Missouri State football is trying to downplay the idea of playing an FBS opponent this week when the Bears are set to join Conference USA and the FBS ranks next season.
“We’re keeping it as if they were another school,” safety Todric McGee said. “We don’t need to build up the hype of them being a Power 5. We know the type of team they are and it’s just another football program.”
A win at Ball State, scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m., would be Missouri State’s second over an FBS program in program history and its first since 1990. It would also provide some hope heading into their FBS future when they join Conference USA next season.
Ball State had a turbulent season last year but hopes for more stability this year. The Cardinals have yet to play a game entering Week 2. Here’s our scouting report and prediction ahead of Missouri State’s FBS test.
More: Missouri State football depth chart updated before Week 2 at Ball State
Missouri State football will face Ball State QB Kadin Semonza
Ball State had a revolving quarterback rotation in 2024 and changed schemes midseason. The 2024 season was one to forget for the Cardinals but they’re hoping to stick to redshirt freshman Kadin Semonza this season.
Semonza started three of the Cardinals’ first four games last season, completing 50 of 82 passes for 480 yards, three touchdowns and five interceptions. He led the Cardinals to a 45-7 win over Indiana State, a Missouri Valley Football Conference team that the Bears didn’t play last year.
Ball State committed to Semonza as the team’s starter early in fall camp.
Sep 9, 2023; Athens, Georgia, USA; Ball State Cardinals quarterback Kadin Semonza (9) passes the ball against the Georgia Bulldogs during the first half at Sanford Stadium.
Ball State football brings back one of the most experienced offensive lines in the country
The Cardinals return four of their five starters along the offensive line, combining for 117 starts. Three of their starters earned all-MAC honors last season. The group allowed 2.2 sacks per game last year and averaged 171.5 yards on the ground.
“That’s exciting — anytime you can say that you have an offensive line that returns 117 starts. You can’t just go find that at the portal,” Neu said. “They’ve seen every twist, every game, every stunt, every pressure, you name it. They’ve played through pain. They’ve played through injury. They played in some grueling conditions. We’re so excited about that.”
More: ‘It has to change’: Missouri State football is the most penalized FCS team after Week 1
Ball State is the only FBS team that hasn’t played a game. Here’s why.
Beard won’t have any new Ball State film to watch this week because it’s the only team in the FBS that hasn’t played a game. There’s a reasonable explanation for it.
Ball State was originally scheduled to play Army in Week 1 but the Golden Knights had to cancel it upon moving to the American Athletic Conference this season. The Cardinals were unable to find a replacement.
It presents Beard with the challenge of finding film from previous seasons and different programs to try and figure out what the Bears will face. Many changes on the coaching staff make it even more difficult with Jared Elliott, the former Western Illinois head coach, now the team’s sole offensive coordinator and Jeff Knowles, a former defensive coordinator at Butler, Northern Illinois and Temple, now in charge of the defense.
Beard has studied previous Western Illinois and Butler film to try and get an edge.
“We just get luckier and luckier,” Beard laughed. “We do a bunch of background. We just have to do a good job at being flexible on both sides of the ball this week. One of the more encouraging things about our football staff is their ability to adjust in-game. We’ve got a lot of highly intelligent football coaches that care and put time in.”
More: Why Missouri State football coach Ryan Beard believes new AD Patrick Ransdell is a home run hire
Missouri State head coach Ryan Beard as the Bears take on the University of Kansas Jayhawks at the David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium in Lawrence Kansas on Friday, Sept. 1, 2023.
Ball State football’s defense ranked among the best in the MAC last season
The Cardinals had a defensive front that allowed just 111.6 yards on the ground per game and allowed the 17th-least total yards at 315.8 per game. It helped that Ball State was among the nation’s leaders in time of possession, keeping their defense off the field.
Ball State football coach Mike Neu appears to be on the hot seat
Speculation around Ball State head coach Mike Neu’s job status was put to rest quickly after its season ended. Ball State released a statement saying he would return after starting the season 1-6 and then finishing 4-8 and 3-5 in the Mid-American Conference. It was Neu’s seventh losing season in eight years.
Neu, a former Ball State quarterback, overhauled his coaching staff during the offseason. He signed a five-year contract extension before the 2021 season. He earned $680,000 last year and has two years remaining on his contract.
More: Missouri State football injury updates: 3 offensive linemen expected to be out
A loss to Missouri State could spark another chaotic season at Ball State.
What Ball State coach Mike Neu said about Missouri State
“This is a good football team. I watched the game [against Montana], and boy, they put themselves in a position to win. When I look at them on tape, I’m like, ‘Alright, we’re preparing for another MAC team here.’ It’s going to be a dog fight. Their personnel is really good.
“For us, they played a game — we haven’t. We had to watch all weekend, which was tough, but we’ve continued to grind and make sure we took an extra week and then some to prepare for Missouri State. Obviously, the head coach returns, and the former defensive coordinator, so we felt very confident that both their defensive scheme and their offensive scheme would be somewhat compatible to what we’ve seen on tape a year ago. So we studied like crazy to prepare.”
Score prediction: Ball State 31, Missouri State 28
This isn’t an easy game to predict because of the injuries along Missouri State’s offensive line. If there wasn’t a chance the Bears were down as many as three starters entering the week, this pick would be different in favor of the FCS program.
Assuming the three offensive linemen are out, Ball State should get this one thanks to how well it played defensively last season and what the Cardinals have on their offensive line. The Bears will find a way to score some points but there are some concerns entering the week.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Missouri State football vs. Ball State: Scouting report, prediction
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Publish date : 2024-09-06 04:01:00
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