Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcons Head to Akron in Search of 500th Win in School History
October 01, 2012 | Football
Bowling Green Falcons (2-3, 0-1 MAC)
vs. Akron Zips (1-4, 0-1 MAC)
Game 6: Sat., Oct. 6 • 2 p.m.
InfoCision Stadium (27,881)
Akron, Ohio
Series vs. UA: BGSU Leads 11-7-0
Series Streak: BGSU - 3
Last Meeting: Nov. 20, 2009 (BGSU Won 36-20)
Television: None • Watch online for free at MAC-sports.com
Radio: Falcon Sports Radio Network
Todd Walker (play-by-play) and John Gibson (analyst)
WBGU 88.1 FM: TBA
Live Stats: www.gozips.com
BGSU Football Game Notes
Akron Game Notes
Follow on Twitter: DaveMeyerBG (Football SID)
vs. Akron Zips (1-4, 0-1 MAC)
Game 6: Sat., Oct. 6 • 2 p.m.
InfoCision Stadium (27,881)
Akron, Ohio
Series vs. UA: BGSU Leads 11-7-0
Series Streak: BGSU - 3
Last Meeting: Nov. 20, 2009 (BGSU Won 36-20)
Television: None • Watch online for free at MAC-sports.com
Radio: Falcon Sports Radio Network
Todd Walker (play-by-play) and John Gibson (analyst)
WBGU 88.1 FM: TBA
Live Stats: www.gozips.com
BGSU Football Game Notes
Akron Game Notes
Follow on Twitter: DaveMeyerBG (Football SID)
Falcon Quick Hits
• The Bowling Green State University football team is in the middle of its 94th season of football and has an all-time record of 499-349-51 (.584).
• Head coach Dave Clawson is in his fourth season at the helm of the football team and has an all-time record of 74-75 and is 16-26 at BGSU.
• For the fourth consecutive year the Falcons will have all three coordinators returning. Warren Ruggiero, Mike Elko and Adam Scheier will coach offense, defense and special teams.
• BGSU is coming off a 48-8 win at home versus Rhode Island.
• This week's matchup with Akron will be the first meeting between the two schools since Nov. 20, 2009. BGSU holds a 11-7-0 all-time record versus the Zips.
• The Falcons are looking for their first two-game win streak since the beginning of the 2011 season with wins over Idaho and Morgan State.
• Anthon Samuel ranks 25th in school history with 1,221 career rushing yards.
• Chris Jones ranks fourth in BGSU history with 21 career sacks.
• Booboo Gates was named the National Punt Returner of the Week by the College Football Performance Award.
• Anthon Samuel (Doak Walker), Chris Jones (Rotary Lombardi), Dwayne Woods (Rotary Lombardi and Butkus), Brian Schmiedebusch (Ray Guy) and Alex Bayer (John Mackey) were all named to preseason watch lists.
• The Falcons will have six captains in 2012: Dominic Flewellyn (OL), Ronnie Goble (DE), Chris Jones (DT), Matt Schilz (QB), Paul Swan (LB) and Bart Tanski (WR).
• According to philsteele.com the Falcons have the 10th youngest roster in the country with 66.7 percent of the roster underclassmen.
Scouting the Offense
Quarterback Matt Schilz will be making his 28th start of his career this weekend versus Akron. Schilz, a junior, threw for over 3,000 yards last season and 28 touchdowns, all career-bests, and has thrown for 6,318 yards and 39 touchdowns in his career. He is coming off his best game of the season, completing 20-of-27 passes for 281 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Rhode Island.
It's hard to say who Schilz's top target is this year, with five different players recording double digit receptions this season. Chris Gallon (21 rec., 235 yards), Shaun Joplin (20 rec., 297 yards) and Ryan Burbrink (20 rec., 144 yards) lead the way.
At running back the Falcons will depend on Anthon Samuel. Samuel, the reigning MAC Freshman of the Year, has already surpassed 1,200 yard in his career and has seven 100-yard games in his first 14 contests.
Scouting the Defense
The Falcons return 10 starters from the 2011 team and are led by senior defensive tackle Chris Jones. Jones has 19 tackles, 9.0 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks on the year. Jones ranks 13th in the country in both categories.
As a team, the Falcons rank first in total defense (348.4) and second in scoring defense (22.4). The biggest overall improvement through five games has been the rush defense. In 2011 the Falcons allowed 203.5 yards per game on the ground, and have trimmed that number to 139.6 in 2012, ranking third in the conference.
Scouting the Special Teams
Brian Schmiedebusch, a 2011 first-team all-conference punter a year ago, will once again handle all punting duties. The junior is averaging 42.1 yards per punt this season and has a 44.3 yard per punt career average.
The field goals and extra points have been a rough spot this season for the Orange and Brown. Through five games the Falcons have used two different kickers and are 1-for-5 on field goals and 11-for-13 on extra points.
Rhode Island Recap
Bowling Green posted season highs in points (48), first downs (30), rushing yards (206), passing yards (332) and total yards (538) in the 48-8 win over Rhode Island.
Anthon Samuel had one of the finest days of his career, as he provided the Falcons with 127 yards rushing on just 17 carries. Three of those carries resulted in a touchdown, including a 31-yard effort that followed Rhode Island's only score of the game.
Matt Schilz was 20-of-27 for 281 yards and two touchdowns. Chris Gallon caught both scoring passes as part of his four reception, 43 yard day. Alex Bayer led Falcon receivers with five catches for 47 yards, as nine different players caught passes.
Bowling Green's defense was just as good. The Rams were held to just 171 yards on 54 plays (3.2 yards/play). Despite having 32 rushes, Rhode Island managed only 96 yards, and URI earned only 75 yards passing.
Saturday Afternoon Drive
As mentioned before, the Falcons posted several season-bests in the win versus the Rams. Helping those numbers were five touchdown drives of over 65 yards. BGSU had touchdown drives of 81, 90, 65, 78 and 80 yards. All five of those drives featured at least five plays. In the first four contests of the season the Falcons had just seven total touchdown drives, four of them going longer than 60 yards.
The Akron Series
Bowling Green leads the all-time series with Akron 11-7-0. The Falcons are currently ridding a three-game win streak over the Zips, with Akron's last win versus BGSU occurring in 2006.
• BGSU is 5-4-0 on the road versus Akron.
• Despite both teams being members of the East Division, the two teams have not competed since Nov. 20, 2009.
• Bowling Green has not made a trip to Akron, Ohio, since Oct. 11, 2008 inside the Rubber Bowl.
Number Game (Offense)
The Falcon offense has had its struggles early in 2012, averaging just 19.8 points and 371.0 yards per game, but let's not forget, they have faced two of the nation's top-25 defenses (Florida and Virginia Tech).
vs. Non BCS vs. BCS
28.0...............points/game.........7.0
420.7.............yards/game..........296.5
143.7...............rush/game..........117.0
277.0............passing/game........179.5
Under Center
Quarterback Matt Schilz will be making his 28th start of his career for the Orange and Brown. While still a junior, Schilz is nearing in on several BGSU school records.
• Is sixth is passing yards (6,318)
• Is fifth in passing attempts (961)
• Is fifth in passing completions (575)
• Is tied for sixth in passing touchdowns (39)
Samuel.1000
Anthon Samuel, who has only played in 14 career games (missed three games in 2011 due to injury) has already surpassed the 1,000 yard career rushing mark, becoming just the 35th Falcon in school history to do so. Samuel currently ranks 25th in school history with 1,221 rushing yards.
Up Next For Samuel
20. Phil Polak (71-73) - 1,435
21. Chris Bullock (06-09) - 1,434
22. Godfrey Lewis (98-02) - 1,431
23. Bob Ramlow (56-58) - 1,384
24. Jay Cunningham (62-64) - 1,258
25. Dave Windatt (77-80) - 1,221
Anthon Samuel (2011-PR) - 1,221
Mr. 100
As stated before, Anthon Samuel has played in just 14 games in his Falcon career, but has already produced seven 100-yard games. The last BGSU running back to record at least that many was P.J. Pope, who had nine 100-yard games in his career from 2002-05.
Who's on First?
There are a lot of firsts among the wide receiving group in 2012. Entering the year, junior Shaun Joplin was the only Falcon to see any significant playing time for the receivers. Through five games the BGSU pass catchers have:
• Ryan Burbrink, Chris Gallon, Je`Ron Stokes, Heath Jackson, Jermal Hosley, and Herve Coby have all recorded their first career catches in 2012.
• Stokes and Gallon have the only receiving touchdowns in 2012.
• First-year receivers own 58 of the 95 receptions on the year.
Number Game (Defense)
The Falcon defense has faced some great offenses already in 2011, including a pair of games versus some historically great programs in Virginia Tech and Florida. Below are defensive numbers versus the BCS and non BCS programs.
vs. Non BCS vs. BCS
16.0..............points/game........32.0
327.0.............yards/game........380.5
77.3................rush/game.........233.0
249.7............passing/game......147.5
Monster in the Middle
Senior defensive tackle Chris Jones has been a demolition machine to begin 2012. Through five games the senior has 19 tackles, 9.0 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. Jones has already been named MAC East Defensive Player of the Week twice this year and has four straight games with at least one sack. The defensive tackle is first in the MAC in sacks and second in tackles for loss.
Of the 19 tackles Jones has been involved with this season, 12 have resulted in no gain or negative yardage -- and the total minus yardage on those plays is minus-50 yards. The seven “positive” plays have gained just 20 yards (five, three (x4) two, one).
Jones'n For Sacks
Chris Jones has led the Falcons in sacks in each of the past two seasons, finishing 2010 with 6.0 and added 8.5 (led MAC) in 2011. Combined with his one sack in 2009 and his team-leading 5.5 sacks this season, Jones has 21.0 career sacks, ranking fourth in BGSU history.
BGSU Career Sack Leaders
Kevin O'Brien (1989-92) - 31.0
Diyral Briggs (2005-08) - 26.0
Devon Parks (2003-06) - 22.0
Chris Jones (2009-PR) - 21.0
Brandon Hicks (1998-2001) - 20.0
Gates Named National Punt Returner of the Week
The College Football Performance Award (CFPA) named Bowling Green State University's Booboo Gates the National Punt Returner of the Week following his efforts versus Rhode Island.
BGSU's regular punt returners, Ryan Burbrink and Heath Jackson, were both out due to injury, forcing Gates into action.
On his first return of the year he went 80 yards for a score to give the Falcons an early 6-0 advantage on the Rams. Gates' score was the fourth-longest punt return in school history and the Falcons' first punt return for a touchdown since Binky Cooper scored versus Toledo in 2010.
All Alone
In his career Booboo Gates now owns two kick returns for touchdowns, one punt return for a score and returned an interception for a touchdown in 2010, becoming the first Falcon in school history to own touchdown returns via kick, punt and interception returns.
Very Special Teams
Since head coach Dave Clawson arrived at Bowling Green, he and assistant coach Adam Scheier, have found a way to get the most out of the BGSU special teams. In four years Scheier's special teams have:
• Three kick returns for touchdowns.
• Three punt returns for scores.
• Have blocked 11 kicks.
• Produced two All-MAC returners (Booboo Gates and Eugene Cooper).
• Produced two All-MAC Punters (Brian Wright and Brian Schmiedebusch)
• Successfully converted on two fake punts.
| Date | Opponent | Time/Result |
| Sept. 1 | at Florida | L, 27-14 |
| Sept. 8 | IDAHO | W, 21-13 |
| Sept. 15 | at Toledo | L, 27-15 |
| Sept. 22 | at Virginia Tech | L, 37-0 |
| Sept. 29 | RHODE ISLAND | W, 48-8 |
| Oct. 6 | at Akron | 2 p.m. |
| Oct. 13 | MIAMI | 3:30 p.m. |
| Oct. 20 | at UMass | Noon |
| Oct. 27 | EASTERN MICHIGAN | 3:30 p.m. |
| Nov. 7 | at Ohio | 8 p.m. |
| Nov. 17 | KENT STATE | Noon |
| Nov. 23 | BUFFALO | TBA |
• Head coach Dave Clawson is in his fourth season at the helm of the football team and has an all-time record of 74-75 and is 16-26 at BGSU.
• For the fourth consecutive year the Falcons will have all three coordinators returning. Warren Ruggiero, Mike Elko and Adam Scheier will coach offense, defense and special teams.
• BGSU is coming off a 48-8 win at home versus Rhode Island.
• This week's matchup with Akron will be the first meeting between the two schools since Nov. 20, 2009. BGSU holds a 11-7-0 all-time record versus the Zips.
• The Falcons are looking for their first two-game win streak since the beginning of the 2011 season with wins over Idaho and Morgan State.
• Anthon Samuel ranks 25th in school history with 1,221 career rushing yards.
• Chris Jones ranks fourth in BGSU history with 21 career sacks.
• Booboo Gates was named the National Punt Returner of the Week by the College Football Performance Award.
• Anthon Samuel (Doak Walker), Chris Jones (Rotary Lombardi), Dwayne Woods (Rotary Lombardi and Butkus), Brian Schmiedebusch (Ray Guy) and Alex Bayer (John Mackey) were all named to preseason watch lists.
• The Falcons will have six captains in 2012: Dominic Flewellyn (OL), Ronnie Goble (DE), Chris Jones (DT), Matt Schilz (QB), Paul Swan (LB) and Bart Tanski (WR).
• According to philsteele.com the Falcons have the 10th youngest roster in the country with 66.7 percent of the roster underclassmen.
Scouting the Offense
Quarterback Matt Schilz will be making his 28th start of his career this weekend versus Akron. Schilz, a junior, threw for over 3,000 yards last season and 28 touchdowns, all career-bests, and has thrown for 6,318 yards and 39 touchdowns in his career. He is coming off his best game of the season, completing 20-of-27 passes for 281 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Rhode Island.
It's hard to say who Schilz's top target is this year, with five different players recording double digit receptions this season. Chris Gallon (21 rec., 235 yards), Shaun Joplin (20 rec., 297 yards) and Ryan Burbrink (20 rec., 144 yards) lead the way.
At running back the Falcons will depend on Anthon Samuel. Samuel, the reigning MAC Freshman of the Year, has already surpassed 1,200 yard in his career and has seven 100-yard games in his first 14 contests.
Scouting the Defense
As a team, the Falcons rank first in total defense (348.4) and second in scoring defense (22.4). The biggest overall improvement through five games has been the rush defense. In 2011 the Falcons allowed 203.5 yards per game on the ground, and have trimmed that number to 139.6 in 2012, ranking third in the conference.
Scouting the Special Teams
Brian Schmiedebusch, a 2011 first-team all-conference punter a year ago, will once again handle all punting duties. The junior is averaging 42.1 yards per punt this season and has a 44.3 yard per punt career average.
The field goals and extra points have been a rough spot this season for the Orange and Brown. Through five games the Falcons have used two different kickers and are 1-for-5 on field goals and 11-for-13 on extra points.
Rhode Island Recap
Bowling Green posted season highs in points (48), first downs (30), rushing yards (206), passing yards (332) and total yards (538) in the 48-8 win over Rhode Island.
Anthon Samuel had one of the finest days of his career, as he provided the Falcons with 127 yards rushing on just 17 carries. Three of those carries resulted in a touchdown, including a 31-yard effort that followed Rhode Island's only score of the game.
Matt Schilz was 20-of-27 for 281 yards and two touchdowns. Chris Gallon caught both scoring passes as part of his four reception, 43 yard day. Alex Bayer led Falcon receivers with five catches for 47 yards, as nine different players caught passes.
Bowling Green's defense was just as good. The Rams were held to just 171 yards on 54 plays (3.2 yards/play). Despite having 32 rushes, Rhode Island managed only 96 yards, and URI earned only 75 yards passing.
Saturday Afternoon Drive
As mentioned before, the Falcons posted several season-bests in the win versus the Rams. Helping those numbers were five touchdown drives of over 65 yards. BGSU had touchdown drives of 81, 90, 65, 78 and 80 yards. All five of those drives featured at least five plays. In the first four contests of the season the Falcons had just seven total touchdown drives, four of them going longer than 60 yards.
The Akron Series
Bowling Green leads the all-time series with Akron 11-7-0. The Falcons are currently ridding a three-game win streak over the Zips, with Akron's last win versus BGSU occurring in 2006.
• BGSU is 5-4-0 on the road versus Akron.
• Despite both teams being members of the East Division, the two teams have not competed since Nov. 20, 2009.
• Bowling Green has not made a trip to Akron, Ohio, since Oct. 11, 2008 inside the Rubber Bowl.
Number Game (Offense)
The Falcon offense has had its struggles early in 2012, averaging just 19.8 points and 371.0 yards per game, but let's not forget, they have faced two of the nation's top-25 defenses (Florida and Virginia Tech).
vs. Non BCS vs. BCS
28.0...............points/game.........7.0
420.7.............yards/game..........296.5
143.7...............rush/game..........117.0
277.0............passing/game........179.5
• Is sixth is passing yards (6,318)
• Is fifth in passing attempts (961)
• Is fifth in passing completions (575)
• Is tied for sixth in passing touchdowns (39)
Samuel.1000
Anthon Samuel, who has only played in 14 career games (missed three games in 2011 due to injury) has already surpassed the 1,000 yard career rushing mark, becoming just the 35th Falcon in school history to do so. Samuel currently ranks 25th in school history with 1,221 rushing yards.
Up Next For Samuel
20. Phil Polak (71-73) - 1,435
21. Chris Bullock (06-09) - 1,434
22. Godfrey Lewis (98-02) - 1,431
23. Bob Ramlow (56-58) - 1,384
24. Jay Cunningham (62-64) - 1,258
25. Dave Windatt (77-80) - 1,221
Anthon Samuel (2011-PR) - 1,221
Mr. 100
As stated before, Anthon Samuel has played in just 14 games in his Falcon career, but has already produced seven 100-yard games. The last BGSU running back to record at least that many was P.J. Pope, who had nine 100-yard games in his career from 2002-05.
Who's on First?
There are a lot of firsts among the wide receiving group in 2012. Entering the year, junior Shaun Joplin was the only Falcon to see any significant playing time for the receivers. Through five games the BGSU pass catchers have:
• Ryan Burbrink, Chris Gallon, Je`Ron Stokes, Heath Jackson, Jermal Hosley, and Herve Coby have all recorded their first career catches in 2012.
• Stokes and Gallon have the only receiving touchdowns in 2012.
• First-year receivers own 58 of the 95 receptions on the year.
Number Game (Defense)
The Falcon defense has faced some great offenses already in 2011, including a pair of games versus some historically great programs in Virginia Tech and Florida. Below are defensive numbers versus the BCS and non BCS programs.
vs. Non BCS vs. BCS
16.0..............points/game........32.0
327.0.............yards/game........380.5
77.3................rush/game.........233.0
249.7............passing/game......147.5
Monster in the Middle
Of the 19 tackles Jones has been involved with this season, 12 have resulted in no gain or negative yardage -- and the total minus yardage on those plays is minus-50 yards. The seven “positive” plays have gained just 20 yards (five, three (x4) two, one).
Jones'n For Sacks
Chris Jones has led the Falcons in sacks in each of the past two seasons, finishing 2010 with 6.0 and added 8.5 (led MAC) in 2011. Combined with his one sack in 2009 and his team-leading 5.5 sacks this season, Jones has 21.0 career sacks, ranking fourth in BGSU history.
BGSU Career Sack Leaders
Kevin O'Brien (1989-92) - 31.0
Diyral Briggs (2005-08) - 26.0
Devon Parks (2003-06) - 22.0
Chris Jones (2009-PR) - 21.0
Brandon Hicks (1998-2001) - 20.0
Gates Named National Punt Returner of the Week
The College Football Performance Award (CFPA) named Bowling Green State University's Booboo Gates the National Punt Returner of the Week following his efforts versus Rhode Island.
BGSU's regular punt returners, Ryan Burbrink and Heath Jackson, were both out due to injury, forcing Gates into action.
On his first return of the year he went 80 yards for a score to give the Falcons an early 6-0 advantage on the Rams. Gates' score was the fourth-longest punt return in school history and the Falcons' first punt return for a touchdown since Binky Cooper scored versus Toledo in 2010.
All Alone
In his career Booboo Gates now owns two kick returns for touchdowns, one punt return for a score and returned an interception for a touchdown in 2010, becoming the first Falcon in school history to own touchdown returns via kick, punt and interception returns.
Very Special Teams
Since head coach Dave Clawson arrived at Bowling Green, he and assistant coach Adam Scheier, have found a way to get the most out of the BGSU special teams. In four years Scheier's special teams have:
• Three kick returns for touchdowns.
• Three punt returns for scores.
• Have blocked 11 kicks.
• Produced two All-MAC returners (Booboo Gates and Eugene Cooper).
• Produced two All-MAC Punters (Brian Wright and Brian Schmiedebusch)
• Successfully converted on two fake punts.
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