Ball State quarterback Keldric Luster is a great representative of MACtion. At five-foot-10 and 250 pounds, Luster brings a compact punch to the quarterback position. Certainly, he brings a non-prototypical build.
He's built for headlining a Tuesday or Wednesday night game in November. Is Luster built to beat the Buckeyes, though?
Check the spread here. You'll find your answer.
Still, Luster is a tremendous Group of Six story. If/when Ohio State crushes the Cardinals on Saturday, the story won't end at the "Shoe," barring injury.
"Luster's dual-threat magic will have to be a factor if Ball State is going to give an elite Ohio State defense any sort of challenge in Week 1," CBS Sports' Austin Nivison wrote in a piece about Luster's virality.
"The question now is whether he can lead the Cardinals to a successful season in MAC play -- no matter how Saturday's matchup against the Buckeyes goes."
Of course, some of the MACtion airs on the CBS Sports Network. No Ball State games have been announced for the network yet, but it's possible some games are picked up by the Eye Network in a shared MAC partnership with ESPN. Nivison's words hold weight here.
Ohio State can steal all the spotlight from great college football story
It's hard not to love a physical quarterback who doesn't fit the mold. Luster is a bulldozer with good speed and comes from a Texas 6A high school program that plays in a $70 million stadium. He hasn't yet gotten a fair shake from either SMU or Texas State, but leaving for Muncie, Indiana, may change his fortunes.
Unfortunately, there's simply no worse opponent to face in your first game with a new program than the Buckeyes. Ohio State has a second-year defensive coordinator in Matt Patricia, who coached in massive NFL games for years. He was the New England Patriots' defensive play-caller during a good portion of the late dynasty years. Patricia can likely handle game planning against Luster.
After the way the 2025 season ended, the Buckeyes' defense may want to make a statement against their overmatched MAC opponent to get the 2026 campaign started the right way.
That statement may be putting a dent in the college football world's enjoyment of a certifiable meme. Luster's game is no joke; he's just relatable to the under-six-foot college football-viewing crowd. Especially those fans who are also of the hoss variety.
Ohio State can delay the feel-good part of his story.
Buckeyes can contain Keldric Luster with strong tackle play
Luster's style is to smash into the A-gap as a north-south runner rather than bounce to the outside. Three-technique tackle Eddrick Houston, nose tackle John Walker Jr., three-tech/nose tackle James Smith, and nose tackle Will Smith Jr. can make sure Luster doesn't get very far.
The Cardinals' interior offensive line is weak. Ball State averaged 3.5 yards per rushing attempt across 452 team rushing plays last season. The Cardinals as a group gave up 49 sacks last year. There were no major transfers to address this.
The massive and athletic Buckeyes defensive front may have a feast in front of it this Saturday during Week 1.
Luster's breakout may have to wait for Week 2 when Ball State takes on Stony Brook.
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