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Jan. 13, 2009

Joe Hernandez SUBJECT: Associate A.D. Football’s Nate Davis to Declare for the Draft Football Media Contact MUNCIE, Ind. -- Nate Davis (Bellaire, /Bellaire H.S.), a junior on the 2008 Ball State Uni- Cell: 765.730.4614 versity football team, has announced he will leave school early and declare himself eligible for the 2009 National [email protected] Football League Draft, according to Ball State head football coach Stan Parrish. Paula Haughn “We are excited for Nathan and his family,” Parrish says. “He has worked hard to get to this point in his Assistant Director of career, and we wish him well. He is an excellent football player with all the necessary skills to play at the next Communications level. He will always be a part of the Ball State football family, and we will look forward to watching him in the Football Media NFL next season.” Secondary Contact Davis was selected the Mid-American Conference Offensive Player of the Year this season after completing Cell: 765.716.1837 [email protected] 258-of-401 passes for 3,591 yards with 26 touchdowns and only eight as a senior. He became the first Ball State quarterback in school history to pass for more than 3,000 yards in a season twice in a career. Davis threw for a school record 3,667 yards in 2007. A 2008 All-MAC First Team selection, Davis is one of 10 Brad Caudill finalists for the Manning Award, which goes to the nation’s top quarterback. He completed the Assistant Director of season ranked 13th in the nation in passing efficiency (156.97) and 19th in total offense (278.79). Davis was Communications 22-12 as a starting quarterback for the Cardinals, including a 17-5 MAC mark as a starter. “It is with much excitement and some regret I announce my decision to declare for the NFL draft,” Davis says. Matt McCollester Assistant Director of “I am excited to accept the challenge of being a professional athlete. It is something I have dreamed about Communications since childhood. My regret is taking on this challenge at this time means I am leaving Ball State with one year of eligibility remaining and without a MAC Championship. I have no regrets about leaving at this time without a Lisa Rusche college degree because I am confident I will return to campus to complete my degree. I made that promise to Graduate Assistant my mom, and I made that promise to myself. I will be a Ball State graduate. That is important to me, and it is Communications important to the many people who invested in my academic success while I was a student-athlete. I want to thank all the people who were invaluable to me as a student with special academic needs, most im- Robin Carter Secretary portantly Ramon Avila Sr., and Tiffany Hecklinski. They gave me the confidence I could compete academically Communications & at Ball State. I want to thank Coach Hoke, Coach Parrish and the entire coaching staff for believing in me and Marketing my teammates throughout my three years. We did not accomplish our main goal of winning the MAC title, but we did do our part to put Ball State football on the map. I cannot thank Coach Hoke and Coach Parrish enough for convincing me to choose Ball State. I have made friends and memories here that will last a lifetime. I want to thank my teammates. A quarterback receives a great deal of the hype and attention from outsiders when a football team does well, but there is no doubt we accomplished everything as a team. At no point was I more important than Robert Brewster, Bryant Haines, MiQuale Lewis, Brandon Crawford, Chris Miller or any of my teammates. I would like to single out two of my teammates -- and Dante Love -- for special thanks. I will never forget the way Joey Lynch treated me during my freshman season. He was a great quarterback and a great senior leader. I learned a lesson from him about sacrifice, humility and loyalty by the way he treated me when I took over the starting position. One day Joey will be a great head coach, hopefully at Ball State. I also want to thank Dante Love. Dante set the standard at Ball State in terms of commitment, work ethic and cour- age. I hope I can carry Dante’s spirit with me to the NFL. He was our most valuable player. I would like to thank my fellow students at Ball State. The support of the football team this year made this season special. The final home game against Western Michigan is something we’ll never forget. Finally, I’d like to say I made this decision after a lot of thought. I know what I’m about to do won’t be easy. But it’s what my heart and head want to do at this time. It’s the right thing for me and my family at this time. It’s the same feeling I had when I chose Ball State. Not everyone understood why I picked Ball State. Not everyone will understand why I’m leaving now. I hope everyone will support my decision because I plan to represent Ball State through- out my career and the rest of my life.” Davis completed his career as the Ball State record holder in yards (9,233), touchdown passes (74), pass at- tempts (1,124), pass completions (678), 250-yard passing games (20) and 300-yard passing games (9). Ball State completed the 2008 season with a 12-2 overall record and an 8-0 conference ledger. The Cardinals completed the regular season with a 12-0 mark, won the MAC West Division Championship, advanced to the school’s first-ever MAC Championship Game and made back-to-back bowl game appearances for the first time in Ball State history.

-JH-

www.ballstatesports.com Nate QB Davis ** Nate Davis By The Numbers 13 Single Season Record Watch Career Record Watch 6-2 • 217 • Jr./Jr. Passing Yards in a Season: TD Passes in a Career: Major: Communication Studies 1. 3,667, Nate Davis, 2007 1. 74, Nate Davis (2006-08) Hometown: Bellaire, Ohio 2. 3,591, Nate Davis, 2008 2. 44, Talmadge Hill (2000-03) High School: Bellaire 3. 2,337, Neil Britt, 1983 4. 2,148, , 1993 Passing Yards in a Career: 5. 1,982, Joey Lynch, 2005 1. 9,233, Nate Davis (2006-08) • 2008 Mid-American Conference Offensive Player of the Year • 6. 1,975, Nate Davis, 2006 2. 6,271, Mike Neu (1990-93) • 2008 All-MAC First Team • • One of 10 Finalists for the 2008 Manning Award • Pass Attempts in a Season: Pass Attempts in a Career: • 2008 Walter Camp and Maxwell Award Watch Lists • 1. 478, Nate Davis, 2007 1. 1,124, Nate Davis (2006-08) • 2008 and 2007 Manning Award Watch List • 2. 401, Nate Davis, 2008 2. 970, Mike Neu (1990-93) • 2008 Ball State John Magnabosco Co-MVP • 3. 348, Neil Britt, 1983 3. 901, Talmadge Hill (2000-03) • 2007 Ball State John Magnabosco MVP • 4. 314, Joey Lynch, 2005 Career Superlatives 5. 301, Talmadge Hill, 2001 Pass Completions in a Career: • Became the first player in BSU history to throw for 3,000 yards or 6. 295, Mark O’Connell, 1980 1. 678, Nate Davis (2006-08) more in back-to-back seasons 2. 580, Mike Neu (1990-93) • Managed a 22-12 record as a starting quarterback Pass Completions in a Season: 3. 524, Talmadge Hill (2000-03) • Tallied a 17-5 Mid-American Conference mark as a starter 1. 270, Nate Davis, 2007 • Threw at least one TD pass in 29 of his last 31 games • With his first pass at Akron, a 23-yard completion to Dante 2. 258, Nate Davis, 2008 250-Yd. Career Passing Games: Love, Davis set the Ball State career record for passing yards 3. 206, Neil Britt, 1983 1. 20, Nate Davis (2006-08) • With his seventh completion of the game vs. Northern Illinois, 2. 6, Talmadge Hill (2000-03) Davis set the Ball State school record for completions in a Most TD Passes in a Season: 3. 6, Joey Lynch (2003-06) career on a 33-yard pass to MiQuale Lewis 1. 30, Nate Davis, 2007 2. 26, Nate Davis, 2008 300-Yd. Career Passing Games: 2008 Season Superlatives 1. 9, Nate Davis (2006-08) • Ranked 13th in the nation in passing efficiency (156.97) • Ranked 19th in the country in total offense (278.79) MAC Career Record Watch • Threw for at least 250 yards in a game 8 times in 2008 • Completed 64.3 percent of his passes Pass Attempts in a Career: • Completed .875 percent of his passes against Northeastern, 1. 1,507, Tim Lester (1996-99) - Western Michigan which ranks as the third best single-game mark in BSU history 5. 1,427, Brian McClure (1982-85) - Bowling Green • Tied his career high with 64 rushing yards vs. Western Michigan 9. 1,124, Nate Davis (2006-08) - Ball State Nate Davis Touchdown Passes in 2008 vs. Buffalo 22 yards to Louis Johnson Pass Completions in a Career: vs. Western Michigan 40 yards to Louis Johnson 1. 939, Byron Leftwich (1999-2002) - Marshall vs. Central Michigan 20 yards to Louis Johnson 8. 766, (2003-05) - Toledo 18 yards to Daniel Ifft 10. 678, Nate Davis (2006-08) - Ball State 45 yards to Louis Johnson 11 yards to Briggs Orsbon Passing Yards in a Career: vs. Miami University 17 yards to Darius Hill 1. 11,903, Bryon Leftwich (1999-2002) - Marshall vs. Northern Ill. 6 yards to Darius Hill 8. 9,233, Nate Davis (2006-08) - Ball State 25 yards to Daniel Ifft 22 yards to Louis Johnson 20 yards to Darius Hill TD Passes in a Career: vs. Eastern Mich. 5 yards to Darius Hill 1. 100, (1997-99) - Marshall 6 yards to Briggs Orsbon 2. 89, Byron Leftwich (1999-2002) - Marshall vs. Western Ky. 5 yards to Briggs Orsbon 5. 84, (2001-03) - Miami University 20 yards to Louis Johnson 6. 74, Nate Davis (2006-08 vs. Kent State 31 yards to Myles Trempe vs. Indiana 45 yards to Myles Trempe SINGLE-GAME CAREER HIGHS vs. Akron 21 yards to Briggs Orsbon Most Passing Yards: 422 at Nebraska (2007) 25 yards to Darius Hill Most Pass Attempts: 49 vs. Rutgers (2007) vs. Navy 61 yards to Dante Love 30 yards to Briggs Orsbon Most Passes Completed: 31 vs. Buffalo (2008 MAC Championship) 8 yards to Dante Love Most Passes Intercepted: 3 vs. WMU (2006) 35 yards to Darius Hill Most TD Passes Thrown: 4 (5 times) -- vs. Northeastern 8 yards to Darius Hill 2008 vs. Navy, vs. Northern Illinois and at Central Michigan 49 yards to Dante Love Best Pass Completion Pct.: .875 (21-of-24) vs. Northeastern (2008) 27 yards to Daniel Ifft G/GS Effic. Att-Cmp-Int Pct Yds TD Long Passing Yds/G 2008 14/14 156.97 401-258-8 64.3 3591 26 61 256.5 2007 13/13 139.13 478-270-6 56.5 3667 30 77 282.1 2006 12/7 146.65 245-150-8 61.2 1975 18 81 164.6 Career 39/34 147.13 1124-678-22 60.3 9233 74 81 236.7 2007 (So.): Started all 13 games at quarterback to earn second letter . . . set the Ball State single-season record with 3,667 passing yards, shattering the previous mark of 2,377 by Neil Britt in 1983 . . . attempted 478 passes to set a Ball State single-season record . . . completed a school record 270 passes . . . threw a Ball State single-season record 30 touchdown passes, shattering the previous mark of 18 set by Joey Lynch in 2005 and tied by Davis in 2006 . . . threw for a career-high 422 yards at Nebraska, which ranks as the third best single-game mark in Ball State history . . . had five games of 300 or more yards passing . . . attempted a season high 48 passes at Western Michigan and at Indiana, which rank as the second highest single-game marks in Ball State annals . . . completed a season-high 26 passes vs. Nebraska and vs. Indiana, which tie for the seventh best single-game records in Ball State history . . . tied his career high with four touchdown passes vs. Eastern Michigan, which ties for the fifth highest single-game total in Ball State history . . . threw three touchdown passes in five games -- at Navy, at Nebraska, vs. Buffalo, vs. Western Kentucky and vs. Toledo . . . led a Ball State offense which set single-season records for points scored (409), yards passing (3,704), passes completed (273), passes attempted (483), yards in total offense (5,640) and first downs (288) . . . passed for over 200 yards in 11-of-13 games . . . rushed for a career- high two touchdowns vs. Toledo, while also passing for three TDs in that same game . . . rushed a career-high 12 times for a career-best 64 yards, including a career-long run of 46 yards at Illinois . . . ranked 15th in the nation in total offense and 27th in the nation in passing efficiency . . . received Ball State’s John Magnabosco Award as Ball State’s Most Valuable Player.

2006 (Fr.): Played in all 12 games and started seven games at quarterback as a true freshman to earn first letter . . . tied the Ball State single-season record with 18 touchdown passes . . . threw for 1,975 yards, which ranked as the fourth best single-season effort in Ball State history . . . completed 150 passes, which ranked as the eighth-best single-season mark in BSU annals . . . completed a career-high 27 passes vs. Northern Illinois, which tied for fifth for the most passes completed in a single game in Ball State history . . . threw for a season-high 298 yards vs. Northern Illinois in his first career start . . . threw four touchdown passes vs. NIU, which ties for the fifth best single-game total in the Ball State record books . . . threw three TD passes vs. Eastern Michigan in collegiate debut, while completing 7-of-8 passes for 108 yards . . . also threw for three TDs at Buffalo . . . ranked 17th in the country in passing efficiency with a 147.25 mark . . . combined with fellow quar- terback Joey Lynch to set a then Ball State single-season record with 27 touchdown passes . . . combined with Lynch to throw for 385 yards vs. North Dakota State, which is the fifth highest single-game passing total in Ball State history . . . the two threw for 360 yards vs. Western Michigan, which is the seventh best single-game mark in BSU’s record books . . . helped Ball State rank 15th in the nation in passing efficiency and 16th in passing offense . . . helped the Cardinals set a then single-season school record with 3,112 passing yards and 27 touchdowns . . . received Ball State’s John Hodge Award as the team’s most outstanding freshman.

High School: Earned three letters in football for Coach John Magistro . . . Football: Helped team to a 13-1 record as a senior and a 21-8 mark in his career . . . helped the Big Reds to a 10-0 conference record and a state semifinal appearance as a senior . . . completed 125-of-207 passes for 2,932 yards and 42 touchdowns as a senior . . . all-state and all-conference as a senior . . . threw for a Bellaire career record 7,348 yards and 81 touchdowns . . . set a school career record with 113 total touchdowns . . . three-time all-state and three-time all-conference . . . Basketball: Earned four letters in basketball . . . eclipsed the school’s 50-year-old career scoring record and scored over 1,800 points . . . helped basketball team to a 15-0 start as a senior.

Personal: Son of Charles Davis and Linda Davis . . . one brother, , who played football at Kent State, and is now a member of the ’s Kansas City Brigade . . . played football at the same high school as National Football League veteran Joey Galloway . . . born May 25, 1987, in Bellaire, Ohio . . . full name is Nate Charles Davis.