It’s a little-known fact that Ball State wide receiver Dante Ridgeway is leading the nation in receiving yards.

Ridgeway leads all Division I-A receivers with 989 yards, almost 100 yards more than second-place Jarrett Hicks from Texas Tech, who has 894.

“I looked at his stats and I thought it was a misprint,” NIU football coach Joe Novak said. “He’s caught over 70 passes, and when I saw that, I did a double take. I couldn’t believe it.”

Ridgeway’s 77 catches also lead the nation and is more than double NIU receiver Dan Sheldon’s 34 catches. Sheldon, with 768 yards, ranks seventh in the nation among receivers.

“Those are some amazing stats,” Sheldon said, “but there aren’t a lot of similarities, because we don’t pass that much as a team sometimes.”

BSU coach Brady Hoke was just as surprised by the statistics.

“I don’t know if he knows or the team knows,” the second-year coach said. “He just goes about his work on a daily basis.”

Ridgeway, a Decatur native, has seen 55 percent of the Cardinals’ total passes this season.

After finishing fourth in the MAC for total receiving yards last season, the junior now has become not only the top receiver but the focal point of BSU’s offense.

“We’ve gone to him a lot,” Hoke said. “He’s had a lot of opportunities, which has been a big positive for him.”

Novak and the Huskies will try to contain Ridgeway on Saturday as NIU heads to Muncie, Ind.

“He’s gotten a lot of attention from our competitors,” Hoke said. “Over the last two years, he’s made some big catches for us. He’s got a great work ethic and he’s a great competitor.”

Sheldon didn’t remember hearing Ridgeway’s name last year when NIU topped the Cardinals at home 48-23. Most likely because it was one of Ridgeway’s quieter games as he caught four passes for 44 yards.

“He’s been at the top of the receiving chain for some time,” Sheldon said. “I know his numbers and how well he’s doing.”