start out for your week of preparation. They know how to balance being a student and being an athlete. It's great on so many levels to have experience."
The Ball State Radio Network trio of Joel Godett, Rich Spisak and Jack McMullen will call Thursday night's game live locally on 104.1 WLBC and online at BallStateSports.com. The game will also be available on ESPN+ will Michael Reghi and Je'Rod Cherry in the booth.
Tickets are available online or by calling the Ball State ticket office at 888-BSU-TICKET.
Pregame Shows
In addition to the Ball State Radio Network's regular coverage, the ISC Sports Network duo of Jake Query and Derek Schultz will host "Query & Schultz from The Scheu presented by Ball State Athletics and Northwest Bank" Thursday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the lead-up to the Ball State football home opener vs. Western Illinois at Scheumann Stadium.
Fans can view the program live via ISCSportsNetwork.com, Xfinity Channel 81 as well as the ISC Network's Twitter and Facebook pages.
Sports Link will also host a pregame show live from Scheumann Stadium prior to kickoff Thursday night. Sports Link GameDay will stream live anywhere, on any platform and any device through Sports Link's social media platforms.
Inside the Series: Western Illinois
Ball State and Western Illinois have met on the gridiron four times in series history. The Leathernecks hold a 3-1 advantage all-time. Thursday's meeting will be the first between the two programs since 2000.
Ball State has won six straight vs. teams from the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) ranks. The Cardinals have defeated Fordham (2019), Central Connecticut (2018), Tennessee Tech (2017), Eastern Kentucky (2016), VMI (2015) and Colgate (2014). Ball State's last loss to an FCS team came in 2014 to Indiana State, 27-20.
Coach Neu on Western Illinois…
"It's a football team that – I don't care what their record says – got better every single week. They return some very talented players. If you look just on the offensive side of the ball, Connor Sampson has played a lot of football for them. He led the conference in passing yards and he's got some tremendous weapons around him in Tony Tate and Dennis Houston. We've focused on those guys a lot. They're very explosive in terms of the big-play ability that they have from an offensive standpoint. Those guys have played a lot of college football. When you flip over to the defensive side of the ball, they got better every week. They play hard. The guy that I circle when I watch the tape is the safety Michael Lawson. He was at Lamar with defensive coordinator Cam Clark. He's a physical dude, he plays downhill and he's a tone setter. It'll be a tough opponent here Thursday night, make no mistake about it."
Familiar Faces
Three members of the Ball State coaching staff have experience at Western Illinois in defensive coordinator/inside linebackers coach Tyler Stockton, cornerbacks coach Vic Hall and passing game coordinator/defensive backs coach Josh Zidenberg.
Stockton served as the defensive line coach/run game coordinator from 2016-17 before being promoted to defensive coordinator/outside linebackers coach in 2018. Hall was a graduate assistant coach working with cornerbacks in 2018, while Zidenberg was the special teams coordinator/defensive backs coach in 2018.
Home Openers
Ball State has won 11 consecutive home openers dating back to 2010, including all five under head coach Mike Neu. In those 11 contests, the Cardinals have scored an average of 40.9 points per game, while surrendering 22.4 points per tilt.
Just Win, Baby
The Cardinals are riding a seven-game winning streak, which is tied for the fourth-longest run in the country with Louisiana. Only Alabama (14), Oklahoma (eight) and Texas A&M (eight) are ahead of the Ball State.
In addition, the Cardinals' streak is tied for the eighth-longest in program history.
Ball State closed out the 2020 season by winning its final six league games. The Cardinals currently boast the eighth-longest league winning streak in the country behind only Ohio State (21), Alabama (11), Coastal Carolina (nine), San Jose State (eight), Cincinnati (seven), Oklahoma (seven) and Texas A&M (seven). Ball State is tied with Iowa with six.
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