Mid-American · Indiana · 2026 roster

Ball State Cardinals football roster hometowns

Where are Ball State players from?

On the 2026 Ball State football roster, 32.4% of players with a known home state are from Indiana. The median listed hometown is 162 mi from campus (Homecoming Radius).

The 2026 snapshot was collected before the season. Sources and definitions

Players from Indiana with no earlier college roster elsewhere in the data filled 34% of roster spots in 2016 and 26% on the 2026 roster.

In 2016, 36 of 105 roster spots were filled by Indiana players not previously rostered elsewhere in the data. On the 2026 roster, 30 of 116 fit the same definition. The number of players previously rostered elsewhere changed from 0 to 33.

The median hometown distance moved from 173 mi in 2016 to 162 mi on the 2026 roster.

Before and during the portal era

2016–18 compared with 2021–25

2016–182021–2535.6%31.6%0.6%12.3%
  • In-state, not rostered elsewhere
  • Previously rostered elsewhere
Measure2016–182021–25
In-state, not rostered elsewhere35.6%31.6%
Previously rostered elsewhere0.6%12.3%

The 2026 roster

  • 353 miAverage hometown distanceAverage hometown distance among 105 located players.
  • 32.4%In-state32.4% of players with a known home state are from Indiana.
  • 33.3%Backyard33.3% of players with a located hometown grew up within 100 miles of campus.
  • 28.4%Previously rostered elsewhere28.4% of the roster appeared on another college roster in an earlier season.

Where Ball State ranks

Most In-State#6332.4%Most Transfers#4528.4%Closest to Home#28353 miFarthest From Home#111353 miBiggest In-State 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: home-state players with and without an earlier college roster, out-of-state players with and without one, and players with unknown geography. This chart begins where stable athlete IDs make transfer detection possible; the radius chart above carries the official-archive geography farther back.

In-state, not rostered elsewhereIn-state, rostered elsewhereOut-of-state, not rostered elsewhereOut-of-state, rostered elsewhere200920122016201920232026

Where do Ball State's players come from?

SeasonRosterIn-stateRostered elsewhereRadius
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

In-state shares use players with a known home state. Radius uses located hometowns.

Where the roster grew up

Located hometowns on the 2026 roster, with campus marked and the Homecoming Radius circled.

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Homecoming Radius: 162 mi

This slider is exploratory. Rankings use fixed distance lenses.

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