A Dream Come True For Ball Brothers
August 30, 2024 | Football
STARKVILLE – Growing up, the Ball brothers - Justin and Cameron – learned to share a lot of things together such as toys, clothes and even a bathroom.
Even now in their early 20s, the Balls are still sharing with one another. They both share the same measurables at 6-foot-6, 250-pounds, play the same position (tight end) and currently live together as roommates.
However, one thing that the brothers have never shared is the football field.
When Justin Ball was starring as senior at Gonzaga College High School in Maryland, his little brother Cameron Ball was busy playing on the junior varsity team as a ninth grader.
On Saturday though, the Ball brothers will have the opportunity to take the field together for the first time thanks to Mississippi State after both arrived as transfers back in January.
"I've always wanted to play with my brother," Cameron said. "I was a freshman when he was a senior. I was on JV when he was starting (on varsity) and as soon as he graduated, that's when I started playing varsity. I've never really gotten an opportunity to be on the field with him at the same time and really learn from him to hone my craft. So, when I got the opportunity and call from coach Jeff Lebby, I had to jump on that. I had to make that dream come true."
Justin began his college career at Vanderbilt in 2019 and spent five seasons with the Commodores where he played in 38 career games and earned 16 starts. He hauled in 22 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown during his time in the Music City and even served as the team captain this past year before graduating with a degree in medicine, health and society.
In 2022, Cameron started blazing his own trail at Buffalo. After only appearing in one game as a true freshman and earning a redshirt, he saw action in 10 games and drew six starts last fall catching eight balls for 82 yards.
Following the 2023 season, a now 23-year-old Justin decided to explore his options for his final year of eligibility. Meanwhile, Cameron also chose to enter the transfer portal with neither expecting there would be an opportunity to eventually land in the same destination.
Justin, who'd seen Lebby's offense firsthand twice while playing at Vandy, decided to join forces with the first-year head coach at Mississippi State. And it wasn't long before little brother followed suit.
"That wasn't the plan," Justin said. "I entered the portal for my personal reasons and found a home. Then he ended up entering the portal and it was able work out. It's a dream come true. I never thought I'd be able to play with him in a college environment. That's an opportunity we couldn't pass up on and a dream come true for both of us."
Perhaps the people most excited about the decisions are their parents. For the past two years, their father Corey – a former college football player at Maryland – and mother Angela would split up on Saturdays with one traveling to watch Justin play at Vandy or Cameron with Buffalo.
But now that decision is simple. They'll either be in Starkville or wherever the Bulldogs are at on the road.
"My parents are excited and we'll have family coming every single game no matter where it's going to be at," Justin said. "It's going to be a fun year."
The Ball brothers are two monumental pieces of Lebby's plan to revamp tight end room. MSU tight ends managed only 15 receptions and one touchdown a year ago, but Lebby has huge aspirations for the position with Justin and Cameron serving as two players at the forefront of those plans.
"The tight end position will forever be a huge piece of what we do from a production and scheme standpoint in being able to create different mismatches and a lot of different pictures," Lebby said. "Justin Ball has had a great camp. He's a guy that's going to play a ton of football for us. He's a big, physical dude that loves to play ball and is another that's played a lot of football…They've both done a really good job. Cam might be as improved of a guy as we've got inside our locker room from spring ball to right now. He's got to continue to strain and be physical every day. But he's a guy that has a chance to have a really big future here."
Not only are the Ball brothers going to help the Bulldogs on the field this fall and in the future, they are also aiding in their own improvement. Justin holds the experience edge, but Cameron is also quick to offer his older brother advice and critique whether its on the practice field, film room or just sitting around their apartment.
"Every single day whether it's in the facility or even at home, we're chatting about football," Justin said. "We've done a great job helping each other out. Obviously, I have a lot more experience than him. But he's young and very smart and has his own ideas and thoughts. There's a lot of times I'll come back to the sideline and he's giving me feedback. It's been great having him, like having my best friend around."
That brotherly bond was apparent at an early age and given Cameron a built-in best friend since the day he was born.
"He's always been my best friend," Cameron Ball said. "We didn't have any other siblings, so he's who I always spent my days with as a kid. Even when we went off to college, we'd talk every day on the phone. That's my best friend right there."
Growing up was naturally competitive in the Ball household. Whether it was playing the Nintendo Wii, wrestling on the trampoline or racing in the backyard, the brothers were always going head-to-head in something.
"I was always faster than him, so any race I would win," Cameron said. "But anything to do with physical strength, he'd get me on that."
Family and football are obviously two things near and dear to both brothers. There are, however, some differences between the two. Justin has more of the musical gift and can play the bass guitar, tuba and piano. Cameron simply prefers to listen to music while but also enjoys reading and playing video games.
"We're a lot alike," Cameron Ball said. "We have the same morals and the same values. We grew up in a tight-knit family. But we are two different people. We like to do different things and activities. The way we go about our days is different and we have two different schedules."
But for the first time ever on Saturday at 5 p.m., their football schedules will converge at Davis Wade Stadium where the brothers will run onto the field together to begin sharing a season full of memories that they will both cherish the remainder of their lives.
