Program field guide · 2026

Mid-American · Indiana

Ball State

Cardinals

Ball State’s Indiana-developed core fell from 36 to 30 players.

2026 roster · Roster geography

In 2016, 36 of 105 roster spots were filled by Indiana players with no earlier college team detected. On the 2026 roster, 30 of 116 fit the same definition. Detected transfers went from 0 to 33.

In 2016 the median player grew up 173 mi from campus. Now it is 162 mi.

Of the 33 players who came from another college, 6 are from Indiana. Those home-state players make up 18% of detected-transfer stock on this roster.

Then → now

2016–18 compared with 2021–25

2016–182021–2535.6%31.6%0.6%12.3%
  • Local-developed core
  • Transfer stock
Measure2016–182021–25
Local-developed core35.6%31.6%
Transfer stock0.6%12.3%

The roster, at a glance

  • 353 miAverage hometown distanceAverage hometown distance among 105 located players.
  • 32.4%In-state32.4% of the roster is from Indiana.
  • 33.3%Backyard33.3% grew up within 100 miles of campus.
  • 28.4%Detected transfers28.4% of the roster arrived after playing at another school.

Across the FBS

Where Ball State ranks

Most In-State#6332.4%Most Transfers#4528.4%Closest to Home#28353 miFarthest From Home#111353 miBiggest Localism Shift#12032.4%Most Backyard Players#2533.3%Fewest Transfers#9428.4%Biggest Transfer Shift#3428.4%

Homecoming Radius over time

The median hometown-to-campus distance, by season. The dotted line is the FBS median.

050100150200250FBS median (250 mi)200920122016201920232026

Roster composition over time

Where the in-state lens draws the line: local-developed, local transfer, outsider developed, outsider transfer, and unknown. This chart begins where stable athlete IDs make transfer detection possible; the radius chart above carries the official-archive geography farther back.

Local-developedLocal transferOutsider developedOutsider transfer200920122016201920232026

Where do Ball State's players come from?

SeasonRosterIn-stateTransfer signalRadius
202611632.4%28.4%162 mi
202510936.0%26.6%158 mi
202411837.8%12.7%144 mi
202311834.3%10.2%165 mi
202211243.6%6.3%137 mi
202110446.1%5.8%124 mi
202011845.3%2.5%123 mi
201911749.6%1.7%100 mi
201810641.3%0.9%137 mi
201710333.7%1.0%151 mi
201610534.6%0.0%173 mi
201510839.3%0.0%175 mi
201411539.5%0.0%170 mi
201310935.2%0.9%178 mi
201210636.2%1.9%156 mi
20119930.3%2.0%144 mi
20109232.6%0.0%130 mi
20099443.6%0.0%94 mi

Where the roster grew up

Every 2026 player's hometown, with campus marked and the Homecoming Radius circled.

Ball State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometownBall State player hometown

Homecoming Radius: 162 mi

(This slider is for exploring — leaderboards use the fixed lenses.)

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