Sacramento State Hornets vs Ball State Cardinals Final — October 24, 2026
SACOffense2026 regular season to dateBALL
SACDefenseBALLSACRecent formBALLSACHome and roadseason to dateBALLSACLast 10 gamesBALLRest & travelrest and travel
SACRest & travelBALLAbout these numbers
2026 regular season to date, captured before kickoff. League rank in small type (138 teams); the gold side ranks higher. Bars show rank, longest = 1st. Source: Gridiron & Wine public Analytics tables.
Last five results this season, oldest to newest. Records are season to date, with home and road splits. Against-the-spread (ATS) and over–under records use the consensus closing line.
Margin of each of the last 7 games this season, oldest to newest (gold = won). Hover a bar for the score margin.
Distance is straight-line from each team's home arena; time-zone change is at game time. Rest counts days since each team's previous game.
The pre-game matchup
Sacramento State (0-6) visited Ball State (1-5) on Saturday, October 24 at 3:30 PM ET.
Sacramento State has the 137th-ranked offense by EPA per play (expected points added per snap) and the 90th-ranked defense (ranks among the 138 teams with play-by-play data). Meanwhile, Ball State has the 76th-ranked offense and the 128th-ranked defense. When Sacramento State has the ball, a 137th-ranked offense (−0.235 EPA per play) meets a 128th-ranked defense (+0.245 allowed); when Ball State has it, a 76th-ranked offense (+0.043) meets a 90th-ranked defense (+0.129 allowed).
By success rate (the share of plays that gain expected points), the Sacramento State offense is at 42.6% (111th) and the Ball State offense at 47.2% (67th). Sacramento State scores 8.8 points per game (137th) and allows 38.2 (128th); Ball State scores 16.8 (122nd) and allows 41.3 (135th).
Sacramento State is 1-6; its last game was a 48-7 loss to Ohio. Ball State is 2-5; its last game was a 32-31 win over Bowling Green.
Ball State closed as a 14.5-point favorite at home against Sacramento State. The spread opened at Ball State -9.5. The total closed at 51.5, up from 49.5 at the open. After removing the vig, the closing moneyline (Sacramento State +480, Ball State -678) prices Sacramento State at 17% and Ball State at 83%.
Written from the numbers available before kickoff.
Result
Final score and result vs the closing line
Sacramento State Hornets 17, Ball State Cardinals 34
Ball State Cardinals won by 17.
- Against the closing spread (Ball State Cardinals -14.5): Ball State Cardinals covered.
- Combined score 51 vs the closing total of 51.5: Under.
- Ball State Cardinals closed at -678 on the moneyline (a 83% no-vig market-implied chance).
Market
Closing line and line movement
Sacramento State +9.5 (-110)
Sacramento State +14.5 (-112)
Ball State -360 75%
Ball State -678 83%
Consensus of US sportsbooks. Open = first line after both teams' previous games; Close = consensus at kickoff. Percentages are the moneyline's no-vig market-implied chances.
Members
G&W Line
G&W’s own number for this game, next to the market. Analytics
Matchup
Players to watch
- Attempts192
- Completion %55.2%217th
- Passing yards1,070166th
- Yards per attempt5.6245th
- TD–INT6–6
- Rushing yards246214th
- Season line48 carries, 246 yds, 1 TD
- Receiving yards47345th
- Season line36 catches, 473 yds, 4 TD
- Tackles5070th
- Attempts184
- Completion %64.7%80th
- Passing yards1,066168th
- Yards per attempt5.8239th
- TD–INT7–4
- Rushing yards39292nd
- Season line59 carries, 392 yds, 7 TD
- Receiving yards273203rd
- Season line22 catches, 273 yds, 1 TD
- Tackles37249th
Season passing totals from public box scores, captured before kickoff. Ranks among the 262 quarterbacks with at least 60 attempts. Rushing, receiving and tackle leaders: season totals captured October 21, 5:34 a.m. ET; ranks among FBS players.
Success by situation
| Situation | Sacramento State | Ball State |
|---|---|---|
| Early-down success rateSacramento State offense vs Ball State defense | 40.2%105th | 44.7%93rd |
| Early-down success rateBall State offense vs Sacramento State defense | 44.4%90th | 42.5%81st |
| 3rd-down conversion rateSacramento State offense vs Ball State defense | 32.3%117th | 50.0%124th |
| 3rd-down conversion rateBall State offense vs Sacramento State defense | 44.9%106th | 35.4%99th |
| Explosive play rateSacramento State offense vs Ball State defense | 3.3%138th | 7.6%96th |
| Explosive play rateBall State offense vs Sacramento State defense | 8.6%118th | 5.6%102nd |
| Pass rateshare of plays that are passes or sacks | 63.6%3rd-highest | 52.5%52nd-highest |
On 3rd down Sacramento State converts 32.3% (117th) against a Ball State defense allowing 50.0% (124th).
On 3rd down Ball State converts 35.4% (99th) against a Sacramento State defense allowing 44.9% (106th).
2026 regular season before kickoff, from play-by-play with garbage time removed; ranks among the 138 teams in the play-by-play data (defense: 1st = allows the least). Success = a play that gains expected points.
Coaching staff
| Staff | Sacramento State | Ball State |
|---|---|---|
| Head coach | Alonzo Carter | Mike Uremovich |
| Tenureat this school | 1st season | 2nd season |
| Record at schoolthis season included, as of the date below | 1–6 | 6–13 |
| Career recordas an FBS head coach | 1–6 | 6–13 |
| Offensive coordinator | Eric Kiesau / Eric Scott | Mike Uremovich |
| Defensive coordinator | Adam Clark / Kenwick Thompson | Jeff Knowles |
Staff list as of October 20, 6:50 a.m. ET.
Teams
Sacramento State Hornets
- Sacramento State Hornets team stats
- Kent State Golden Flashes at Sacramento State Hornets (Oct 30)
- Ohio Bobcats 48, Sacramento State Hornets 7 (Oct 17)
- Sacramento State Hornets 10, Bowling Green Falcons 38 (Oct 10)
Ball State Cardinals
More NCAAF games on October 24, 2026
- LSU Tigers 38, Auburn Tigers 17 (Oct 24)
- Texas Tech Red Raiders 24, Cincinnati Bearcats 37 (Oct 24)
- Rice Owls 49, Florida Atlantic Owls 51 (Oct 24)
- Pittsburgh Panthers 23, Miami Hurricanes 52 (Oct 24)
- Indiana Hoosiers 13, Michigan Wolverines 6 (Oct 24)
- Rutgers Scarlet Knights 14, Northwestern Wildcats 42 (Oct 24)
- California Golden Bears 20, SMU Mustangs 59 (Oct 24)
- West Virginia Mountaineers 24, TCU Horned Frogs 20 (Oct 24)
- Western Michigan Broncos 38, Toledo Rockets 45 (Oct 24)
- Miami (OH) RedHawks 28, Central Michigan Chippewas 27 (Oct 24)
- Baylor Bears 24, Kansas Jayhawks 25 (Oct 24)
- Akron Zips 20, Kent State Golden Flashes 35 (Oct 24)
- Oregon Ducks 10, Illinois Fighting Illini 21 (Oct 24)
- Texas A&M Aggies 20, Alabama Crimson Tide 31 (Oct 24)
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