If the Ball State men's basketball team is going to compete in the Mid-American Conference in 2014-15, it will do so with a roster littered with youth and inexperience.
Part of what experience the Cardinals had was lost for eight to 10 weeks when Cincinnati transfer and projected starter Jeremiah Davis injured his foot during a practice in late October.
With Davis anticipated to be sidelined until sometime in late December or early January, several of the team's younger players will have to contribute more than originally expected to start the season.
Despite the void left by Davis' absence, second-year head coach James Whitford said his team will be better for it down the road.
"The young guys have an incredible opportunity early with Jeremiah going down," Whitford said. "When Jeremiah gets back, we should be even stronger."
Two players likely to see an increase in minutes are sophomore forward Franko House and freshman guard Jeremie Tyler.
House played in all 30 of Ball State's games as a freshman, starting 21 of them while averaging six points per game. He also finished the year leading all first-year MAC in rebounds per game, pulling down just more than five boards a night. With the Cardinals losing 46.4 points a game due to roster turnover, House will need to position his 6-foot-6, 238 pound frame in the post early and often.
The Cardinals' regular season opener Friday at Utah, however, will be the first time Tyler plays in a collegiate game. With Davis out, Tyler will move into the starting lineup, a spot his teammates think he can capably fill.
"Freshman guards are going to have to step up," sophomore guard Zavier Turner said. "[Tyler] is going to play a big role for us."
Turner knows the challenges Tyler faces better than most, having led Ball State in minutes played in his freshman season.
After averaging 12.1 points, 3.6 assists and 1.5 boards a game last year, Turner was named the MAC Freshman of the Year and was selected to the MAC All-Freshman team.
The team's point guard, Turner knows it's his responsibility to involve his teammates on offense and help ease the growing pains of the younger players.
"Last year, a lot was on my shoulders [as a freshman starter]," Turner said. "Nothing really changed. That point guard position is going to be on my shoulders again this year."
Of the 14 eligible—junior Ryan Weber is sitting out the season after transferring from Youngstown State—players on Ball State's roster, 10 are underclassmen. With a roster so young, it can often be difficult to capture sustained success, which could prove vital come the start of conference play in early January.
In the eyes of others, Ball State is not expected to fight for a conference championship, being projected to finish in last place in its division in the MAC preseason poll.
With low public expectations, the Cardinals will have the opportunity to surprise many of their opponents. The season schedule includes road games at Utah, San Diego State and MAC East Division favorite Akron.
As for all that inexperience on Ball State's roster, Turner will do his best to impart what he learned his first season to his teammates.
"It's going to come down to focus," he said. "Coming in, day in and day out, working as hard as you possibly can and focusing ... so when you get to the game, you'll be ready."
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