Blue Key Victory Bell

Blue Key Victory Bell

Ball State Cardinals
Sport	Football
First meeting	October 18, 1924 Indiana State, 47–0
Latest meeting	September 13, 2014 Indiana State, 27–20
Next meeting	September 16, 2023
Trophy	Victory Bell
Statistics
Meetings total	65
All-time series	Ball State leads, 38–24–1
Largest victory	Indiana State, 47–0 (1924)
Longest win streak	Ball State, 6 (1988–2003)
Longest unbeaten streak	Indiana State, 3 (1924–1931)
Current win streak	Indiana State, 1 (2014–present)

[Interactive fullscreen map]

Locations of Ball State and Indiana State

The Blue Key Victory Bell is presented to the winner of the college football game between Ball State University and Indiana State University.^{[1][2][3][4][5]} The two schools met regularly between 1924 and 1991 but sporadically since that season. They have competed for the Victory Bell since 1940; from 1924 to 1947 they were Indiana Intercollegiate Conference rivals and from 1951 to 1967 they were Indiana Collegiate Conference rivals. Ball State was a regional campus of Indiana State University from 1918 to 1961; since the 1961–62 academic year, Ball State has operated independently.

History

Early in the series, games would be played either at Terre Haute, Indiana (hosted by Indiana State) or Muncie, Indiana (hosted by Ball State). The first two games between the schools took place at Terre Haute in 1924 and 1925; then the series between the schools continued on a near home-and-home basis from 1931 to 1983. From 1984 to 1989, the games were played at a neutral site, Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis; during this era, Indiana State moved down to Division I-AA (now Division I FCS) while Ball State remained Division I-A (now Division I FBS). The last home-and-home cycle for this game was in 1990 and 1991. Since 2002, all games in this series have been played in Muncie. The Victory Bell continues to be the official game trophy, even though the Ball State/Indiana state series has become less frequent since the 1990s.

In 1940, the Blue Key chapters at both Indiana State and ball State agreed to donate a bell to the winner of the football game between their two schools.^[6]

On September 13, 2014, Indiana State beat Ball State for their first win over Ball State since 1987.^[7] The two schools are scheduled to meet again on September 16, 2023.^[8]

Game results

Ball State victories

Indiana State victories

Tie games

No. Date Location Winner Score 1 1924 Terre Haute Indiana State 47–0 2 1925 Terre Haute Indiana State 20–7 3 1931 Terre Haute Indiana State 13–7 4 1932 Muncie Ball State 12–0 5 1933 Terre Haute Indiana State 9–6 6 1934 Muncie Ball State 15–6 7 1935 Terre Haute Indiana State 12–6 8 1936 Muncie Indiana State 3–0 9 1937 Terre Haute Ball State 7–0 10 1938 Muncie Ball State 13–9 11 1939 Terre Haute Ball State 28–7 12 1940 Muncie Indiana State 27–7 13 1941 Terre Haute Ball State 7–0 14 1942 Muncie Ball State 7–0 15 1946 Terre Haute Indiana State 3–0 16 1947 Muncie Ball State 14–10 17 1948 Terre Haute Ball State 10–7 18 1949 Muncie Ball State 34–6 19 1950 Muncie Ball State 32–0 20 1951 Muncie Tie 0–0 21 1952 Terre Haute Ball State 33–0 22 1953 Muncie Ball State 33–6 23 1954 Terre Haute Indiana State 14–13 24 1955 Muncie Ball State 19–6 25 1956 Terre Haute Ball State 26–14 26 1957 Terre Haute Ball State 20–0 27 1958 Muncie Ball State 26–8 28 1959 Terre Haute Indiana State 29–8 29 1960 Muncie Indiana State 26–23 30 1961 Muncie Indiana State 4–0 31 1962 Terre Haute Indiana State 22–0 32 1963 Muncie Ball State 15–7 No. Date Location Winner Score 33 1964 Terre Haute Indiana State 17–0 34 1965 Terre Haute Ball State 52–15 35 1966 Muncie Ball State 31–20 36 1967 Terre Haute Ball State 26–24 37 1968 Muncie Indiana State 20–14 38 1969 Muncie Indiana State 26–0 39 1970 Terre Haute Ball State 28–26 40 1971 Muncie Ball State 20–17 41 1972 Terre Haute Ball State 21–10 42 1973 Muncie Ball State 18–17 43 1974 Terre Haute Indiana State 31–22 44 1975 Muncie Ball State 20–16 45 1976 Muncie Ball State 24–9 46 1977 Terre Haute Ball State 42–18 47 1978 Muncie Ball State 7–0 48 1979 Terre Haute Indiana State 18–13 49 1980 Muncie Ball State 28–21 50 1981 Terre Haute Indiana State 31–7 51 1982 Muncie Indiana State 17–0 52 1983 Terre Haute Indiana State 35–14 53 1984 Indianapolis Indiana State 34–6 54 1985 Indianapolis Ball State 29–27 55 1986 Indianapolis Ball State 16–3 56 1987 Indianapolis Indiana State 24–23 57 1988 Indianapolis Ball State 24–10 58 1989 Indianapolis Ball State 34–27 59 1990 Muncie Ball State 42–0 60 1991 Terre Haute Ball State 14–10 61 2002 Muncie Ball State 23–21 62 2003 Muncie Ball State 31–7 63 2014 Muncie Indiana State 27–20 Series: Ball State leads 38–24–1

See also

• List of NCAA college football rivalry games

References

1. "ISU football defeats Ball State 27-20 to win Victory Bell". Tribune-Star. September 14, 2014. Archived from the original on 2015-02-26. ISU defeated in-state rival Ball State 27-20 at Scheumann Stadium on Saturday.
2. "Victory Bell game between Ball State Indiana State on Saturday". Muncie Free Press. September 10, 2014. Archived from the original on October 16, 2014. Retrieved 2014-10-11. That interstate rival has not played in a decade and Ball State won the last matchup 31-7 in 2003.
3. "Ball State loses Victory Bell to Indiana State, stumbles on last possession". Muncie Free Press. September 14, 2014. Archived from the original on October 5, 2014. Retrieved 2014-10-11. With Family Weekend bringing more fans besides the interstate rivalry, it took more than an hour to move traffic out of the stadium with the large crowd.
4. "Perish, Indiana State push past Ball State 27-20". USA Today. Associated Press. September 13, 2014. Retrieved 2014-10-11. The Indiana State vs. Ball State game is played for the Victory Bell, which was returned to the Sycamores for the first time since 1987.
5. "Previewing Ball State vs. Indiana State". The Indianapolis Star. September 11, 2014. Retrieved 2014-10-11.
6. "Football Gameday Central: Sycamores Battle Ball State For Victory Bell Saturday". Indiana State. September 13, 2014. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
7. "The Bell Tolls For Sycamores In 27-20 Victory At Ball State". Indiana State Sycamores. September 13, 2014. Retrieved September 24, 2014.
8. "Ball State Cardinals". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved April 23, 2019.