Bowling Green State University Athletics
Sept. 1 - Lewis Among 38 On Walker Award List
December 19, 1999 | Football
Sept. 1, 1999
The award is presented annually to recognize the nation's premier running back for his accomplishments on the field, achievement in the classroom, and citizenship in the community.
The Toronto, Ontario native is one of four Mid-American Conference backs being considered joining Miami University senior Travis Prentice, Central Michigan University senior Eric Flowers, and Western Michigan junior Robert Sanford.
Eight semifinalists will be selected in late November with the winner announced on Dec. 9 on the Home Depot College Football Awards Show to be aired by ESPN2. The Doak Walker banquet will be held on Jan. 24 in Houston, Texas.
The selection committee is composed of 182 people representing print and electronic media, former All-Pro and All-America running backs, and selected special representatives.
Former University of Texas running back Ricky Williams won the award in 1997 and 1998.
Lewis, one of only three sophomores on the prestigious list joining Derrick Nix from Southern Mississippi and Ray Robinson from North Carolina State, enjoyed a banner freshman campaign leading the team with 753 yards to rank eighth in the MAC.
His season yardage total and carry total (163) established records for a freshman at Bowling Green. He had a pair of 100-yard days, including a 191-yard outburst against Ohio. His 29 carries in that game was the most by a freshman in school history while his yardage was second on the list of first-year players and 12th all-time.
Only the third freshman to lead the program in rushing since the became eligible in the early 70s, Lewis started five of the 10 games he played in last season and had two rushing touchdowns.
August 25 Release
The Bowling Green State University football team opens its 81st season of collegiate football with a road game at Pittsburgh on Sept. 4. The game will be the first between the two programs.
THE SERIES: Bowling Green and Pittsburgh will be meeting for the first time when they battle in the season opener.
SEASON OPENERS: The Falcons are looking to put an end to a six-game losing skid in season openers. Bowling Green won season openers against MAC foes in head coach Gary Blackney's first two seasons, but have lost the last six to non-league foes Virginia Tech (1993, 33-16), North Carolina State (1994, 20-15), Louisiana Tech (1995, 28-21, 1997, 30-23), Alabama (1996, 21-7), and Missouri (1998, 37-0). Of the six losses, all but the 1995 contest with Louisiana Tech were played on the road. The last time BG opened the season with a win on the road was the 1990 victory at Cincinnati by a 34-20 score.
OPTIMISM IS HIGH: With the return of 28 letterwinners, including 15 starters, the Falcon coaching staff and players are enthusiastically looking forward to the 1999 season. After four consecutive seasons under the .500 mark, many think the program will make a serious run at the MAC East Division title. The Falcons offensive unit returns eight starters and players with significant playing time during their careers at the other three spots. On defense, BG returns seven starters.
HOME SWEET HOME: The Falcons have enjoyed a great deal of success at home under head coach Gary Blackney posting a 29-9-1 mark, a 24-7-1 mark in MAC games. Despite an 11-9 mark in their last 20 games at home, BG has averaged 30.0 points (1170 pts.) at home over the last 39 contests while allowing just 18.2 points (711 pts.). In MAC play at home, BG has averaged 30.1 points (964 pts.) and allowed an average of just 17.2 points (551 pts.). Over the last 16 seasons, BG has compiled a 61-17-4 (.768) record and in the 33 seasons Perry Stadium has been the home of Falcon football, BG has a 105-51-6 (.667) mark.
Winningest Active Coaches
(Div. I-A, By Winning Percentage) 1. Phillip Fulmer (Tennessee) .859 (67-11) 2. Joe Paterno (Penn State) .791 (307-80-3) 3. Steve Spurrier (Florida) .781 (113-31-2) 4. Bobby Bowden (Florida St.) .772 (292-85-4) 5. R.C. Slocum (Texas A&M) .766 (94-28-2) 6. John Robinson (UNLV) .741 (104-35-4) 7. Dennis Erickson (Oregon St.) .737 (113-40-1) 8. Lavell Edwards (BYU) .726 (243-91-3) 9. Paul Pasqualoni (Syracuse) .702 (102-43-1) 10. John Cooper (Ohio State) .702 (178-74-6) 11. Lou Holtz (South Carolina) .690 (216-95-7) 12. Dennis Franchione (TCU) .665 (120-60-2) 13. Bill Snyder (Kansas State) .662 (77-39-1) 14. Fisher DeBerry (Air Force) .651 (120-64-1) 15. Gary Pinkel (Toledo) .643 (57-31-3) 16. Jackie Sherrill (Miss. St.) .637 (154-87-4) 17. Sonny Lubick (Colorado St.) .625 (70-42) 18. Randy Walker (Northw'n) .621 (59-35-5) 19. Don Nehlen (West Virginia) .619 (191-116-8) 20. Joe Tiller (Purdue) .605 (57-37-1) 21. Ken Hatfield (Rice) .605 (139-90-4) 22. Gary Blackney (BGSU) .600 (53-35-2) (minimum five years as I-A head coach)
DON'T BEAT YOURSELF: One of the areas head coach Gary Blackney has stressed since coming to the program in 1991 is don't beat yourself with turnovers. In 1996, the Falcons set an NCAA record losing just one fumble all season. Bowling Green has lost just 20 fumbles in the last 32 games, and just 22 fumbles in the last 36 games dating back to the end of the 1995 season. Since the start of the 1993 season, BG has lost the ball by fumble in just 27 of the 66 games. Over that period, BG has run 4,735 plays and returned 355 kicks while losing the ball just 33 times. BG was 12th in the nation in turnover margin (+1.00) in 1996.
OFFENSIVE ABOUT THE RUN: The Falcons won four of their five home games last season and in the process were very successful running the ball. BG accumulated 2,252 yards (450.4 average per game) of total offense in those five games, 63% of its season total, with 1,416 (283.2 average per game) of that coming on the ground, 70% of its season total. BG scored 200 points (a 40.0 average per game) at home, 78% of its season total. After collecting just 295 yards of total offense in the first two games of the season, the BG offense did not have less than 300 in any of the last eight contests averaging 408.0 yards per game. In the final four home games (all wins), BG averaged 487 yards of total offense with an average of 314 of that coming on the ground. The Falcons won their four home games last season by an average of just under 27 points per contest with their lone setback a 38-31 decision to Central Florida, a game in which the Falcons led 24-14 at halftime.
BIG DAY RUNNING THE BALL: The Falcons had 424 of its 502 yards in the win over the Kent (Oct. 24, 1998) on the ground. It was the best day on the ground by a Falcon team in just under 20 years as the 1978 team piled up 416 yards against Toledo (Nov. 7, 1978). The Falcons also scored all six of its touchdowns in the Kent game on the ground matching the total of the BG team against Southern Illinois on Nov. 15, 1975. The school record for rushing yards in a game is 496 with 10 rushing scores the school mark in that category. BG also equalled the school record for rushing first downs with 23 in the contest. BG set that mark in 1971 against Kent. The Falcons put big numbers on the board again in the win over Akron (Nov. 7, 1998) matching the 23 first downs by rush on their way to 371 yards on the ground and seven touchdowns, the most since the program had seven against Ball State on Sept. 21, 1968. Below is a breakdown of BG's key offensive statistics in its five home games last season.
TEAM FAST FACTS: BG is a perfect 8-0 in MAC openers under head coach Gary Blackney...the Falcons are 18-12-1 on the road under head coach Gary Blackney in MAC play...overall on the road during Blackney's tenure the Falcons are 22-26-2 and they have a 4-12 mark in non-league road contests with the wins coming against Temple (1995), Cincinnati (1994), Navy (1994), and Missouri (1995)...after compiling a 14-1-1 mark on the road in conference play between 1991 and 1994, BG has struggled to a 3-12 mark in their last 15 MAC road games...BG put an end to a six-game MAC road losing streak and a nine-game overall road losing skid with its win in the 1998 season finale against Northern Illinois...BG has posted a 5-3 mark against non-league schools at home during the tenure of head coach Gary Blackney...the Falcons have posted a 17-27 overall record the last four seasons after BG teams posted a record of 36-8-2 the previous four years...BG has held 19 of 32 MAC foes to two touchdowns or less at home since 1991, while in all MAC games, BG defensive units have held 36 of 64 league foes to two touchdowns or less...seven of BG's last 14 home games have been decided by seven points or less...BG has a 548-305 edge in points off of turnovers over the last eight seasons...BG has had fewer turnovers than its opponent in 46 of the 90 games played since 1991, and in only 28 of those contests have they committed more turnovers than their opponent...BG is 33-13 in the 46 games in which they have had fewer turnovers than the opposition since 1991...over the last eight seasons, BG has not had a turnover in 19 games and has committed just one in 27 others...BG has lost more than one fumble only six times in the last 75 games (a total of 36 lost fumbles in those 75 games)...BG has held 22 of its last 33 opponents to fewer rushing yards than what they came into the game averaging...the Falcons have blocked 32 kicks (13 punts, nine field goals, 10 extra points) since 1991...BG has scored 11 touchdowns and recorded two safeties as a direct result of the kick block or on its ensuing possession, including touchdowns on two of their blocked punts in 1996...BG had seven kick blocks in 1991, six in 1992 and 1993, four in 1994, one in 1995, six in 1996, and one in 1997...the Falcons had two blocked kicks last season - a PAT vs. Penn State and a punt vs. Akron...last season, the Falcons had 46 red-zone chances, 45 of those in the last nine games, scoring 38 times, 31 of those touchdowns...the opposition has had 37 red-zone opportunities, scored 31 times with 27 of those touchdowns...the Falcons converted 47% (78-of-167) of its third-down plays last season while in MAC play, BG converted 55% (72-of-132) of its third-down plays...BG converted 43 of its last 67 (64%) third-down plays over the last 14 quarters of the season...BG had 107 plays of 10 or more yards the last eight weeks last season (an average of over 13 per game), 57 of those in the last four home contests...the Falcons scored 134 points (44.7 avg.) in its last three home games to tie the modern-day school record set first by the 1994 team for points in any three consecutive games in the same season...BG ran 81, 81, 83, 71, and 99 plays in the its last five contests last season, an average of 83 per game...the Falcons topped the 2,000-yard barrier in rushing in 1998 becoming only the third team since 1980 to do that.
OFFENSIVE LINE IS THE CORNERSTONE: One of the most experienced offensive lines in Div. I-A this season will be the cornerstone of the team. Senior center Doug Dorley (Normal, Ill./Normal H.S./Southern Illinois), senior right tackle Chad McCarthy (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic), senior left guard Mark Kautzman (Bainbridge, Ohio/Kenston), junior right guard Eric Curl (Livonia, Mich./Stevenson), and junior left tackle Rob Fehrman (Byesville, Ohio/Meadowbrook) comprise the fivesome which should be one of the best in the country. The group started all 11 games last season as a unit with McCarthy the most experienced with 32 career starts. They have started a total of 104 games among the five the third-highest total in the country behind only Buffalo (113 starts among its returning starting linemen) and Wisconsin (108). The right side of the line, Kautzman and Fehrman, have started the last 22 games side-by-side. Dorley is joined by sophomore flanker Kurt Gerling as the only returning All-MAC players. Dorley was an honorable mention selection last season. Obviously, the line played a large role in the Falcons enjoying their best season in more than 20 years running the ball last season. Senior Kevin Steinke (Wausau, Wis./Everest) is expected to move into the starting role at tight end having played in all 33 games in his career while starting eight times.
THE PASSING GAME: The skilled position players on offense are talented and there is depth. Junior Ricky Schneider (Amherst, Ohio/Steele) returns at quarterback having played in 15 games the last two seasons making six starts. He has completed over 50% of his passes over the last two years for 1,254 yards and five scores. He passed for a career high 293 yards in the 1997 season finale against Marshall. He will be throwing to two talented receivers in sophomores Kurt Gerling (Sterling Heights, Mich./Henry Ford) and Robert Redd (Dayton, Ohio/Wayne). Gerling was the Freshman of the Year in the MAC last season averaging 19.3 yards, fourth-best in school history, per reception with six touchdowns. He was sixth in the MAC in reception yards per game and was a second-team all-conference selection. Redd averaged 18.6 yards, fifth-best in school history, on his 17 catches with one score. The duo became the first freshmen in school history to top 100 receiving yards in a game with Redd collecting 131 yards against Akron and Gerling 126 in the Ohio game. Sophomore Aaron Alexander (Kokomo, Ind.) had four receptions last season and should play an even bigger role this season.
RUNNING GAME SHOULD BE SOLID: With a talented and experienced group up front, the Falcons will feature the running game with three of the top four runners from a year ago returning. Sophomore Godfrey Lewis (Toronto, Ontario/Michael Power) was the top runner a year ago averaging 4.6 yards per tote for 753 yards and two scores. His rushing total was among the top figures in the country for first-year players. His rushing total and number of carries set highs by a freshman at BG. He had two 100-yard rushing performances with a high of 191 yards against Ohio. Senior Steve Holmes (Brunswick County, N.C./West Brunswick H.S./Phoenix College) and sophomore John Gibson (Columbus, Ohio/Beechcroft) are pushing Lewis for the top spot. Holmes was second on the team last season with 384 yards (4.9 avg.), 220 of those in the Kent game, while Gibson averaged 5.1 yards per carry in limited action. Senior co-captain Brent Martin (Upper Arlington, Ohio) returns at fullback after enjoying his best season rushing for 295 yards (5.5 avg.). Sophomore Eric Clark (Zanesville, Ohio) is expected to also see playing time at fullback. BG's 23 rushing touchdowns last season was the highest total since 1977 while the team per carry average of 4.3 was the best since 1964. The Falcons' average of 215.4 yards per game on the ground ranked 13th in the country and was the best average by a BG team since 1976.
SPECIAL TEAMS: Head coach Gary Blackney expects the coverage portion of the special teams to be very good this season with the depth and athleticism much improved over the last few seasons. Senior Jason Strasser (Toledo, Ohio/St. Francis) returns to handle the place-kicking duties after enjoying his best season last year. Strasser was fourth in the country hitting 11-of-12 field goal attempts last season while leading the team for a second successive season with 64 points. He has converted 72-of-76 extra-point attempts in his career. The only question mark comes in the punting game where red-shirt freshman Pat Fleming (Kanata, Ontario/Earl of March) takes over with no collegiate experience. Junior Ryan Diepenbrock (Lima, Ohio/Bath) returns for his third season as the snapper for punts and placements.
LINEBACKERS LEAD DEFENSE: The Falcons will put one of the best linebacking corps in the MAC on the field this season. Senior Joe O'Neill (Twinsburg, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) returns at one of the outside spots after leading the team with 95 tackles last season. Also the most experienced player on the defensive side of the ball, O'Neill has averaged nine tackles per game in his 29 career starts. Sophomore Khary Campbell (Toledo, Ohio/Sylvania Southview) is likely to move from the outside to the middle linebacking spot after starting all 11 games last season on the outside where he was third on the team with 75 tackles. Sophomore Garry Fisher (Columbus, Ohio/Briggs) is likely to start opposite O'Neill on the outside after starting six games a year ago and playing in all 11 contests. The back-up players at each position are also expected to see a considerable amount of playing time. Red-shirt freshmen Geno Burden (Cleveland Heights, Ohio) and Chris Haneline (North Olmsted, Ohio/St. Ignatius) are looking for their first collegiate experience at the two outside spots while sophomore Chris Della Vella (North Olmsted, Ohio/St. Ignatius) started five games at middle linebacker last season recording 45 tackles.
SECONDARY IS A MIXTURE: The defensive backfield is a combination of experienced, but young, players and players with little or no collegiate experience. The two safeties - sophomores Chad Long (Clyde, Ohio) and Karl Rose (Columbus, Ohio/Bishop Hartley) - return with starting experience. Long started all 11 games a year ago and two in 1997 before an injury ended his season. He was one of the top freshman defensive backs in the country a year ago recording 93 tackles, second on the team, splitting time between free and strong safety. Rose chalked up 60 tackles starting eight games at free safety and added one of BG's four interceptions last season. Senior Will Sullivan (Wichita, Kansas/Southeast H.S./Hutchinson C.C.) played in eight games a year ago, but at wide receiver and on special teams. He made a successful switch to cornerback in the spring and has won the starting nod on the boundary side. On the other side, sophomore Chris Hubbard (Detroit, Mich./Chadsey) and junior Ken Dobbs (University Heights, Ohio/Cleveland Heights) are battling for the playing time. Hubbard sat out last season after undergoing successful reconstructive knee surgery shortly after spring practice. He lettered in 1997 for his play on special teams and a small amount of playing time at tailback. Dobbs has earned a letter in each of his first two seasons starting six games last season at the boundary cornerback spot.
NEW FACES COMPRISE THE LINE: After junior co-captain D.J. Durkin (Boardman, Ohio), the line features three relatively inexperienced players. Durkin will start for a third season having recorded 33 stops in each of his first two seasons. He started all 11 games a year ago at end. Junior Brandon Hicks (Fairborn, Ohio) played in all 11 games and started twice last season at noseguard, where he begins the season as the starter. Red-shirt sophomores Ryan Wingrove (Parkersburg, W. Va./South) and Malcolm Robinson (Fostoria, Ohio) will start at end and tackle, respectively. Wingrove was the most pleasant surprise of spring drills taking over at the end spot on defense, making the switch from tight end in the first week of practice. Both Wingrove and Robinson saw very limited playing time last season.
PITTSBURGH NOTES: The Panthers are coming off a 2-9 season in which they finished last in the eight-team Big East with an 0-7 record...they beat Villanova and MAC member Akron last season...head coach Walt Harris is in his third season...his first team compiled a 6-6 record and a berth in the Liberty Bowl...Pitt features one player on each side of the ball who earned first-team All-Big East honors a year ago...junior flanker Latef Grim led the conference in receiving yards per game with 906 yards (60 receptions, 15.1 avg., 9 TDs) in 11 games (90.6 avg., 25th in the country)...he was second in the Big East in receptions per game (6.0) and 22nd nationally, an average which set a school record...his reception total was second in school history while his yardage total was third...senior cornerback Hank Poteat heads the list of seven returning starters on defense after earning first-team all-league honors a year ago...his six interceptions led the Big East and his average of 0.60 per game was fourth nationally...he was credited with 92 tackles and has averaged 23.7 yards on kickoff returns in his career and 7.7 yards on punt returns...Pitt returns four offensive linemen led by senior Mark Browne (6-5, 285) and junior center Jeff McCurley (6-5, 290)...the top running back is likely to be a familiar name to Ohio fans as former Dublin Scioto H.S. star Nick Goings is listed as the #1 tailback...Goings played for two seasons at Ohio State before transferring and sitting out last season...Pitt also returns last year's top two rushers, junior Kevan Barlow, who had 533 yards and four touchdowns and sophomore Brandon Williams (394 yards, 2 TDs)...junior Matt O'Connor is expected to be the quarterback after playing in seven games last season and throwing a total of 39 passes...the defense returns seven of its top nine tacklers from last season led by Poteat and senior strong safety Seth Hornack...Hornack led the team with 98 tackles and added four interceptions...senior free safety D.J. Dinkins had 72 tackles...senior defensive end Julian Graham is the top returning player with six tackles for a loss and 3.5 sacks last season...Pitt was 2-5 at home last season.
Compare The Teams
() - 1998 Conference Rank BGSU Total Offense: 366.4 (6) Rushing Offense: 215.2 (3) Passing Offense: 151.2 (8) Scoring Offense: 26.5 (4) Total Defense: 381.3 (9) Rushing Defense: 159.9 (5) Passing Defense: 221.4 (10) Scoring Defense: 28.4 (9) Turnover Margin: -0.27 (t-6) 3rd Down (Off.) - 78/167 (1) 3rd Down (Def.) - 72/154 (11) 4th Down (Off.) - 6/12 Avg. Time of Poss. - 33:27 (1) Kickoff Return - 16.7 (11) Punt Return - 6.8 (8) Net Punting - 38.6 (1)PITTSBURGH Total Offense: 321.8 (6) Rushing Offense: 115.8 (8) Passing Offense: 206.0 (4) Scoring Offense: 21.3 (6) Total Defense: 348.3 (3) Rushing Defense: 146.4 (4) Passing Defense: 201.9 (6) Scoring Defense: 30.4 (6) Turnover Margin: -0.82 (7) 3rd Down (Off.) - 64/168 (6) 3rd Down (Def.) - 61/161 (4) Avg. Time of Poss. 30:36 (4) Kickoff Return - 20.6 (4) Punt Return - 7.5 (5) Net Punting - 33.0 (6)
Bowling Green Two-Deep
Offense (Pro I) LT 79 Rob Fehrman (6-7, 300, r-Jr.) 78 Dennis Wendel (6-7, 275, r-Fr.) LG 73 Mark Kautzman (6-5, 305, Sr.) 68 Mike Bodnar (6-3, 290, r-So.) C 60 Doug Dorley (6-4, 290, r-Sr.) 72 Jon Mazur (6-2, 280, r-Fr.) RG 63 Eric Curl (6-2, 280, r-Jr.) 66 Greg Kupke (6-3, 255, r-Fr.) RT 62 Chad McCarthy (6-4, 280, r-Sr.) 71 Matt Tyla (6-2, 275, r-Jr.) TE 87 Kevin Steinke (6-4, 250, Sr.) 86 Ross Durham (6-6, 245, r-Fr.) FL 4 Kurt Gerling (6-2, 195, r-So.) 18 Matt Bunsey (5-9. 180, Jr.) SE 5 Robert Redd (5-10, 195, So.) 12 Aaron Alexander (6-0, 195, r-So.) QB 1 Ricky Schneider (6-3, 210, r-Jr.) 15 Andy Sahm (6-6, 200, r-Fr.) FB 43 Brent Martin (6-1, 240, r-Sr.) 46 Eric Jones (5-11, 230, r-Sr.) 40 Eric Clark (5-10, 240, So.) TB 25 Godfrey Lewis (5-9, 190, So.) 27 John Gibson (5-10, 215, r-So.) 36 Steve Holmes (5-9, 180, Sr.) 22 Joe Alls (5-10, 185, r-Fr.)Defense (4-3) OLB 10 Garry Fisher (5-10, 210, r-So.) 33 Geno Burden (6-1, 205, r-Fr.) E 90 Ryan Wingrove (6-3, 235, r-So.) 57 Casey Williams (6-1, 240, r-So.) NG 92 Brandon Hicks (6-2, 250, Jr.) 88 D.J. Owchar (6-3, 265, r-Fr.) T 97 Malcolm Robinson (6-4, 290, r-So.) 58 Rodney Dawson (6-3, 260, r-Jr.) E 44 D.J. Durkin (6-2, 240, r-Jr.) 51 Larry Witherspoon (6-3, 230, r-Fr.) OLB 32 Joe O'Neill (6-2, 225, r-Sr.) 50 Chris Haneline (6-1, 215, r-Fr.) MLB 2 Khary Campbell (6-1, 210, r-So.) 49 Chris Della Vella (6-1, 225, r-So.) BC 8 Will Sullivan (5-10, 175, Sr.) 38 Justin Turk (5-10, 190, r-Fr.) SS 26 Chad Long (6-0, 195, r-So.) 9 Sergio Lund (6-0, 185, So.) FS 6 Karl Rose (6-0, 185, So.) 34 Andre Davis (6-2, 185, Fr.) FC 19 Chris Hubbard (5-7, 175, r-So.) 24 Ken Dobbs (5-10, 170, Jr.)
Specialists PUNT 48 Patrick Fleming (6-2, 190, r-Fr.) 1 Ricky Schneider (6-3, 210, r-Jr.) PK 11 Jason Strasser (6-3, 170, Sr.) 89 Mike Knapp (5-9, 150, r-Fr.) HOLD 15 Andy Sahm (6-6, 200, r-Fr.) 18 Matt Bunsey (5-9. 180, Jr.) LS 99 Ryan Diepenbrock (6-2, 215, r-Jr.) 87 Kevin Steinke (6-4, 250, Sr.) KOR 22 Joe Alls (5-10, 185, r-Fr.) 36 Steve Holmes (5-9, 180, Sr.) PR 5 Robert Redd (5-10, 195, So.) 26 Chad Long (6-0, 195, r-So.)
