Ball State University coach Brady Hoke said he prefers to coach his fall football games on Saturday afternoons, a time slot that helps add flavor to the college football experience.
However, Hoke has never experienced as much success as the Cardinals coach as he did last year, a season in which Ball State finished with its first winning record and bowl appearance since 1996.
The success led to multiple opportunities Hoke's program never had before, including the chance this year to play four games on national television during the regular season.
The Cardinals released kickoff times for 11 of their 12 games in 2008, and all but two are scheduled to begin in the evening.
The nine prime time games are more than last year, when Ball State's two night kickoffs were against Miami University of Ohio in the season opener and University of Toledo in the program's only nationally televised contest.
"There's no question the university and program having a chance to play on national TV is a big part of it," Hoke said about being scheduled for more night games. "We love to play on Saturdays at noon, but when these opportunities come, it's great for us, and we're at the beck and call of the schedule makers."
Athletics director Tom Collins could not be reached for comment.
Half of Ball State's games in 2008 will be played on weekdays, compared to two last season. The biggest change during the week, Hoke said, is having a different off day leading up to the game.
Hoke said with so few Saturday contests, it's more difficult to get into a regular routine.
"You screw with the schedule a little bit and juggle classes and practice times," Hoke said. "It becomes long days to some degree, especially during the week. But it will give the kids a chance to watch some college football on Saturdays and some NFL, which they usually don't get to see much of. They might even get to see what's on Oprah."
Behind only the 2007 Homecoming game against Western Kentucky, the Cardinals second-best single-game attendance last season was in their season opener, which kicked off at 7 p.m. and drew 15,488 fans, including a school-record 7,875 students. However, Ball State's other night game, which was played on ESPN 2, hosted the second-lowest crowd of the season with 10,162 fans.
Despite its winning record and a 3-2 home mark in 2007, Ball State didn't crack the top five in average home attendance in the Mid-American Conference.
Conference champion Central Michigan led the league with an average of 21,563 fans in its five home games, compared to the Cardinals' 13,085 fans per home contest.
Hoke said he would like to see the trend of low attendance reversed during the 2008 season.
"Hopefully students and community will support the kids and what they're doing," Hoke said. "The kids work hard, and it's good for them to have that opportunity of playing in front of their home fans."
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