On an offensive line, it's often not good enough to just have five talented individuals.
There has to be chemistry between each player to the point where they're friends instead of just teammates. All five must become one collective unit.
Ball State boasts that special type of offensive line this season. It shouldn't come as much of a surprise, considering it's the most experienced offensive line in the nation. The Cardinals carried 115 career starts from returning offensive linemen at the beginning of the season according to Phil Steele's College Football Preview.
Except Ball State's offensive line may have taken its chemistry and togetherness one step further than most teams.
"We really know what the other one's thinking," center Dan Manick said. "It goes down to moods and such. I can tell when someone's mad. They know when I'm mad; we all know when each other is mad. We know each other pretty well, so I definitely think that helps."
The connection Manick shares with left tackle Cameron Lowry, left guard Kitt O'Brien, right guard Jordan Hansel and right tackle Austin Holtz has led to immediate success this season, especially in the running game. Ball State ranks first in the Mid-American Conference and seventh in the nation with 581 rushing yards through two games.
The combination of sophomore Jahwan Edwards, a between-the-tackles workhorse tailback, and redshirt freshman Horactio Banks, a quick and elusive scatback, has produced the bulk of the team's yardage on the ground.
But as the literal center of the Ball State offense, Manick has seen how every player has helped create a lethal rushing attack.
"It's not just the running backs running the ball, it's not just the offensive line blocking - it's a team effort," Manick said. "[The] tight ends make great blocks. Most of the big plays [when] we've sprung a couple big runs, I know Willie [Snead] blocks great downfield, and he busted a run for us against Eastern [Michigan]. We control up front, but we're not out there on the perimeter."
When it comes to pass blocking, the line has given junior quarterback Keith Wenning a clean pocket so far, surrendering only two sacks this year.
Even though Manick is playing in his first season at center after converting from tackle, there haven't been many problems with line adjustments and calls to slow down pass rushers.
Manick said he makes about 75 percent of the line's adjustments whenever a blitz or defensive formation calls for it. Still, that's more than Manick used to make, so O'Brien and Holtz in particular have helped with the change.
"They have great football knowledge to where they can change the play really quick to what we need to do on blocking schemes and stuff," Manick said.
Although being an offensive lineman almost always leaves Manick off the stat sheet, he said he embraces his role. It keeps a singular goal in his mind.
"Personally, I just want to play as well as I can and help us win," he said. "I know it sounds clich+â-¬, but [on the] offensive line, you don't really get a lot of glory. You don't really get a lot of interviews, but we're fine with that. Our reward is not touchdowns or anything like that. It's winning."
-á
Read More
Ball State ends 2025 season with loss to Miami in MAC Softball Championship semifinal
By Zach Carter / 2 days agoBall State ended the year with a 8-0 loss to Miami.
'A blue-collar team:' Ball State run rules Akron in opening game of MAC Softball Championship
By Zach Carter / 5 days agoNo. 4 Ball State topped No. 5 Akron 9-1 in the Cardinals' first game of the Mid-American Conference Softball Championship Wednesday afternoon.
‘A winner:’ Ally Becki reflects on her Ball State women’s basketball career
By Elijah Poe / April 28, 2025The Ball State women’s basketball point guard reflects on her four-year career as a Cardinal.
