Ball State Cardinals football

Ball State Cardinals football
2025 Ball State Cardinals football team
First season1924; 102 years ago
Athletic directorJeff Mitchell
Head coachMike Uremovich
1st season, 4–8 (.333)
LocationMuncie, Indiana
StadiumScheumann Stadium
(capacity: 22,500)
NCAA divisionDivision I FBS
ConferenceMAC
ColorsCardinal and white
   
All-time record483–473–32 (.505)
Bowl record1–8 (.111)
Conference championships
IIC: 1942
ICC: 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967
MAC: 1976, 1978, 1989, 1993, 1996, 2020
Conference division championships
MAC West: 2001, 2007, 2008, 2020
RivalriesIndiana State (rivalry)
Northern Illinois (rivalry)
Miami (rivalry)
Uniforms
Fight songBall State Fight Song
MascotCharlie Cardinal
Marching bandThe Pride of Mid-America Marching Band
WebsiteBallStateSports.com

The Ball State Cardinals football team is a college football program representing Ball State University in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football. Ball State plays its home games at Scheumann Stadium on the campus of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. The Cardinals compete in the Mid-American Conference as a member of the West Division. The team is currently led by head coach Mike Uremovich, who was hired on December 4, 2024.

The Cardinals have a 476–455–32 record, which ranks below the top 50 most victories among NCAA FBS programs. Ball State was originally classified as a teacher's college, participating in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) from 1937 until 1956. In 1957, they were classified as a Small College school until 1972. Ball State received Division II classification in 1973, before becoming a Division I-AA program in 1975 and a Division I-A (now FBS) program in 1981, dropping to Division I-AA for a single season (1982) before returning to Division I-A.