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2019 Ball State

5–⁠7 (4–⁠4 Mid-American Conference), coached by Mike Neu.

Schedule and results

Ball State in 2019, game by game: lost vs. Indiana 24–34; won vs. Fordham 57–29; lost vs. Florida Atlantic 31–41; lost at NC State 23–34; won at Northern Illinois 27–20; won at Eastern Michigan 29–23; won vs. Toledo 52–14; lost vs. Ohio 21–34; lost at Western Michigan 31–35; lost vs. Central Michigan 44–45; lost at Kent State 38–41; won vs. Miami (OH) 41–27+38−13Lost 24–34 vs. Indiana-10IndianaWon 57–29 vs. Fordham+28FordhamLost 31–41 vs. Florida Atlantic-10Florida AtlanticLost 23–34 at NC State-11NC StateWon 27–20 at Northern Illinois+7Northern Illino…Won 29–23 at Eastern Michigan+6Eastern MichiganWon 52–14 vs. Toledo+38ToledoLost 21–34 vs. Ohio-13OhioLost 31–35 at Western Michigan-4Western MichiganLost 44–45 vs. Central Michigan-1Central MichiganLost 38–41 at Kent State-3Kent StateWon 41–27 vs. Miami (OH)+14Miami (OH)
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 31vsIndianaL 24–⁠3435%
Sep 7vsFordhamW 57–⁠2977%
Sep 14vsFlorida AtlanticL 31–⁠4140%
Sep 21atNC StateL 23–⁠3417%
Oct 5atNorthern IllinoisW 27–⁠2028%
Oct 12atEastern MichiganW 29–⁠2329%
Oct 19vsToledoW 52–⁠1441%
Oct 26vsOhioL 21–⁠3448%
Nov 5atWestern MichiganL 31–⁠3531%
Nov 16vsCentral MichiganL 44–⁠4551%
Nov 23atKent StateL 38–⁠4145%
Nov 29vsMiami (OH)W 41–⁠2738%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Miami (OH) 41–⁠27; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 7th in the Mid-American Conference.

In program history: The 28th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 61 on file).

Record
5–⁠7
Conference
4–⁠4 tied for 7th in Mid-American Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
418–⁠377
Coach
Mike Neu
Elo
1423 +60 this season
SP+ rating
-4.5 No. 86 of 130; offense No. 59, defense No. 91, special teams No. 110
SRS
−4.7 No. 87 of 130 in FBS
Returning
53% of last season’s EPA, No. 82 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 125 roster talent No. 120 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Joey Lynch
Defensive coordinators
David Elson and Tyler Stockton
Offense
Spread
Defense
3–⁠4

How good, play by play

  • Offense35th of 130
  • Defense77th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted56th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted82nd of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1646%1.1835th of 130
Defense0.1345%1.2177th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.12 off
0.12 def		44% off
45% def		—56th off
82nd 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
Offense4.0own 3020% allowed
Defense3.7own 2922% caused

CORE rating -2.4, 74th of 130 (offense 1.1, defense 3.5).

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 yardsDrew Plitt QB2,918 yds
Passing touchdownsDrew Plitt QB24 TD
Rushing yardsCaleb Huntley RB1,275 yds
Rushing touchdownsCaleb Huntley RB12 TD
Receiving yardsJustin Hall WR684 yds
Receiving touchdownsJustin Hall WR6 TD
TacklesJacob White LB117 tkl
SacksJordan Williams TE4.5 sacks
InterceptionsAmechi Uzodinma CB5 INT

Top recruits in the 2019 class

Jalen McGaughy WR★★★No. 1250
Rahmon Hart WR★★★No. 1394
Nic Jones CB★★★No. 1679
Solvauhn Moreland DT★★★No. 2192
Brandon Berger OLB★★★No. 2254

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

The 2019 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks23.00.800
Receivers42.50.813
Offensive line22.00.782
Defensive line42.50.795
Linebackers23.00.810
Defensive backs23.00.816
Athletes and specialists12.00.768
Whole class172.60.801

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.

Drafted in 2020

The 2020 draft
Rd 5Danny Pinter OGIndianapolis Colts

Roster 114

The 2019 roster

114 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2019 line; 53 have a stat line. See the roster

2019 Mid-American Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Central Michigan6–⁠28–⁠6
Miami (OH)6–⁠28–⁠6
Buffalo5–⁠38–⁠5
Western Michigan5–⁠37–⁠6
Kent State5–⁠37–⁠6
Ohio5–⁠37–⁠6
Ball State4–⁠45–⁠7
Northern Illinois4–⁠45–⁠7
Toledo3–⁠56–⁠6
Eastern Michigan3–⁠56–⁠7
Bowling Green2–⁠63–⁠9
Akron0–⁠80–⁠12

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