Ball State vs. Indiana - Series history
1997 - Indiana, 21 - Ball State, 6
1999 - Indiana, 21 - Ball State, 9
2006 - Indiana, 24 - Ball State, 23
2007 - Indiana, 38 - Ball State, 20
2008 - Ball State, 42 - Indiana, 20
2011 - Ball State, 27 - Indiana, 20
2012 - Ball State, 41 - Indiana, 39
Beginning next season, the Cardinals and Hoosiers will meet four times over the next five years. Ball State will travel to Bloomington in 2018 and 2020, and the teams will meet at Lucas Oil Stadium in 2019.
Ball State Athletic Director Mark Sandy said the in-state series should be an easier trip for both the players and fans.
“It’s a closer game, so you just don’t need as much effort to take the team, gather them on the plane and go down to Texas,” Sandy said. “It’s a great trip every once in a while, but we prefer most years to play a team that’s close. Plus, the games in Indiana create much more of an interest among our fans as far as their ability to attend the games.”
The Cardinals traveled to College Station, Texas to play against Texas A&M last week. Ball State played Big Ten opponent Iowa last season, and will visit Northwestern next weekend.
The series between the Cardinals and Hoosiers began in 2007. After Indiana won the first four contests, Ball State has maintained a three-game winning streak.
Ball State offensive coordinator Joey Lynch played quarterback for Ball State against the Hoosiers during his senior year.
“I think when you play in those kinds of environments – in that type of stage – a lot of people have interest,” Lynch said. “Not just recruits, but just people in the state of Indiana that are football fans. I think it draws really well."
The teams haven't played in Muncie since 2007. Ball State won at Lucas Oil Stadium in 2011, 27-20. Sandy said he thinks fans will enjoy the neutral-site game in 2019.
“We wouldn’t want to play a school three times in a row at their place,” he said. “It allows some diversity, gives us a different venue and for both IU players and fans and coaches and ours, going to Lucas Oil Stadium is an extra benefit – it’s really fun. It’s a great place, [and] should be exciting.”
Playing at Lucas Oil can also help in recruiting.
Sandy also said that playing a major conference opponent in an NFL stadium – something that only two other Mid-American Conference opponents, Bowling Green and University of Massachusetts, currently have on their non-conference schedules – will help Ball State compete for recruits.
"For recruiting student-athletes from other programs, ... without a doubt, the more you play up and the better you compete when you play up, it’s more likely they help you in recruiting," Sandy said.
The larger venue wouldn't play as much of a role if a student-athlete were deciding between Ball State and Indiana, Sandy added, as the Big Ten school usually is more appealing.
Ball State also has some enticing games in future years, including a 2018 date with Notre Dame and a 2020 trip to Ann Arbor, Mich., to take on the Wolverines.
For the players, playing on a larger stage is big. Sophomore Kevin Willis is the only Ball State player that has played at Lucas Oil Stadium. He said playing there in high school is nothing compared to how it would be in college.
"The fact that we’re playing Indiana, a Big Ten school, is exciting enough," Sandy said. "But the fact that they would get to play where the Colts play – and these other games we’re playing with Notre Dame down the road, and other schools like that – ... is important to players. They like to travel around the country and play against the best.”
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