Nate Davis is the quarterback.
It does not appear to be up for discussion, nor should it be at any point this season if you're a non-believer in the two-quarterback system.
You can make a solid case for both Davis and Joey Lynch, but you have to choose one, and it appears Ball State University coach Brady Hoke has finally done that.
Davis' strengths are pretty obvious: he has a much stronger arm than Lynch and can stretch the defense downfield, which opens up the running game. At the very least, I assume the latter was part of the reason why the change was made.
Davis is also quicker than Lynch. Not much faster, but mobile enough to sidestep rushers that have gotten by Ball State's offensive line this year-and there has been a lot.
In Monday's press conference, Hoke said Davis does a better job of making decisions on the run. Not too sure about that, but maybe that's because I've seen Lynch in so much duress over the past three years that it has almost become commonplace, like he looks more comfortable when he's scrambling out of the pocket.
But Davis' ability to throw the pigskin is the biggest disparity between the two. Just look at the touchdown pass to Terry Moss last week against Northern Illinois University.
Moss only had one step on the cornerback and the safety was streaking for Moss, but Davis' tight spiral barely fit in-between the two defenders right into Moss' hands for the touchdown. That's just something you don't see all that often from Lynch.
A lot of Lynch's long passes have been broken plays. For example, the touchdown pass to Darius Hill at the end of the first half against Indiana. Lynch could never have made a pass like Davis did against Purdue, somehow threading the needle between three Purdue defenders for a touchdown pass to Hill.
Hill was blanketed on that play. Was that just a great pass, or a freshman mistake that got extremely lucky?
Davis is sixth in the nation in passing efficiency with a rating of 179.2. The five quarterbacks he trails: Pittsburgh's Tyler Palko, LSU's JaMarcus Russell, Oklahoma State's Bobby Reid, Nebraska's Zac Taylor and Tennessee's Erik Ainge.
Pretty impressive company.
Lynch isn't too far behind either. He's currently 19th. But if Davis starts the rest of the games, it's doubtful Lynch will stay on this list for more than a week or two.
The fact these two are putting up these stats with no rushing attack whatsoever makes it even more impressive. Ball State's passing offense ranks seventh in the nation with more than 300 yards passing a game. Combined, they have thrown 15 touchdowns and two interceptions.
The Cardinal ground game averages 70.6 yards per game, 111th in Division I-A.
However, it doesn't really matter how well Davis plays because Ball State's defense couldn't stop a backfield of Joe Paterno and Bobby Bowden with Steve Spurrier at quarterback. But then again, Spurrier did win a Heisman Trophy in 1966, but I digress.
Hoke has made it clear that the future is now. Is he also putting his job on the line by benching the fifth-year senior captain in place of the true freshman?
But if Davis is as good as advertised, and to this point it appears he is, then the offense should be set for the next three or four years.
Now about that defense ...
Phil Friend is a journalism graduate student and writes 'Phil'osophy for the Daily News. His views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper.
Write to Phil at prfriend@bsu.edu.
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