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Like most non-BCS schools under contract with Nike, Ball State must wear some of the most generic designs the swoosh provides.
The Cardinals updated their threads for the 2012 season, incorporating a black alternate while toning down the piping on their already established red home and white road jerseys. The all-white road combination with red numerals, a red “BALL STATE” wordmark and black accents is one of the programs best looks.
Ball State’s white pants feature a thick black side panel and the team’s black long sleeve base layer brings out the snow white appearance. Ball State has donned white shells with a red and black cardinal on gamedays since 1971, updating the graphic with a more menacing bird in 1990.
Red and black prototype shells in recent years during the alternate helmet boom have been rumored, but never unveiled. Prior to 1971, the Cardinals wore red helmets after transitioning from leather lids in the late 1950s. The nicest red shell featured a gray facemask and a white cardinal silhouette decal in 1970.
Ball State is currently one of the few Nike schools that still use screen-printed numerals. Wordmarks and patches are stitched. Ball State’s red home tops feature a white collar and sleeves while the away whites are the inverse.
The only contrasting colors on the Cardinals’ alternate blacks are the wordmarks and numbers.
