College Weekends: The Complete Guide to Football

With busy classes during the week, it’s important for college students to relax and take a break from school on the weekends. Three ways many students do that is by watching their college football team play on Saturday’s, watch NFL games on Sunday’s, and keep up with their fantasy football teams. If you’re a Ball State student and huge football fan, this page is for you. Or if you’re a Ball State student and are looking for a new way to take a break from school on the weekends, we’ll give you everything you need to know to enter the world of football. We will provide you with all the information you need to have your relaxing football weekend during college. We’re going to be taking a look at a few of Ball State alumni currently in the NFL and which current players have a chance to make the league, and a brief overview of what the rest of Ball State’s season looks like. On top of that, we'll look at current NFL performances, give predictions for the rest of the season, and talk about fantasy football.

Current Cardinals Draft Chances and Rest of Season Outlook

It’s still early in the college football season, but a few players on the team this year stand out as having the best chances of any Ball State player to get drafted either in this next draft or whatever draft they are eligible for if any of them chose to declare for the draft. Running back Marquez Cooper has an impressive 234 yards in just four games, averaging 4.0 yards a carry (at the time of writing this). He’s had a pretty successful career getting over 1,000 rushing yards in his last two seasons. Cooper continues to be consistent each and every game, which is what NFL teams look for. Another NFL candidate would be Tanner Koziol. He leads the Cardinals in receiving yards (at the time of writing this) even though he is a tight end. This season he already has 156 yards and a touchdown and is averaging 8.2 yards per catch. At 6 '7'’ he is two inches taller than, arguably the best tight end in the NFL right now, Travis Kelce. Only two current NFL tight ends are taller than him so height wise he is the perfect choice for an NFL tight end. If he keeps performing at the level he has been and can put on some healthy weight, he would be a steal in the fourth or fifth round of the draft. Ball State currently sits at 1-3 but has not had any conference games yet. You can stay up to date on Cooper, Koziol, and the rest of the Cardinals stats here https://www.espn.com/college-football/team/stats/_/id/2050/ball-state-cardinals. The rest of their games will be conference play, with the first one being against Western Michigan on September 30th. The season started off rough with playing Kentucky and Georgia back to back, but on the positive side that gave the Cardinals a chance to play against some of the top athletes in the country. That will definitely help their draft chances and rest of the season. The goal is obviously to make it to the MAC championship on December 2nd and also be eligible for a Bowl Game.

Alumni Currently in the NFL

Currently in 2023, there are four BSU grads currently on an active NFL roster, with two of them being rookies. Starting off with guard Danny Pinter, he was able to stay in Indiana by getting drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in 2020. Unfortunately he got injured over the summer and was placed on injured reserve and will miss the 2023-24 season. However, he started for the Colts last season and even scored a touchdown in 2021. As a lineman, that’s a pretty amazing accomplishment and always excited to see Cardinals do special things in the NFL.

https://www.colts.com/video/director-s-cut-danny-pinter-s-big-man-touchdown

He is currently on his last year of his contract so the goal and hope is his injury will not affect him either being re-signed by the Colts or getting picked up by another team in the league.

Next up is Nic Jones, a rookie corner-back. Nic graduated this past spring and was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs. He had some action in the pre-season but got injured during it. As the regular season started he healed up and is currently third on the depth chart. As the season progresses, look for him to get his shot to play in a game and prove he can be a valuable asset in the league. Another spring graduate in his rookie season is Amechi Uzodinma. He just got drafted by the Los Angeles Chargers and plays corner-back. Unfortunately, like Danny

Pinter, Amechi is on the injured reserve. There are not a lot of details about his injury, but whenever he’s healthy he can hope to get a chance to play some snaps for the Chargers and showcase his skills. It will be very fun to watch both Amechi and Nic throughout their careers and bring more success to the legacy of Cardinals in the NFL. The last alumni we had on an active roster is Willie Snead. Currently, he is just on the practice squad for the 49ers but he’s had a pretty successful career in the NFL considering that he wasn’t drafted but signed on as a free agent. Snead started his career in 2014 bouncing around on different practice squads and made his regular season debut in 2015. He’s played for 5 different teams throughout his career and even got to play with NFL legend Drew Brees. Over his 8 years he’s acquired 279 receptions for 3431 yards and 16 touchdowns. What’s maybe his most impressive stat is in 2016 while on the Saints he threw a 50 yard touchdown as part of a trick play. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mD5kjLYjWs. Snead throughout his career has proven he can play an important role on any team and help them win games. It’s unclear how much longer Snead can or wants to play in the league, but either way he’s already earned the respect of fans and should be proud of his hard work. It’s hard enough to make it to the league, and it’s even harder to play for multiple seasons. Snead earned himself starting spots on more than one team which alone is an accomplishment. Whenever he decides to hang up the cleats he can forever reminisce on a special career.

To read more about Ball State players in the NFL, past and present read the whole article here *link to Jacob’s blog*

What Exactly is Fantasy Football

As mentioned earlier, fantasy football is a great way to get away from school on the weekends. Fantasy football is a way to bring a group of friends together to fight for the best NFL roster. Fantasy has grown in popularity every year as more and more people understand the fun behind it. This is a way to enjoy watching the NFL even more because you can root for the players on your roster while they play in the game. Fantasy Football is a way to create your own virtual NFL roster by drafting players in a draft full of other players in your league. The performance of the players you drafted is directly related to how they perform in real life. The point of fantasy football is to score more points than the person you play each week. You want to draft a team that can score the most points, and win the championship matchup. Depending on how you set up your league, the draft could be set up in a random order, or however you would like to set it up. The draft will always last sixteen rounds depending on the format of your league.

Read the extended blog here *link to Jake’s blog* to learn more about fantasy football.

Current NFL Situations

This NFL season has been a wild one so far, with ups, downs, and everything in between. We have seen a few teams’ seasons derailed by injuries and subpar play, particularly from some of the top projected quarterbacks coming into the season. Luckily, we’ve also seen some unexpected breakouts and surprisingly strong starts to fill in the gaps to keep this season as exciting as ever. Here are three quarterback situations that are trending downwards and an additional three that are up and coming:

First things first, the season-ending achilles tendon injury to New York Jets QB Aaron Rodgers is one of the most deflating moments an NFL team has ever seen. The Jets were projected super bowl favorites coming into the season with the former Green Bay and future hall of famer at the helm. The Jets had all the pieces in place with a star wideout in Garrett Wilson, a bellcow RB in Breece Hall, and one of the top defenses in the NFL led by head coach Robert Saleh. After Rodger’s season was lost three minutes into week one, the Jets seem to be on the verge of losing their season as well. The Jets have been forced to throw their first-round pick QB Zach Wilson to the wolves and the results have been as bad as everyone could have expected. Expect the Jets to make a move by either looking at some of the free agents remaining or by playing the trade market for a replacement QB in the future.

Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow was expected to lead his team back to the playoffs with the help of an improved offensive line and key weapons in Jamarr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Joe Mixon. After missing the entirety of training camp and the preseason with a calf injury, Joe Burrow hasn’t quite looked like himself. These struggles have contributed to an ugly start to the season with a pair of tough losses and a hard-fought win against the Rams in week three. With Bengals fans and fantasy owners both concerned with Burrow’s health and the overall season so far, head coach Zac Taylor needs to figure out a way to right the ship and get this offense firing on all cylinders.

The Denver Broncos were expected to bounce back from one of the most embarrassing seasons in recent NFL memory with the addition of former Saints head coach Sean Payton. Future hall of famer QB Russell Wilson was primed for a career resurgence with the return of their running back Javonte Williams, a rejuvenated receiver core, and solid defensive effort. However, with public tension between Wilson and Payton, key injuries to offensive weapons, the defense falling apart, and with Payton taking shots in the media at the former coaching regime, this season has been nothing short of a disaster in Mile High. After getting demolished in a 70-20 loss to the Miami Dolphins in week three and not much hope for the immediate future, Denver needs answers before Payton completely loses this locker room, and maybe even his job.

Speaking of the Miami Dolphins, it’s time to discuss some of the quarterbacks that have been a pleasant surprise so far. The first of which is Tua Tagovailoa, who helped his team thrash the Broncos in week three with an NFL-record 726 yards of total offense. There were some concerns before the season about Tua’s injury history hurting this team’s potential, but so far this team has shown that they are a force to be reckoned with. Tua has looked better than ever with an improved offensive line, more confidence in the pocket, and a smorgasbord of weapons to throw to. With his help, nobody has been hotter during the start of this season than the Dolphins led by head coach Mike McDaniel. This is easily the most juiced offense in the entire NFL. The next quarterback to take a leap this year is Green Bay Packers QB Jordan Love. A shocking first-round pick in 2020, the pressure was on to fill the shoes of his predecessor, Aaron Rodgers. Love sat behind Rodgers on the depth chart for two years to learn as much as he could before it was time to pass the torch. It looks like Love was a star student because so far, he has passed this test with flying colors. Under head coach Matt LaFleur, Love has led this team to a strong start with some scrappy wins and an unexpectedly strong defense. This offense has been able to move the football, even with their number one receiver Christian Watson and star RB Aaron Jones missing some time. This is an extremely young team, as they have been heavily relying upon second year WR Romeo Doubs as well as rookies WR Jayden Reed and TE Luke Musgrave. This offense has been able to show a lot of flashes without being at full strength, so watch out for this team down the stretch.

Our last quarterback to review is Indianapolis Colts QB Anthony Richardson. Richardson has missed some time so far due to a concussion, but when he’s on the field this offense has looked electric. Richardson was drafted this year to sit on the bench as a long-term project QB, but head coach Shane Steichen had other plans in mind for this hyper-athletic freak of nature. Richardson has a cannon for an arm and is likely the fastest pound-for-pound player on the field at any given time. Not only is Richardson tearing apart defenses on the ground, but the connection between the rookie QB and standout WR Michael Pittman already looks extremely promising for the future. The Colts may not make much noise in 2023, but this team will become must-watch TV in years to come.

As most NFL fans know, anything can happen on any given Sunday. You never know which teams will crumble under pressure and which teams will rise to the occasion. As you can see, there are some teams who have struggled in the face of adversity early in the season, but some of these young quarterbacks have been able to weather the storm and outperform some of their more established counterparts. ESPN is a great way to stay up to date on player and team performance news. https://www.espn.com/nfl/.

Division Winner Predictions

The NFL has 8 divisions with four teams in each division. The league is split between two conferences, AFC, and NFC. Both conferences have four divisions each. The winner of each division goes to the playoffs with hopes of winning the Super Bowl. Here are the predictions for who will win each division in the NFL. To see more predictions, including Super Bowl and MVP, click the link to read the whole blog *link to Gage’s blog*

AFC South:

The AFC South consists of the Indianapolis Colts, Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Tennessee Titans.

Colts: The Indianapolis Colts are one of the younger and more exciting teams in the NFL with their new quarterback Anthony Richardson. They will go through some rough patches but will be one of the more intriguing teams in the league.

Titans: The Titans have been one of the better teams in the AFC in recent memory, but it seems that they are on the decline.

Texans: Texans are led by rookie quarterback CJ Stroud and will be a young, fun team. They will struggle but have potential to shake things up in the AFC South.

Jaguars: The Jaguars are the favorite to win the division. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence is one of the top young players in the league.

AFC South Prediction: Indianapolis Colts

AFC East:

The AFC East has the New England Patriots, New York Jets, Miami Dolphins, and Buffalo Bills.

Patriots: Patriots are set for a down year with a very lackluster roster, head coach Bill Belichick will look to continue his winning ways in New England.

Jets: Jets were very hopeful coming into the year, Aaron Rodgers injury hurts their chances.

Dolphins: Miami has one of the most explosive offenses in the league led by wide receiver Tyreek Hill.

Bills: As long as the Bills have superstar quarterback Josh Allen, they will be one of the favorites in the AFC.

AFC East Prediction: Miami Dolphins

AFC North:

The AFC North has the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, and Cincinnati Bengals.

Steelers: Steelers are a tough team to beat year in and year out. They will be in the mix for the North.

Browns: Browns are looking to make a splash this year with the return of quarterback Deshaun Watson.

Ravens: Lamar Jackson and the Ravens are one of the hardest teams to stop in the league, pair that with a tough defense and this team will be hard to stop.

Bengals: Coming off two successful years, Joe Burrow and the Bengals are looking to get over the hump and win a Super Bowl.

AFC North Prediction: Cincinnati Bengals

AFC West:

The AFC West consists of the Los Angeles Chargers, Kansas City Chiefs, Las Vegas Raiders, and Denver Broncos.

Chargers: Chargers offense has been the bright spot of the team for years to come. They will be competitive this year.

Chiefs: The reigning Super Bowl champs will be looking to repeat the same success this year.

Raiders: Raiders will struggle this year as they brought in a new quarterback.

Broncos: Broncos have a new head coach and had a very poor year last year. They will struggle.

AFC West Prediction: Kansas City Chiefs

NFC South:

The NFC South has the New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Carolina Panthers, and Atlanta Falcons.

Saints: Saints have a solid roster but will take time to adjust to their new QB Derek Carr.

Buccaneers: Baker Mayfield will look to follow in Tom Brady’s steps and lead the Buccaneers to the Super Bowl.

Panthers: Panthers have their new quarterback Bryce Young who looks to turn around this franchise.

Falcons: They are clearly rebuilding and will struggle to find too much success in the NFC.

NFC South Prediction: New Orleans Saints

NFC East:

NFC East has the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys, Washington Commanders, and Philadelphia Eagles.

Giants: The New York Giants are looking to build off of a successful 2022 season.

Cowboys: Cowboys are one of the better teams in the NFL. They should have success in the East.

Commanders: They are one of the worst teams in the NFL. They will struggle in the East.

Eagles: They fell just short of a Super Bowl last year. They will be looking to get over the hump and win the big game.

NFC East Prediction: Philadelphia Eagles

NFC North:

NFC North has the Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, and Minnesota Vikings.

Packers: It will be an interesting year for the Packers as it's their first year without Aaron Rodgers.

Bears: Bears have been one of the worst teams in the NFL for years, they will likely follow suit.

Lions: Lions have been improving every year and will look to compete for a championship this year.

Vikings: Vikings had a great year last year but could not finish in the playoffs. They will look to improve on a great year.

NFC North Prediction: Detroit Lions

NFC West:

The NFC West has the Seattle Seahawks, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, and the Arizona Cardinals.

Seahawks: Seahawks had a surprisingly good year last year, they will look to win the division this year.

Rams: Rams have been on the decline since they won the Super Bowl in 2020.

49ers: They are the most complete team in the league.

Cardinals: They are the least complete team in the league.

NFC West Prediction: San Francisco 49ers

To stay up to date with division standings as the season progresses, check it out here https://www.nfl.com/standings/.

Now you have all you need to maximize your fun football filled weekends as a college student. To stay up to date on the rest of their season, current players and alumni in the NFL, and everything else Ball State and NFL football, subscribe to our weekly blog notifications or constantly check back for more content.