CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2018 Ball State

4–⁠8 (3–⁠5 Mid-American Conference), coached by Mike Neu.

Schedule and results

Ball State in 2018, game by game: won vs. Central Connecticut 42–6; lost at No. 8 Notre Dame 16–24; lost at Indiana 10–38; lost vs. Western Kentucky 20–28; won vs. Kent State 52–24; lost vs. Northern Illinois 16–24; won at Central Michigan 24–23; lost vs. Eastern Michigan 20–42; lost at Ohio 14–52; lost at Toledo 13–45; won vs. Western Michigan 42–41; lost at Miami (OH) 21–42+36−38Won 42–6 vs. Central Connecticut+36Central Connect…Lost 16–24 at No. 8 Notre Dame-8No. 8 Notre DameLost 10–38 at Indiana-28IndianaLost 20–28 vs. Western Kentucky-8Western KentuckyWon 52–24 vs. Kent State+28Kent StateLost 16–24 vs. Northern Illinois-8Northern Illino…Won 24–23 at Central Michigan+1Central MichiganLost 20–42 vs. Eastern Michigan-22Eastern MichiganLost 14–52 at Ohio-38OhioLost 13–45 at Toledo-32ToledoWon 42–41 vs. Western Michigan+1Western MichiganLost 21–42 at Miami (OH)-21Miami (OH)
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 30vsCentral ConnecticutW 42–⁠659%
Sep 8at8Notre DameL 16–⁠2412%
Sep 15atIndianaL 10–⁠3821%
Sep 22vsWestern KentuckyL 20–⁠2844%
Sep 29vsKent StateW 52–⁠2457%
Oct 6vsNorthern IllinoisL 16–⁠2440%
Oct 13atCentral MichiganW 24–⁠2334%
Oct 20vsEastern MichiganL 20–⁠4243%
Oct 25atOhioL 14–⁠5218%
Oct 31atToledoL 13–⁠4515%
Nov 13vsWestern MichiganW 42–⁠4134%
Nov 20atMiami (OH)L 21–⁠4220%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Miami (OH) 42–⁠21; unranked in the final AP poll; 8th in the Mid-American Conference.

In program history: The 51st-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 61 on file).

Record
4–⁠8
Conference
3–⁠5 8th in Mid-American Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
290–⁠389
Coach
Mike Neu
Elo
1295 −36 this season
SP+ rating
-18.9 No. 119 of 130; offense No. 110, defense No. 120, special teams No. 103
SRS
−13.6 No. 113 of 130 in FBS
Returning
127% of last season’s EPA, No. 1 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 119 roster talent No. 109 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Joey Lynch
Defensive coordinator
David Elson
Offense
Spread
Defense
3–⁠4

How good, play by play

  • Offense86th of 130
  • Defense101st of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted88th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted115th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0642%1.1586th of 130
Defense0.1850%1.13101st of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.07 off
0.18 def		42% off
51% def		—88th off
115th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.3own 2816% allowed
Defense3.7own 3114% caused

CORE rating -9.9, 106th of 130 (offense -2.1, defense 7.7).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsRiley Neal QB1,917 yds
Passing touchdownsRiley Neal QB11 TD
Rushing yardsJames Gilbert RB659 yds
Rushing touchdownsJames Gilbert RB7 TD
Receiving yardsRiley Miller WR878 yds
Receiving touchdownsRiley Miller WR7 TD
TacklesBryce Cosby S83 tkl
SacksChristian Albright LB5.5 sacks
InterceptionsAntonio Phillips CB2 INT

Top recruits in the 2018 class

Luke Martin OG★★★No. 1748
Kyron Mims DT★★★No. 1906
Yo’Heinz Tyler WR★★★No. 1997
Jaylen Turner OC★★★No. 2060
John Paddock PRO★★★No. 2145

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2018 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.805
Running backs12.00.780
Receivers32.70.791
Offensive line42.50.793
Defensive line42.30.774
Defensive backs22.00.765
Whole class152.40.784

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 104

The 2018 roster

104 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2018 line; 68 have a stat line. See the roster

2018 Mid-American Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Buffalo7–⁠110–⁠4
Ohio6–⁠29–⁠4
Northern Illinois6–⁠28–⁠6
Miami (OH)6–⁠26–⁠6
Toledo5–⁠37–⁠6
Western Michigan5–⁠37–⁠6
Eastern Michigan5–⁠37–⁠6
Ball State3–⁠54–⁠8
Akron2–⁠64–⁠8
Bowling Green2–⁠63–⁠9
Kent State1–⁠72–⁠10
Central Michigan0–⁠81–⁠11

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.