by Following Ball State football’s disappointing overtime loss to Buffalo in a midweek Mid-American Conference showdown that saw the Cardinals’ hope of potential bowl game eligibility squashed, the program has decided to part ways with Head Coach Mike Neu.
Neu led the Cardinals for a nine-year term that saw numerous ups and downs for the program. The former Ball State quarterback, Neu, led his squad to back-to-back bowl games in 2020 and 2021. The downs, however, proved more frequent for Neu, finishing his stint with only a single winning season, which came with a 7-1 record in 2020.
In a press release Saturday, Ball State announced that the “national search for the next Ball State head football coach will begin immediately.”
Following the morning announcement, Athletic Director Jeff Mitchell spoke to the media on his mindset in relation to the program’s decision.
“I admire and respect the culture in that locker room and appreciate and value Mike’s leadership, but the results matter too,” Mitchell said. “I evaluated over the course of a couple seasons and in conversations with other university administrators, it was time to make this decision.”
In the interim, Neu will be replaced by Ball State’s offensive line coach, Colin Johnson, for the final two games of Ball State’s 2024 season. Johnson has 17 seasons of total coaching experience over five separate teams, but this will be his first stint at the helm of any program.
