Ball State ‘looking forward’ to hosting this year’s Monon Bell Classic

By ANDREW CHERNOFF

WISH-TV | wishtv.com

For the first time in 104 years, the Monon Bell Classic will be played at a neutral site.

On Friday, it was announced that this year’s college football matchup between rivals Wabash College and DePauw University will take place at Ball State University’s Scheumann Stadium.

Ball State Director of Athletics Jeff Mitchell told News 8 Sports’ Andrew Chernoff that DePauw Director of Athletics Stevie Baker-Watson reached out to Mitchell about the possibility of Ball State hosting the annual rivalry.

DePauw could not host the game this season because of the demolition of the school’s “Blackstock Stadium and the construction of the Blackstock Stadium and Athletics Performance Center which will open in fall 2028,” according to DePauw.

“We had to wait several months before our football schedule was released by the Mid-American Conference (MAC) for this year before I knew we would have an available date,” Mitchell said.

Mitchell said they were targeting the date of Saturday, Nov. 14 to play the game. Once the MAC football schedule was released and the Cardinals did not have a game on that date, the school was able to work out the details to ultimately host the Wabash vs. DePauw matchup.

“Really looking forward to hosting this historic rivalry,” Mitchell said. “It’s a great opportunity for Muncie. It’s a great opportunity for Ball State to showcase our beautiful campus and to celebrate one of the longest-running sporting traditions in the state of Indiana.”

This will be the 132nd edition of the Monon Bell Classic between Wabash and DePauw. The rivalry started in 1890 and has only been played on a neutral site seven times prior to this year. “The 1915 through 1917 games as well as the 1919 through 1921 contests were played at Washington Park in Indianapolis with the 1922 contest moved to Irwin Field in Indianapolis,” according to a news release.

“Scheumann Stadium will provide both fan bases with an excellent experience while maintaining the traditions that have become so important to both institutions,” Baker-Watson said in a news release.

Kickoff for this year’s Monon Bell Classic is set for 1 p.m. EDT. General admission tickets will be $50 each plus Ticketmaster fees and are scheduled to go on sale in September.

DePauw has won the last four meetings in the rivalry, including a 41-20 victory this past November in Crawfordsville, Ind.

This story was originally published by WISH-TV at wishtv.com/sports/football/college-football/monon-bell-classic-ball-state/