Bowling Green State University Athletics
Nichols, Falcons Announce 2012 Schedule
April 30, 2012 | Men's Soccer
Falcons to play 10 matches under the lights at Cochrane
Bowling Green State University men's soccer coach Eric Nichols has announced his team's fall schedule for 2012. The Falcons' 19-match regular-season slate includes 10 home matches and a total of four contests against teams that advanced to at least the second round of last year's NCAA Championships.
2012 BGSU SCHEDULE
The 10 games inside the friendly confines of Cochrane Field marks the Falcons' most home matches since the 2004 season. All 10 contests will be held under the lights as the team embarks upon the first full season since the completion of the Cochrane Field lights project.
The home schedule includes four Mid-American Conference matches at Cochrane, including visits by 2011 NCAA Championships participants Akron and West Virginia. The Zips, who won the national title in 2010, advanced to the round of 16 last fall. The Mountaineers enter their first season as a conference affiliate member for men's soccer.
The regular season begins with a three-match homestand, and Falcon fans will recognize a face on the other bench in the season opener. The Brown and Orange will take on Saint Bonaventure, guided by former BGSU head coach Mel Mahler, in the season opener on August 25.
Michigan State comes to town four days later (August 29). The Falcons and Spartans battled to a scoreless draw in East Lansing last season. The 2012 season-opening homestand concludes with former MAC foe Marshall returning to Cochrane Field on Sept. 1. Nichols' first BGSU match was a 2-0 win over the Thundering Herd three years ago at Cochrane.
BGSU then hits the road for three consecutive matches, beginning with a trip to Conway, S.C., to play a pair of matches at Coastal Carolina. The Falcons will face Wofford (Sept. 7) and host CCU (Sept. 9) that weekend. Coastal won 18 matches (the most of any 2012 BGSU opponent) last year, and the Chanticleers advanced to the second round of the NCAAs before losing to eventual national champion North Carolina.
BG faces Cleveland State (Sept. 14) in the first of four 2012 matches vs. Horizon League foes, before returning home for another three-game set. The Brown and Orange will sandwich two other HL opponents around a key MAC match.
That homestand includes matches vs. Detroit (Sept. 18) and Milwaukee (Sept. 25) on back-to-back Tuesdays, and the middle game is the conference opener against Akron. The Zips come to town on Saturday evening, Sept. 22.
Following the Milwaukee match, the Falcons end the month of September with a trip to New York to face Hartwick (Sept. 28). The Hawks, like WVU and Florida Atlantic, are a MAC affiliate for the sport of men's soccer.
October begins with a home contest against Western Michigan on Friday, Oct. 5). The Broncos have ended the Falcons' season in each of the last two years, with one-goal decisions in both the 2010 MAC Tournament semifinal and the final 2011 regular-season match.
The Falcons then play five of the next six matches on the road, starting with a trip to Columbus to battle Ohio State on Wednesday, Oct. 10. Last year, the Brown and Orange battled the Buckeyes through more than 93 minutes of scoreless soccer before the hosts broke through with a Golden Goal.
BG returns home to face Buffalo (Oct. 13), looking to avenge a lopsided road loss. In the teams' 2011 meeting, the Bulls exploded for five second-half goals en route to a 5-0 win.
The Falcons begin a season-long four-match homestand with a trip to Fort Wayne to battle IPFW (Oct. 16), and BG then heads to the MAC's 'West Coast' to face Northern Illinois (Oct. 20). The Huskies won 15 matches last season, advancing to the second round of the NCAA tourney.
After opening the 2011 season with a 2-0 win over Michigan, the Falcons head to Ann Arbor in 2012, meeting the Wolverines on Tuesday, Oct. 23. BGSU's road odyssey concludes with a sojourn in southern Florida, as the Falcons take on FAU on Friday night, Oct. 26.
The regular season concludes with a pair of matches at Cochrane. First, the Falcons face Wright State (Oct. 30) in the annual battle for the I-75 Cup. The teams have split the first two matches since Nichols and WSU coach Bryan Davis came up with the idea for the traveling trophy.
Then, the Falcons face WVU on Saturday, Nov. 3. The Mountaineers join the MAC in 2012 after posting a 6-3-0 record in the Big East Conference and advancing to the NCAA second round a year ago.
The top-four teams in the MAC's final regular-season standings will converge on the site of the regular-season champion for the conference tournament. The MAC Tournament's semifinal round will take place on Friday, Nov. 9, with the championship match set for Sunday, Nov. 11.
Prior to the season-opening match vs. SBU, Nichols and the Falcons will play a scrimmage at Oakland (Aug. 17).
The complete 2012 schedule follows. For the latest updates throughout the season, click here or click the 'schedule' link on the men's soccer page at BGSUFalcons.com.
2012 BGSU MEN'S SOCCER SCHEDULE
August
Fri., 17 – at Oakland (Scrimmage)
Sat., 25 – SAINT BONAVENTURE
Wed., 29 – MICHIGAN STATE
September
Sat., 1 – MARSHALL
Fri., 7 – vs. Wofford (at Coastal Carolina Tournament)
Sun., 9 – at Coastal Carolina
Fri., 14 – at Cleveland State
Tue., 18 – DETROIT
Sat., 22 – AKRON *
Tue., 25 – MILWAUKEE
Fri., 28 – at Hartwick *
October
Fri., 5 – WESTERN MICHIGAN *
Wed., 10 – at Ohio State
Sat., 13 – BUFFALO *
Tue., 16 – at IPFW
Sat., 20 – at Northern Illinois *
Tue., 23 – at Michigan
Fri., 26 – at Florida Atlantic *
Tue., 30 – WRIGHT STATE
November
Sat., 3 – WEST VIRGINIA *
Fri., 9 – MAC Tournament semifinals (site of regular-season champion)
Sun., 11 – MAC Tournament championship (semifinal site)
HOME matches at Cochrane Field
* - Mid-American Conference match
Off The Pitch: Gonzalo Carranza (Oct. 30, 2025)
Thursday, October 30
Off The Pitch: Jack Bennett (Oct. 22, 2025)
Thursday, October 23
Off The Pitch: Ryko Bodurov (Oct. 16, 2025)
Friday, October 17
Eric Nichols Post-Match Interview (Oct. 10, 2025)
Saturday, October 11