A tightly-contested quarterback competition consumed a lot of oxygen during fall camp for the Ball State Cardinals. Ahead of the week one matchup at Kentucky coach Mike Neu announced Layne Hatcher will earn the start against the Wildcats.
Ball State is the fourth school Hatcher has attended in his college career. The Arkansas native began his career as a walk-on at Alabama before transferring to Arkansas State. After three years in Jonesboro he transferred to Texas State in 2022. In four years as a starter he completed about 62% of his passes for 10,080 yards, 84 touchdowns and 35 interceptions.