Rising Junior - QB Cade Ballard pushing for the No. 1 spot
Cade Ballard was recruited from Greeneville TN with a Rivals rating of 5.4 in 2019. No doubt, size was a factor in his modest Rivals rating. At 5-foot-9, 205 pounds, Ballard is an inch shorter, but 20 pounds heavier than Doug Flutie, a player who overcame concerns about his lack of height by winning the Heisman Trophy while playing for Boston College in 1984.
6'3 is the prototypical height for a pro-style quarterback in Division 1. Big enough to command the pocket. Big enough to make all the throws. Big enough to take a hit. Option quarterbacks, on the other hand, are generally shorter than their pro-style counterparts; so Ballard was a good physical fit for the Monken running offense.
Spring Prospects
With Maurice Bellan moving from QB to slotback, Ballard joins Tyhier Tyler and Jemel Jones as one of three returning QBs with game experience. All three have shown that they are capable of running the offense, but Ballard is probably the best passer of the three. Joining those three in competition for the starting job is rising sophomore Bryson Daily, who is moving up from the scout squad and will get plenty of snaps this spring as well.
High School Record
Ballard’s size didn’t seem to slow him down much in high school.
He led his team to two state titles in 2017 and 2018 with 30 consecutive wins and no losses and was named Class 4A Mr. Football in his junior and senior years. Along the way Ballard compiled some pretty impressive statistics.
Career Statistics in High School
• Passes Attempted - 746
• Passes Completed - 561
• Yards Passing - 9,403
• Touchdowns Passing - 123
• Rushing Yards - 2,659
• Rushing 60
• Total Yards - 12,062
• Total Touchdowns - 183
Ballard’s All Time Rankings in Tennessee
• 6th all time in Career Passing Yards
• 3rd all time in Career Touchdown Passes
• 1st all time in Career Touchdowns Rushing + Passing
• 3rd all time in Career Total Offense (Rushing & Passing Only)
• 4th and 5th in single Season TDs (Rushing & Passing) - 60 in 2018 and 59 in 2017
• 8th in Total Offense for a Season (Rushing & Passing) - 4133 yards in 2017
Ballard’s Performance as a Black Knight
A number of our fans think that Ballard has not seen enough playing time since he entered as a direct report freshman in 2019, and we would not disagree with that opinion.
2020
Ballard started the 2020 season either 4th or 5th on the depth chart but moved up when Jabari Laws was lost for the season and he became the 3d starter of the season when Christian Anderson and Jemel Jones were sideline by injuries.
Ballard played a total of 61 snaps in 3 games in 2020. He played just one snap in his college debut against ULM, but became the starter in games against UTSA and Mercer, sharing 2 wins with Tyhier Tyler who alternated with him at quarterback in both games.
Ballard had 9 Rush Attempts for 20 yards (2.2 ave) in 2020 with 1 Rushing TD in the UTSA Game
He completed 2 of 4 Pass Attempts (50%) for 106 yards with a 53 yard TD and no INTs for an Efficiency Rating of 355.1.
He received an Overall rating of 79.4 from Pro Football Focus with a Pass rating of 81.5 and Run rating of 61.3.
2021
With the recovery of seniors Anderson and Laws, Ballard dropped back down in the depth charts. Anderson and Laws became the preferred passing quarterbacks, while Tyler returned as Monken’s favorite rushing quarterback, while Ballard spent most of the season watching from the sidelines.
Ballard appeared in just 2 games in 2021 with a total of 31 snaps, 30 of which came in the second half of the Bucknell game, where he led the team on two touchdown drives of 80 and 97 yards. PFF awarded him a rating of 79.4 for that game with an 81.6 rating in passing and a 65.3 rating as a runner.
He played just one snap against Wake Forest, and it’s undoubtedly the one play he’d ask for a do-over if they were allowed. He was sent in as the holder on a field goal attempt and took a little too much time passing the ball to his intended receiver, allowing the WF safety time to step into the passes path for a pick six. PFF awarded him 42.0 rating for that unfortunate error.
Ballards statistics for the 2021 season are not impressive. He had 7 rushing attempts for 40 yards (5.7 per carry) with no rushing TDs. He was 0 for 2 in passing attempts for the season with the 1 interception for an efficiency rating of -100.
That being said, he was impressive running the reserve offense in the Bucknell game in a solid demonstration of good option football.
**To chat with other Army fans about this article and more, please visit The 12th Knight message board**