The 1983 Ball State Cardinals football team was an American football team that represented Ball State University in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) during the 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season. In its sixth season under head coach Dwight Wallace, the team compiled a 6–5 record (4–4 against MAC opponents) and finished in fifth place out of ten teams in the conference.[1][2] The team played its home games at Ball State Stadium in Muncie, Indiana.
| 1983 Ball State Cardinals football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Mid-American Conference |
| Record | 6–5 (4–4 MAC) |
| Head coach |
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| Home stadium | Ball State Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Illinois $ | 8 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Toledo | 7 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling Green | 7 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Central Michigan | 7 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ball State | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Michigan | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Miami (OH) | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ohio | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kent State | 1 | – | 8 | – | 0 | 1 | – | 10 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Michigan | 0 | – | 9 | – | 0 | 1 | – | 10 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The team's statistical leaders included Neil Britt with 2,377 passing yards, Terry Lymon with 517 rushing yards, David Naumcheff with 1,065 receiving yards, and John Diettrich with 59 points scored.[3]
Schedule
edit| Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 3 | Rhode Island* | W 42–26 | 5,695 | [4] | |||
| September 10 | Wichita State* |
| W 25–21 | 8,430 | [5] | ||
| September 17 | at Ohio | W 31–14 | 14,000 | [6] | |||
| September 24 | at Toledo | L 7–43 | 20,624 | [7] | |||
| October 1 | Northern Illinois |
| L 14–27 | 15,075 | [8] | ||
| October 8 | at Indiana State* | L 14–35 | 9,219 | [9] | |||
| October 15 | at Kent State | W 17–13 | 7,300 | [10] | |||
| October 22 | at Western Michigan | W 24–20 | 9,650 | [11] | |||
| October 29 | Eastern Michigan |
| W 33–20 | [12] | |||
| November 5 | at Bowling Green | L 30–45 | 17,210 | [13] | |||
| November 12 | Central Michigan |
| L 10–38 | 8,725 | [14] | ||
| |||||||
References
edit- ↑ "2007 Ball State Football Media Guide". Ball State University. 2007. p. 98. Archived from the original on July 8, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
- ↑ "1983 Ball State Cardinals Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sport Reference LLC. Archived from the original on July 11, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
- ↑ "1983 Ball State Cardinals Statistics". SR/College Football. Sport Reference LLC. Archived from the original on July 11, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
- ↑ "Cardinals rally, rout Rams, 42–26". The Indianapolis Star. September 4, 1983. Retrieved February 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Ball State wins, 25–21, in heart-stopper". The Star Press. September 11, 1983. Archived from the original on May 1, 2024. Retrieved February 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Ball State tops OU, 31–14". The Plain Dealer. September 18, 1983. Retrieved February 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Toledo, Morgan end Ball State winning streak". The South Bend Tribune. September 25, 1983. Retrieved February 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Northern Illinois runner shreds Ball State, 27–14". The South Bend Tribune. October 2, 1983. Retrieved February 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Third quarter disaster beats Ball State". The Muncie Star. October 9, 1983. Retrieved February 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Ball State tops Kent State". The Vincennes Sun-Commercial. October 16, 1983. Retrieved February 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Ball State 24, Western Michigan 20". The Cincinnati Enquirer. October 23, 1983. Retrieved February 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Ball State wins third straight". The Muncie Star. October 30, 1983. Retrieved February 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Records fall but so does Ball State". The Muncie Star. November 6, 1983. Retrieved February 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "CMU clinging to last hope". The Saginaw News. November 13, 1983. Retrieved February 24, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.