Morehead State University Athletics

Ballard led Morehead State football from 1994 until 2012, taking over a program that had begun the process of dropping athletic scholarships and transitioning out of the Ohio Valley Conference. In just three years, Ballard had rebuilt the Eagle program into a winner, collecting six wins in 1996. He went on to guide the Eagles to a total of 102 wins, the most of any head coach in MSU football history.
 
Ballard helped lead the Eagles into a new era as well when MSU joined the Pioneer Football League in 2001. He was named the PFL South Division's Coach of the Year four times (2002, 2003, 2004, 2005). He was named NCAA Division I-AA (now FCS) Mid-Major National Coach of the Year and Coach of the Year among I-AA Independents in 1998.  That Eagle squad ranked No. 1 among I-AA Mid-Majors by The Football Gazette.
 
During his tenure, MSU student-athletes earned 71 First-Team All-PFL honors. He also coached four NCAA Mid-Major National Players of the Year. Ballard mentored the PFL South Division Defensive Player of the Year in Craig Unger (2003, 2004) and the division's Offensive Player of the Year in David Caudill (2003). In 2009, Wes McDermott was named the league's overall Defensive Player of the Year.
 
Ballard's teams became known for high octane offense and relentless defense. Just from 1996-00, the Eagles scored more than 50 points 17 times. From 1999-01, quarterback David Dinkins became the first player in Division I-AA to pass for more than 5,000 career yards and rush for more than 3,000. Quarterback Zach Lewis set the then-career record for passing yards with 10,251 from 2009-12. During his time, the Eagle defensive unit led the nation in total defense multiple times.
 
Ballard was also a multiple-time nominee for the Liberty Mutual Division I-AA Coach of the Year. He also served as assistant coach and defensive coordinator at MSU from 1984-87.