In preparation for the first football game of the year, Ball State University's campus police department doesn't plan on making many changes to its security strategy.
Gene Burton, director of public safety at Ball State, said he feels his department has just the right amount of security to get the job done smoothly this year.
"Ball State students are usually pretty calm, so I feel we won't need to really make any changes to how we run things at the football games," he said. "If, for some reason, we need to change our strategy in the future, we will. But for now, I believe everything is under control."
The law enforcement agencies that will be working with the campus police department at the football games are the Muncie Police Department, the Delaware County Police Department, the Indiana State Police and the Indiana State Excise Police.
Burton said officers will be looking out for underage drinking, excessive drinking, and will also be enforcing university tailgating policy.
"I'm hopeful we will have a good crowd that will stay within the confines of common sense during the football game," he said.
First Police Sergeant Rhonda Clark said returning Ball State football fans should expect the same set up as last year and new students should be aware of what is going on around them.
"It is important to keep order at the games, so we will have officers stationed at both sides outside Scheumann Stadium and inside the stadium itself," she said. "Also, expect to find officers inside the tailgating section, conducting bag searches and directing traffic to the game."
Clark said while it is encouraged for everyone to have a good time, it is important to remember that the officers still have to do their jobs and will arrest if necessary. The most common arrests during football games are minor consumption, public intoxication and disorderly conduct.
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