Ball State Cardinals football

First season1924; 102 years agoAthletic directorJeff MitchellHead coachMike Uremovich
1st season, 4–8 (.333)LocationMuncie, IndianaStadiumScheumann Stadium
(capacity: 22,500)NCAA divisionDivision I FBSConferenceMACColorsCardinal and white
All-time record483–473–32 (.505)Bowl record1–8 (.111)Conference championshipsIIC: 1942

---

ICC: 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967

---

MAC: 1976, 1978, 1989, 1993, 1996, 2020Division championshipsMAC West: 2001, 2007, 2008, 2020RivalriesIndiana State (rivalry)
Northern Illinois (rivalry)
Miami ()UniformsFight songBall State Fight SongMascotCharlie CardinalMarching bandThe Pride of Mid-America Marching BandWebsiteBallStateSports.com

The Ball State Cardinals football team is a college football program representing Ball State University in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division IFootball 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.