Falcons Look to Get Back Into MAC East Race as They Host Temple on Saturday

Bowling Green Falcons (3-4, 1-2 MAC)
vs. Temple Owls (5-2, 3-1 MAC)
Game 8: Sat., Oct. 22 • 3:30 p.m.
Doyt L. Perry Stadium (24,000)
Bowling Green, Ohio
Series vs. Toledo: BGSU leads 7-4-0
Series Streak: Temple - 1
Last Meeting: Temple 28, BGSU 27 (at Temple, 10/16/10)
Television: BCSN • Greg Franke (Play-by-Play) and Tom Cole (Analyst)
Radio: Falcon Sports Radio Network
Todd Walker (play-by-play) and John Gibson (analyst)
WBGU 88.1 FM: TBA
Live Stats: www.bgsufalcons.com

Game Notes

Falcon Quick Hits
• The Bowling Green State University football team is in the middle of its 93rd season of football with an all-time record of 495-343-51 (.587).
• Saturday's contest with Temple will be the 12th contest between the two teams, with BGSU holding a 7-4-0 series advantage.
• Head coach Dave Clawson returns for his third season at the helm of the football team and returns all but one of his assistant coaches from 2010. Clawson has an all-time record of 70-69 and is 12-20 at BGSU.
• The Orange and Brown will be in search of its second home win of the 2011 season, which would be more than all of last year.
• Kamar Jorden has 138 career receptions, 12th most in school history.
• BooBoo Gates was named the National Kick Returner of the Week by the College Football Performance Award.
• The Falcons have already surpassed last year's win total (2-10 in 2010).
• BGSU boasts one of the youngest teams in football with 54 players that are freshmen or redshirt freshmen and another 27 players that are sophomores or redshirt sophomores.
• Sticking with the youth, on the two-deep alone, the Falcons feature 10 seniors, seven juniors, 17 sophomores and 18 freshmen.
• The Falcons have five players on preseason watch teams: Kamar Jorden (Biletnikoff), Eugene Cooper (Biletnikoff), Ben Bojicic (Rimington), BooBoo Gates (Paul Hornung) and Dwayne Woods (Butkus).
• Defensive tackle Chris Jones and offensive lineman Ben Bojicic will serve as team captains. The Falcons elected season captains prior to the Toledo game. Jones and Bojicic will remain team captains for the remainder of the 2011 season.

Radio Broadcast
All BGSU football games will be carried by the affiliates below. Todd Walker (play-by-play) and John Gibson (analyst) will once again serve as the radio broadcast team.
WFRO (99.1 FM) * - Fremont, Ohio
WWSR (93.1 FM) - Lima, Ohio
WCIT (940 AM) - Lima, Ohio
WLQR (1470 AM and 106.5 FM) - Toledo, Ohio
WONW (1280 AM) - Defiance, Ohio
WHKW (1220 AM) - Cleveland, Ohio
WFXN (102.3 FM) - Mansfield, Ohio
WXXF (107.7 FM) - Ashland, Ohio
*Flagship

Watch On-Line
In cooperation with BCSN and the America One Network, selected Falcon games will be available on video at www.bgsufalcons.com for a small charge.

Scouting the Falcons
The BGSU football team enters Saturday's contest with a 3-4 record after dropping a 28-21 loss to Toledo last Saturday. The Falcons' three wins have been against Idaho (32-15), Morgan State (58-13) and Miami (37-23).

BGSU will be led by head coach Dave Clawson, who is 70-69 all-time in his career and 12-20 as the head coach of the Falcons. He is 8-11 in Mid-American Conference play.

A Look at the Falcon Offense
The Falcon offense ranks sixth in the Mid-American Conference in scoring (29.4), fifth in total offense (402.1), second in pass offense (258.9) and sixth in rushing (143.3).

BGSU is led by sophomore quarterback Matt Schilz, who is fourth in the conference in passing (242.4) and sixth in passing efficiency (142.1). He is also tied for seventh in the country with 17 touchdown passes (first in the MAC).

Schilz has a pair of wide receivers that are one of the top duos in the nation in Kamar Jorden and Eugene Cooper. Combined the two have 79 catches for 1,017 yards and 12 touchdowns.

The rushing attack is much improved from a year ago as well and is averaging 143.3 yards per game. Last season the Falcons ranked last in the nation at 62.8 yards per game on the ground.

Freshmen Anthon Samuel and Jamel Martin, along with sophomore Jordon Hopgood, give the Falcons three running backs they can count on. Samuel is third in the MAC at 98.7 yards per game. Martin filled in nicely for Samuel in the West Virginia game (out due to an ankle injury), rushing for 111 yards on 23 carries. Hopgood is tied for the team lead with four rushing touchdowns.

A Look at the Falcon Defense
Defensively the Falcons rank ninth in the MAC in scoring defense (29.6), 11th in total defense (407.7), eighth in rushing defense (194.1) and eighth in passing defense (213.6).

Linebacker Dwayne Woods leads the team with 58 tackles and has chipped in with 8.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, two forced fumbles and an interception. Fellow classmate Chris Jones anchors the front line and has 4.0 sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss in 2011.

The secondary features one of the youngest in the country. The Falcons, who play a 4-2-5 defense, regularly feature two sophomores and three freshmen. Safety Aaron Foster is second on the team with 43 tackles.

A Look at The Falcon Special Teams
The Falcons' special teams have had some ups and downs in 2011. With the Falcons trailing 28-27 (with 2.1 seconds remaining in the game) five weeks ago versus Wyoming they had an extra point blocked and then missed their first extra point the following week versus Miami. In stepped junior Steve Stein, who has since made all 11 of his extra points and is two-for-three on field goals since earning the starting placekicker job.

BGSU's Brian Schmeidebusch ranks sixth in the country with a 46.3 punting average. Of his 32 punts, 12 have gone for at least 50 yards, while another 13 have landed inside the opponents' 20.

Home Sweet Home
The contest with Temple is in the middle of a four-game homestand in a five week stretch. BGSU, which is 1-2 at home this season, lost last week versus Toledo, but also play Northern Illinois (Nov. 8) and Ohio (Nov. 16) in the next three weeks at home.

Thank You Fans
In the BGSU/UT game the Falcons reported an attendance of 22,408, the largest home crown under current head coach Dave Clawson. The previous-high during the Clawson era was 22,396 versus Boise State in 2009.

Series With Temple
The Falcons lead the all-time series with Temple 7-4-0, but Temple won a nail-biter last season 28-27 inside Lincoln Financial Field. BGSU is 4-0 all-time at home versus the Owls and have out-scored Temple 180-81 in those four contests. BG and Temple have not played inside “The Doyt” since 2007, a game the Falcons won 48-35.

Ball Security
After opening the season with a plus-3 turnover margin in the win over Idaho, the Falcons are a minus-11 in the turnover department since the Idaho contest.

Opponent        Turnover Margin    Result
at Idaho                      +3                W, 32-15
vs. Morgan State        -1                 W, 58-13
vs. Wyoming               -5                 L, 28-27
at Miami                     +1                W, 37-23
at WVU                       -5                 L, 55-10
at WMU                    Even              L, 45-21
vs. Toledo                    -1                L, 28-21

Five Weeks, Five Awards (Streak Snapped) - And Started Back Up
Only once this season have the Falcons not received a weekly award from the Mid-American Conference office. From weeks 1-5, BGSU earned five awards by five different players: Chris Jones (week 1), Eugene Cooper (week 2), Dwayne Woods (week 3), Ray Hutson (week 4) and BooBoo Gates (week 5). Gates got his second award of the season, after being named week seven's East Division Special Teams Player of the week, giving the Orange and Brown six awards in a seven week stretch.

Ten Falcons Named to Phil Steele's Mid-Season All-MAC Squads
Ten members of the Bowling Green State University football team were named to Phil Steele's 2011 All-MAC Mid-Season team, the second-most among Mid-American Conference schools.

Chris Jones, Dwayne Woods and Brian Schmiedebusch were named to the first team, Eugene Cooper, Kamar Jorden and BooBoo Gates (kick returner) were named to the second team and Anthon Samuel, Alex Bayer, Ben Bojicic and Dominic Flewellyn were placed on the third team.

Schmiedebusch was named to the fourth-team Mid-Season All-American Team. Only Cooper, Jorden and Bojicic are seniors among those 10 players.

Schilz in the Record Books
Schilz has thrown for 3,920 yards and 25 touchdowns, while completing 60.7 percent of his passes in 17 career starts. The sophomore is starting to find his name in the record books. His 60.7 completion percentage is fifth in BGSU history (366-of-603 passing). By the end of the 2011 season Schilz could be in the top-5 in pass attempts, pass completions, passing yards and touchdown passes.

Dynamic Duo
Senior wide receivers Eugene Cooper and Kamar Jorden have combined for 79 catches, 1,017 yards and 12 touchdowns through seven games. The 79 catches and 1,017 yards are third-most by a duo in the MAC, while the 12 touchdowns are tops in the league.

Cooper has 37 catches for 496 yards and six touchdowns, while Jorden, an all-MAC first-team performer in 2010, has 42 catches for 521 yards and six scores. Jorden recorded 96 catches for 1,100 yards last season, but hauled in just four touchdowns (has six already this season). Both Cooper and Jorden are on the Biletnikoff Preseason Watch List.

Cooper Tire
Eugene “Binky” Cooper came into the 2011 season with 17 catches and 130 yards and no touchdowns in his Falcon career. Through six games (did not play versus WVU) in 2011 the senior has smashed all of his personal records (see numbers above).

In the first game of 2011 Cooper had four catches for 110 yards and two touchdowns versus Idaho. The following week he had six catches for 134 yards and four touchdowns versus Morgan State. Versus Wyoming he had eight receptions for 79 yards, but did not score. Against Miami he had just three catches for 51 yards, but those numbers would have been season-highs for him in 2010. Versus Western Michigan he had a career-best nine catches.

Kamar The Star
While playing in just his second season with the Orange and Brown (redshirted in 2009), senior Kamar Jorden ranks 12th in school history with 138 career receptions.
Player, Years - Career Receptions
Freddie Barnes, 2006-09 - 297
Charles Sharon, 2002-05 - 232
Cole Magner, 2001-04 - 215
Robert Redd, 1998-02 - 211
Corey Partridge, 2005-08 - 182
Mark Szlachcic, 1989-92 - 182
Stan Hunter, 1982-85 - 176
Reggie Thornton, 1986-89 - 158
Steve Sanders, 2002-05 - 156
Kurt Gerling, 1998-01 - 152
Ronald Heard, 1986-89 - 139
Mark Dowdell, 1981-84 - 138
Kamar Jorden, 2010-11 - 138

Baby Legs
Freshman Anthon Samuel's 98.7 per game average on the ground is the third-highest yards per game rushing among freshmen in the country. Only North Carolina's Giovani Bernard (109.6) and Connecticut's Lyle McCombs (100.7) have a better per game average by a freshman running back.

In Samuel's first career game he rushed for 141 yards on 22 carries in the win versus Idaho. He was the first Falcon freshman to rush for over 100 yards in his first career game since Freddie Barnes, who ran for 158 yards on 29 carries versus Wisconsin on Sept. 2, 2006. In week two the freshman went over 100 yards again (122 yards on 11 carries), becoming the first Falcon to post back-to-back 100-yard games since P.J. Pope did it back in 2004. Versus Miami Samuel had 121 yards on 16 carries and had 105 yards versus Toledo. Samuel is the first BGSU running back to have four 100-yard games in a season since P.J. Pope had five in 2004.

Handing Out 100's
Through seven games the Falcons have five 100-yard games, all by freshmen running backs. Samuel has four, and Martin ran for over 100 yards versus West Virginia when Samuel was out with an ankle injury.

Most 100-yard Games in a Season (BGSU)
Dave Preston (1974) * - 8
Fred Durig (1951) * - 8
Zeb Jackson (1993) - 7
Dave Preston (1976) * - 7
Paul Miles (1971) * - 7
Fred Durig (1952) * - 5
Paul Miles (1973) * - 5
Dave Preston (1975) * - 5
Bryant Jones (1982) - 5
P.J. Pope (2004) - 5
Anthon Samuel (2011) - 4
Joe Alls (2002) - 4
*BGSU Hall of Fame Member

Going For a Grand
Anthon Samuel has 592 rushing yards this season, despite missing one game due to injury. The freshman is 408 yards shy of 1,000 for the year, something that has only been done 10 times (only seven different players have reached 1,000) in BGSU history and something that has never been done by a Falcon freshman.
Name                     Class    Yards
Fred Durig                 Jr.         1,444
Dave Preston            So.        1,414
Paul Miles                 So.        1,185
Dan Saleet                So.        1,114
P.J. Pope                   Jr.        1,098
Bryant Jones            Jr.        1,051
Bernard White            Jr.        1,036
Paul Miles                Sr.        1,030
Paul Miles                Jr.        1,024
P.J. Pope                   So.       1,005
Anthon Samuel        Fr.        ???

Running Wild
Helping Samuel to his 100-yard performance versus Miami was a 96-yard run in the fourth quarter. With the Falcons pinned back on their own 4-yardline Samuel went untouched for a 96-yard touchdown, the longest run in school history. The previous long was a 93-yard run for Mike McGee versus Central Michigan in 1987.

Drive Stopper
The overall defensive numbers for the 2011 Falcons are just average this season, but what the Falcons have done on third downs has been incredible. BGSU is third in the MAC, holding opposing offenses to just 33.7 percent on third down conversions. This week's opponent, Temple, leads the conference (31.6 percent).

Laying the Wood
Dwayne Woods was one of the top tacklers in the nation in 2010, finishing sixth in the country with 134 tackles in 12 games. This season, his tackle numbers are down due to the defense getting off the field sooner, but his impact has been just as strong.

The junior leads the team with 58 tackles, has 8.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, two forced fumbles and an interception. The middle linebacker was named MAC East Defensive Player of the Week after recording 12 tackles and two tackles in a loss versus Wyoming.

Jones'n For Sacks
Defensive tackle Chris Jones led the team with 6.0 sacks in 2010, and has continued to lead the way with 4.0 sacks this season. He was named MAC East Defensive Player of the Week following the week one win over Idaho after recording three tackles for loss, two sacks, a forced fumble and a safety. Jones has 26 tackles, 4.0 sacks, 7.5 tackles for loss and a forced fumble in 2011.

Gates Named National Kick Returner of the Week & MAC East Special Teams POW
BooBoo Gates, a member of the Bowling Green State University football team, was named the National Kick Returner of the Week by the College Football Performance Award, a website dedicated to college football.

Gates had four returns for 152 yards (38.0 avg.), including an 88-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter versus Toledo to get the Falcons to within one score.

Gates is first in the Mid-American Conference and eighth nationally with a 29.8 yard return average and one touchdown. The sophomore has a 77-yard return versus West Virginia and has had eight of his 18 returns go for over 25 yards.

Gates Swings for the Fences
With the 88-yard kick return for a score versus Toledo, sophomore BooBoo Gates has two kick returns for scores in his career. His first came as a freshman versus Kent State, where he ran 75 yards for a touchdown. Gates is the first Falcon in school history to ever have two kick returns for scores in his career.

Falcons Special Versus Toledo
The Falcons dominated the special teams versus Toledo this past week in all four phases. We have already mentioned BooBoo Gates' kick return for a score, but the Falcons nearly blocked two punts versus the Rockets, executed a fake punt for a first down in the fourth quarter (punter Brian Schmiedebusch ran for 18 yards on a 4th-and-7) and held Eric Page to 40 yards on two kick returns and 13 yards on two punt returns.

Zach is Back
Zach Akenberger, a fullback and special teams player for the Orange and Brown played versus Toledo on Oct. 15, 2011. Big deal, right? Well, the fifth-year senior broke both the tibia and fibula in his right leg versus Temple on Oct. 16, 2010 and was told he would probably never play football again. Flash forward 364 days and the Bowling Green, Ohio native got back onto the football field. Below is his time-line to recovery.
• Injury occurred on Oct. 16, 2010 vs. Temple.
•Surgery was on Oct. 19, 2010 - Metal rod was inserted into his leg during surgery
•Mid-Novemeber, 2010 - he was able to put partial weight on his leg with the help of one crutch
• Jan., 2011 - discussion between Zach, his family, athletic trainers and BGSU team doctors that Zach would not be able to play football again.
• Feb., 2011 - Zach came to the BGSU athletic training staff stating he would do whatever it took to get back onto that field.
• May, 2011 - began jogging on land
• Aug., 2011 - began sport agility drills
• Oct. 15, 2011 - Plays against Toledo

Bojicic Named to Rimington List ... Again
Ben Bojicic, a member of the Bowling Green State University football team was named to the Rimington Award Watch List on May 19, 2011. This is the third consecutive year Bojicic was named to the watch list, an award given annually to the nation's top center. The Farmington Hills, Mich., native is one of 42 players on the list and is one of just 14 players that were nominations a year ago.

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