Offensive lineman Jordan Hansel became the latest Ball State starter to suffer a serious injury last Saturday at Western Michigan. Hansel broke his fibula in the loss, and will miss the rest of the season.
Coach Pete Lembo said Wednesday that Hansel's injury will require surgery to repair ligament damage suffered when the bone broke. Lembo expects Hansel will be healthy in time for spring practice.
Hansel's injury leaves the Cardinals without much depth on the offensive line. Ball State was already without Rayondon Kennedy, who suffered a knee injury at Ohio, and Cam Lowry, who has been battling illness for several weeks.
"We are really in a precarious situation now," Lembo said.
Center Kreg Hunter said it is tough to lose an experienced player like Hansel, but was pleased with how the line responded in the second half against Western Michigan. Chris Sparrow, a junior college transfer, replaced Hansel on the line. It was the fifth game Sparrow played in this season, but the first time he saw sustained playing time.
"We got a chance to see Sparrow step in and we still moved the ball and everything," Hunter said. "It was good to see that Sparrow was ready to play."
National spotlight: Every day from Tuesday to Saturday this week, there is a Mid-American Conference football game being played. All are on TV, and only Ball State's game at Eastern Michigan on Saturday isn't on ESPN.
The conference has benefitted from the NBA lockout, which has created openings in ESPN's schedule and moved some games to more prominent positions on the network.
The abundance of midweek football means Lembo can watch some of the games live, instead of waiting to study the film. He watched the second half of Northern Illinois' 63-60 victory at Toledo on Tuesday night.
"It was a real exciting game," Lembo said. "It was a good representation of our conference."
Ball State visits Northern Illinois on Nov. 15 and finishes the regular season against Toledo on Nov. 25.
Wide-open MAC race: Northern Illinois' victory Tuesday was good news for Ball State, as it handed Toledo its first MAC loss of the season. The Cardinals can now assure themselves of at least a piece of the MAC West title if they win their final three games.
But Ball State still doesn't control its own destiny in the division, thanks to its loss at Western Michigan. The Broncos are tied for fourth in the MAC West with the Cardinals, but hold the tiebreaker because of their win Saturday.
Lembo sees the unpredictable nature of the conference as an advantage for Ball State.
"The good news is there is parity in the league and that's good for us," he said. "We're one of those teams aspiring to be in that upper echelon, whether it be in the short term or the long term."
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