Cardinals Play Spring Showcase In MAC-tion Temperatures

Saturday, April 18

Muncie, Ind.

1 p.m.

Ball State University

Spring Showcase

Photo by: Sam Findley/Ball State Athletics

Cardinals Play Spring Showcase In MAC-tion Temperatures

April 18, 2026 | Football

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MUNCIE, Ind. -- Blustery wins, drizzling rain and ominous gray skies on Saturday afternoon turned Ball State's spring football game at Scheumann Stadium into a MAC-tion-like game in early November.

Dark, threatening skies suggested the onset of winter. Freeze warnings and a 40-degree drop in temperature from Friday's sunny skies presented a chilly backdrop to what was otherwise an enthusiastic and boisterous two-hour practice session for the Cardinals who engaged in the 13th of 15 NCAA-regulated spring workouts.

Second-year head coach Mike Uremovich ran Ball State through its practice paces in front of several hundred guests who braved the wind, rain and unyielding change in weather.

"I thought the guys handled it pretty well," said Uremovich in reference to the dreary day on which the Spring Showcase was scheduled. "It probably helped that we had a game atmosphere today. It helped get the guys juiced a little bit. Whenever you have rain and weather, there's always a concern of putting the ball on the ground, but we didn't have a lot of turnovers today and so that's a positive. I thought the offense and the defense both played with the energy we like, and we excecuted pretty well despite the conditions."

For the crowd on hand, the newest and most prominent faces to watch were transfer quarterbacks Keldric Luster and Tyler Mizzell, who handled the majority of snaps with the Cardinals' No. 1 offense. Luster, previously at Texas State, and Mizzell, from Div. II Concord University, worked through various drills with running backs, receivers and the offensive line, while defensive units worked through similar sessions for the first half of the workout. Offensive, defensive and special teams units worked through 18, five-minute periods before scrimmaging head-to-head over the event's final 20 minutes.

The Cardinals have two more spring workouts scheduled this week before breaking prior to summer workouts and training camp, which commences on August 4. The Cardinals open the 2026 regular season at Ohio State, prior to a home opener at Scheumann Stadium, Sept. 12, against Stony Brook.