Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
Toledo (Hall of Fame & Varsity BG Day)
Battle Of I-75 Comes Alive Saturday
October 21, 2013 | Football
Saturday, Oct. 26, 2013; 2:30 p.m.
Doyt L. Perry Stadium (24,000) / Bowling Green, Ohio
ESPN3 (Jim Barber/Jerrod Cherry
Falcon Radio Network (Todd Walker/John Gibson)
LIVE STATS
LIVE AUDIO / FALCON RADIO NETWORK
LIVE VIDEO VIA ESPN3
COMPLETE GAME NOTES (.PDF)
| 2013 MAC STANDINGS | ||
| EAST DIVISION | MAC | OVERALL |
| Bowling Green | 3-0 | 5-2 |
| Buffalo | 3-0 | 5-2 |
| Ohio | 2-1 | 5-2 |
| UMass | 1-2 | 1-6 |
| Akron | 1-3 | 2-6 |
| Kent State | 1-3 | 2-6 |
| Miami | 0-3 | 0-7 |
| WEST DIVISION | MAC | OVERALL |
| Ball State | 4-0 | 7-1 |
| Northern Illinois | 3-0 | 7-0 |
| Toledo | 2-1 | 4-3 |
| Central Michigan | 2-2 | 3-5 |
| Eastern Michigan | 0-3 | 1-6 |
| Western Michigan | 0-4 | 0-8 |
|
Saturday, Oct. 19 Toledo 45, Navy 44 Ohio 56, Eastern Michigan 28 Akron 24, Miami 17 Ball State 38, Western Michigan 17 N. Illinois 38, C. Michigan 17 South Alabama 38, Kent State 21 Buffalo 32, UMass 3 Saturday, Oct. 26 Ball State at Akron, 12 pm Miami at Ohio, 2 pm Toledo at Bowling Green, 2:30 pm Western Michigan at UMass, 3 pm E. Michigan at N. Illinois, 3:30 pm Buffalo at Kent State, 3:30 pm |
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TELEVISION
* Saturday's game is an ESPN3 exclusive broadcast with Jim Barbar (play-by-play) and Jerrod Cherry (analyst).
RADIO
* Falcon Radio Network with Todd Walker (play-by-play) and John Gibson (analyst). Radio coverage can be heard on the flagship station for BGSU Football WFRO 99.1 FM in Fremont, Ohio as well as WWSR 93.1 FM (Lima, Ohio), WCIT 940 AM (Lima, Ohio), WXKR 100.7 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) and WHKW 1420 AM (Cleveland, Ohio).
* The Bowling Green Radio Sports Organization (BGRSO) broadcasts home games and select road games on 88.1 FM in Bowling Green.
TICKETS
* Tickets are available through the BGSU Ticket Office by calling 877-BGSU TICKET or going to the BGSU Ticket Office, located inside the Stroh Center. Fans can also visit the BGSU tickets page and order online at BGSUFalcons.com/tickets.
WEBSITES / SOCIAL MEDIA
* BGSUFalcons.com (Bowling Green), UTRockets.com (Toledo)
* Follow BGSU Football on Twitter through the official account of BGSU Athletics @BGAthletics or the official account of BGSU Football @BGFalconFootbal
* On Facebook search for BGSU Athletics
POLLS
* Neither BGSU nor Toledo is receiving votes in the Associated Press or USA Today Coaches polls.
LIVE STATS / LIVE AUDIO / LIVE VIDEO
* Live stats are available online at BGSUFalcons.com.
* Live audio is available (via Falcon Radio Network) online at BGSUFalcons.com.
* Live video is available online at BGSUFalcons.com.
SERIES INFO
* The Battle Of I-75 takes part for the 78th time with BGSU holding a 39-34-4 record all-time against Toledo.
* Toledo has won the last three meetings, including a 27-15 win a year ago.
* BGSU Head Coach Dave Clawson is 1-3 in his career against Toledo, picking up a 38-24 victory at home in 2009.
THE COACHING STAFF
* Head coach Dave Clawson is in his fifth season at the helm of the football team with a career record of 85-79, which includes a 27-29 mark at BGSU. He is 20-16 in Mid-American Conference games.
* For the fifth 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 the only program in the MAC that can boast having the same head coach and coordinators for five years running.
THE REBUILD IS COMPLETE
* Following a trip to the Humanitarian Bowl in 2009, BGSU Head Coach Dave Clawson knew he had an arduous rebuilding job ahead of him. The Falcons slumped to 2-10 in 2010 but have rebounded by winning three more games than the previous season in each of the past two years. The Falcons are one of just four BCS teams to have made a three-win increase or better in each of the past two seasons and the only one of those teams to have at least five wins so far in 2013.
THE CAPTAINS
* BGSU Head Coach Dave Clawson has named eight captains for the 2013 season -- Alex Bayer, Jairus Campbell, Dominic Flewellyn, BooBoo Gates, Ronnie Goble, Chief Kekuewa, Gabe Martin and Paul Swan.
* The group represents three players on the offensive side of the ball (Bayer, Flewellyn and Kekuewa) and five on defense (Campbell, Gates, Goble, Martin and Swan).
* Three of this year's captains were also captains a year ago -- Flewellyn, Goble and Swan.
DIVING INTO 5-2 AND 3-0
* In jumping out to a 5-2 start, Bowling Green defeated a pair of teams (Tulsa and Kent State) that each won 11 games a year ago.
* The Falcons handed Kent State its first regular season MAC loss since Nov. 25, 2011 at Temple.
* Bowling Green is 5-2 to start the season for the first time since the 2004 team opened the year 8-2 and went on to finish 9-3, including a 52-35 win over Memphis in the GMAC Bowl.
* At 3-0 in Mid-American Conference play, the Falcons have won their first three league games for the first time since 2005.
WHAT A WIN WOULD MEAN
* With a win Saturday, Bowling Green would improve to 6-2 and would keep pace with the 2004 team that started 8-2.
* A victory would make the Falcons bowl eligible for the second consecutive season.
* A win over Toledo would snap a three-game losing streak against the Northwest Ohio rival.
* WIth a win, the Falcons would be 4-0 in MAC play for the first time since the 2003 team also started 4-0.
BREAKING THE #MACTION MOLD
* When fans hear the phrase #MACtion, most think of the offensive fireworks by Mid-American Conference schools featured in weeknight games on national television. But Bowling Green has broken that mold with a stifling defense.
* The Falcons return nine starters in 2013 from a defense that ranked sixth in the country in total defense in 2012, allowing just 296 yards per game.
* Through the first eight weeks of the 2013 season, BGSU is again dominating defensively. The Falcons lead the MAC in scoring defense, total defense, first downs allowed, fourth-down conversion rate allowed and red zone defense.
* BGSU leads the country in red zone defense (allowing opponents to score points on just 10-of-20 possessions), and ranks ninth in scoring defense (17.1 points per game allowed), 13th in fourth-down conversion percentage allowed (opponents have converted just 3-of-11 attempts) and 15th in passing defense (allowing just 191.3 yards per game).
* In allowing only 35 points in their first four home games, the Falcons have allowed their fewest point total in four home games to start the year since 1993.
THE WARD-EN
* While the Falcons have the best defense in the Mid-American Conference, it took Ryland Ward's fourth quarter interception against UMass to break a dubious streak for the BGSU defense.
* The Falcons had not recorded an interception on defense in 2013 until Ward's pick, a streak of 261 consecutive passes by opposing quarterbacks between interceptions.
* Prior to the Ward interception, the last pick came by Jude Adjei-Barimah against Kent State a year ago, marking seven straight games without an interception.
* Ward's interception may have busted open the door as BooBoo Gates added an interception in the first half at Mississippi State.
* Bowling Green and Utah (4-3 record) are the only teams to have a winning record despite posting two interceptions or fewer.
REVISITING 2012
* BGSU posted its first eight-win season since 2007.
* Bowling Green went 6-2 in Mid-American Conference play, the program's best league record since going 6-2 in 2009.
* The Falcons played in their 10th bowl game in program history, including the fifth in the past 10 years.
* The BGSU defense ranked No. 6 in the country in yards allowed per game.
AN EXPERIENCED CREW
* Bowling Green returns nine starters on defense and eight more on offense from the 2012 team. In fact, it is the second year in a row in which the Falcons return 17 starters between the two units.
* Entering 2013, BGSU's returners accounted for 182 career starts on offense and 214 on defense for a grand total of 396 career starts.
* Four Falcons entered 2013 with at least 30 career starts (Matt Schilz, Dominic Flewellyn, Alex Bayer and Cameron Truss) and three more had at least 20 (Ryland Ward, BooBoo Gates and Paul Swan).
HOME SWEET HOME
* BGSU completed its first three-game homestand since 2004 earlier this year, matching that season's 3-0 mark during the stretch.
* Since 1956 -- the first year with Doyt Perry as head coach -- BGSU has played 15 three-game homestands and a four-game homestand in 1960 (going 3-1).
* The Falcons went 3-0 in seven of the 15 homestands, 2-0-1 in another, 2-1 three times and 1-2 in the other four.
* Including last week's win over UMass, BGSU is 36-12-1 during three or four-game homestands since 1956.
FIRST TIME TO PAYDIRT
* In the first seven games of the season, Bowling Green scored 27 touchdowns and 21 of them came from players who had not scored prior to the start of 2013.
* While the Falcons are viewed as a veteran team, redshirt juniors Jared Cohen and Heath Jackson, redshirt sophomores Chris Gallon, Ryan Burbrink, Travis Greene, Andre Givens and Matt Johnson and true freshmen William Houston and Ronnie Moore have all scored offensive touchdowns this year.
* Burbrink and junior Paul Senn have added special teams touchdowns.
* In fact, except for senior Shaun Joplin's touchdown reception against Akron and senior Tyler Beck's TD catch against UMass, every player responsible for point-scoring plays this year (either throwing, rushing, receiving, kicking or on special teams) is a non-senior.
MAC LEADERS
* BGSU leads the Mid-American Conference in seven different team statistical categories.
* Defensively, the Falcons lead the league in scoring defense, total defense, first downs allowed, red zone defense (ranking first in the country) and opponent's fourth down conversion percentage.
* BGSU ranks first in the MAC and third in the country in time of possession.
* The Falcons also lead the league in punt return average (ranking ninth in the country at 16.7 yards per return).
THE SIGNAL CALLER
* Redshirt sophomore Matt Johnson was inserted into the season-opener against Tulsa at quarterback to start the Falcons' third possession of the game and guided the Falcons to the 34-7 victory.
* Since the time he was inserted into the starting lineup, he has earned three MAC East Offensive Player of the Week awards (weeks two, four and seven).
* Johnson got the first start of his career against Kent State, going 19-for-25 for 357 yards and two touchdown passes, earning MAC East Offensive Player of the Week honors. He was one of eight Manning Award Stars of the Week.
* In the third quarter against Kent State, Johnson found Ryan Burbrink for a 92-yard touchdown, the third-longest pass completion in BGSU history.
* In the win over Murray State, Johnson was 19-of-22 passing. His .864 completion percentage was the fifth-best single-game percentage in BGSU history. He again earned MAC East Offensive Player of the Week honors.
* After struggling in the first half against Akron, Johnson completed all 11 of his second-half pass attempts.
THE SCHILZ FACTOR
* BGSU has one of the most experienced back-up quarterbacks in the country in Matt Schilz.
* Schilz has 36 career starts and ranks third in program history in completions and passing yards. He is also fifth with 50 career passing touchdowns.
NOT QUITE THROUGH THE UPRIGHTS
* Bowling Green's opponents are 0-for-5 on field goals this year.
* The Falcons are the only team in FBS football that have not allowed a made field goal this year. In fact, no other team has seen opponents make fewer than two field goals this year. UCF and Air Force have allowed two each.
SCHMIEDEBUSCH BOUNCING BACK
* Two-time All-MAC punter Brian Schmiedebusch was having his share of struggles early in the season, but he seems to have gotten that corrected.
* In the first four games of the season, Schmiedebusch averaged just 38.9 yards on 14 punts with just one 50-yarder. Five of those punts were downed inside the 20.
* In the past three games, he's found his rhythm, averaging 43.5 yards on 11 punts with two 50-yarders. Five have been downed inside the 20, including three inside the 5-yard line.
HOUSTON, THEY'VE GOT A PROBLEM
* Walk-on freshman William Houston made a splash in his first collegiate game, scoring three times from just a yard out against Tulsa.
* The team's short-yardage back, Houston (who weighs 262 pounds) carried the ball 10 times against Tulsa, gaining positive yardage on nine of those carries.
* For his efforts, Houston was named MAC Offensive Player of the Week.
* Houston has scored seven touchdowns this year, six from one yard out and the other from two yards away.
GET THE MOTOR RUNNING
* BGSU has started slowly at times this year, but has really turned up the heat in the second half of games, especially on defense.
* The Falcons have outscored opponents 104-78 in the first half of games but 108-42 in the second half.
* Opponents are averaging 6.2 yards per play in the first half and only 4.8 yards per play in the second half.
* BGSU is allowing an average of 139.9 yards in the second half after giving up 215.3 in the first half.
* All of that means the Falcons have given up more than seven points in the second half just one time this year (21 points allowed at Indiana) and has shut out Kent State, Akron and Mississippi State in the second half.
WE WANT MOORE
* True freshman Ronnie Moore has added a facet to the offense missing in 2012 -- explosive speed and play-making ability.
* Moore has been responsible for three plays of 37 yards or longer, the most on the team.
* He had a 37-yard run in the season-opener against Tulsa on the Falcons' first touchdown-scoring drive.
* Moore's 51-yard touchdown reception on a screen pass against UMass opened the scoring in the second quarter.
* Later in the UMass game, Moore had a 43-yard reception that iced the victory.
* Moore got his first career start at Indiana, catching one pass for five yards and rushing twice for 15 yards. He also picked up a start against Murray State.
TATE IS GREAT
* With kicks of 30 and 41 yards at Kent State, Tyler Tate made two field goals in a game for the third consecutive contest.
* Tate had made six consecutive field goal attempts before missing from 47 yards out against Indiana. He did, however, make a career-long 45-yarder later in the game.
* Against Akron, Tate made his only field goal attempt, a 29-yarder, and was 4-for-4 on extra points.
* Tate made two more field goals at Mississippi State, including a 45-yarder that tied his career long as time ran out in the first half.
THE RED ZONE
* In its four wins, Bowling Green has been 24-of-26 scoring on trips in the red zone. Both of the unsuccessful attempts came when the Falcons went into victory formation and kneeled down for wins over Akron and UMass.
* In Bowling Green's loss to Indiana, the Falcons were 0-for-3 in the red zone.
* Defensively, Bowling Green ranks first in the country, allowing just 10 scores in 20 red zone trips. Of the 10 stops, four have come by virtue of missed field goals, three by recovered fumbles and three by fourth-down stops. Baylore ranks second in the country, allowing 10 scores in 18 red zone trips by opponents.
* UMass never reached the red zone in Bowling Green's last home game.
BAYER NAMED TO MACKEY MIDSEASON LIST
BGSU senior tight end Alex Bayer was named to the Mackey Award Midseason Watch List as one of the top tight ends in the country. Bayer was one of 29 tight ends around the country to make the list, joining three others from the Mid-American Conference.
PACING
* Just past the midway point of the season, several players are on pace to etch their names in the BGSU single-season record book. Among the most notable:
* Travis Greene is on pace to rush for 1,389 yards during the regular season, which would rank third all-time for the Falcons. If the team is able to make the MAC Championship and/or play in a Bowl Game, Fred Durig's school-record 1,444 yards is in serious jeopardy.
* Greene is on pace for 1,587 all-purpose yards, which would be fourth all-time and only 16 yards shy of second.
* Matt Johnson has completed 64.1 percent of his passes thus far, which would rank sixth in a season. Omar Jacobs completed a school-record 66.9 percent of his passes in 2004.
* Ryan Burbrink's 12.4 yards per punt return would be fourth in school history.
SPECIAL TEAMS DOMINANCE
* BGSU's special teams have provided key sparks in the early going this year.
* BGSU kicker Tyler Tate is 8-for-11 on field goal attempts and 26-of-27 on extra points.
* Ryan Burbrink had a 67-yard punt return for a touchdown against Tulsa.
* Cameron Truss stuffed a fake punt on fourth-and-1 against Tulsa.
* BGSU recovered a muffed punt in the fourth quarter against Tulsa.
* Brian Schmiedebusch had two punts that went more than 50 yards against UMass, including a season-long 56-yarder that was downed at the 4-yard line.
* In his only two punt attempts at Mississippi State, Schmiedebusch recorded 48 and 49-yarders. More impressively, one was downed at the one-yard line and the other, following a penalty, forced MSU to start at its own six.
* Paul Senn blocked a punt against Indiana and returned the ball for a 56-yard touchdown, earning the No. 1 play on SportsCenter's Top 10 for Saturday, Sept. 14.
LOOK WHO'S TALKING
For years Bowling Green was known as a team that could light up the scoreboard offensively and Dave Clawson was known as an offensive guru. But Clawson's team became one of the most stout defensive units in the country in 2012 and carried that into 2013, currently leading the MAC in scoring defense and total defense. In 2010, the team allowed 33.6 points per game, but cut that total to 28.8 points allowed in 2011 and 16.8 in 2012. The Falcons are allowing just 17.1 points per game in 2013, ninth-best in the nation.
FIRST TIME STARTERS
* Three Falcons earned their first career starts against Tulsa -- all on the offensive side of the ball. Offensive tackles Logan Dietz and Jacob Bennett, along with running back Travis Greene, had their names in the starting lineup for the first time.
* Quarterback Matt Johnson picked up his first career start in the win over Kent State.
* Ronnie Moore and Brian Sutton picked up their first career starts at Indiana.
* Justin Ford posted his first career start against Murray State.
* Two more players got their first career starts against Mississippi State -- Chris Pohlman and William Houston.
GETTING THEIR CAREERS STARTED
* In the season opener, 16 Falcons stepped on the field wearing the Bowling Green uniform for the first time in their collegiate careers.
* Four true freshmen saw action including Fred Coppet, Isaiah Gourdine, William Houston and Ronnie Moore.
* Nine of the first timers were redshirt freshmen in JJ Beggan, Jacob Bennett, Terrance Bush, Scott Davis, Logan Dietz, Greg Hohenstein, James Knapke, Izaah Lunsford and Ben Steward.
* Others who saw action for the first time were redshirt junior Jared Cohen (junior college transfer), redshirt sophomore Diontre Delk and junior Paul Senn (junior college transfer).
* Alphonso Mack and Jahlil-Nashid Croley both saw their first collegiate action in the win over Murray State.
SENN-MASTER
* In a two-game stretch against Indiana and Murray State, Paul Senn became a big-play threat on defense and special teams for the Falcons.
* Senn had a blocked punt return for a touchdown (a play that ranked No. 1 on ESPN SportsCenter's Top 10) and a fumble recovery on special teams against Indiana.
* He followed up that performance by stripping Murray State's Maikhai Miller at the two-yard line and the Falcons recovered the fumble. Bowling Green would go 99 yards for a touchdown and a 13-0 lead following the forced fumble.
RUNNING FOR THE WINS
Over the past two years, Bowling Green has been at its best when pulverizing the opposition in the running game, a fact that was in direct contrast to Dave Clawson's first three seasons at BGSU. From 2009-11, the Falcons rushed for 200 yards in a game just one time. But the Falcons have now reached that total eight times in the past two years (including four times already in 2013).
STOPPING THE RUN
A year ago, Bowling Green held its opponent to less than 100 yards rushing in all eight of the team's wins. In 2013, that has not been as important to the Falcons' success as only Tulsa and Akron have rushed for less than 100 yards this year. Kent State rushed for 138 yards, Murray State had 166 on the ground and UMass posted 184 last week.
PHIL STEELE HONORS TWELVE IN MIDSEASON
Phil Steele Magazine, one of the nation's most informative college football publications, has named 12 members of the Bowling Green State University football team to its mid-season All-MAC squad, tied for the most players in the conference honored. Offensively, Travis Greene, Alex Bayer and Dominic Flewellyn earned first-team honors with Ryan Burbrink being named first-team punt returner. Chief Kekuewa was recognized on the second team at center with Gabe Martin and BooBoo Gates being named on defense. Matt Johnson, Shaun Joplin, Alex Huettel, Bryan Thomas and DJ Lynch were named to the third team.
THE CHIEF OF THE O-LINE
* David "Chief" Kekuewa spent two years at Arizona Western Junior College before coming to Bowling Green just prior to the 2012 season. Kekuewa has started every game over the past two seasons at center.
* Chief's last name comes from Keli'ikuewa (which is also his middle name) and means the wandering chief. In old Hawaii, Kekuewa's family were chiefs of Honaunau, the city of refuge, on the island of Hawaii. Once foreigners went to the islands and especially after the Great Mahele chiefs in the Hawaiian Kingdom lost land and power, his family became wanderers, hence the wandering chiefs.
CLASSY
A year ago, 67 percent of Bowling Green's roster consisted of freshmen or sophomores. This year, that number has dropped slightly to 63 percent. The Falcons have 47 freshmen or redshirt freshmen on the roster this year, which is actually three more than a year ago.
THE GREENE LIGHT
* Redshirt sophomore Travis Greene was named the starting running back for 2013, filling a hole left with the departure of former high school teammate Anthon Samuel.
* Greene converted from wide receiver to running back during the spring and continued to climb the depth chart until finally being moved to the top of the two-deep after the team's second fall scrimmage.
* Making his ascendence even more surprising is the fact that the Falcons have a talented and deep pool of backs that include senior Jordan Hopgood, junior Jamel Martin, sophomore Andre Givens and a pair of explosive freshmen in Fred Coppet and Marcus Levy.
* Greene carried the ball 22 times for 88 yards in the season opener and then followed that up with 24 carries for 145 yards against Kent State.
* Greene had a streak of three consecutive 100-yard rushing games, but that was snapped when he went for "only" 99 at Mississippi State in the Falcons' last contest.
* At Doyt Perry Stadium, Greene has rushed for at least 100 yards in 3-of-4 contests.
* Greene ranks third in the MAC and 12th in the country with 115.7 rushing yards per game.
ALL-MAC RETURNERS
* BGSU returns seven players who were named All-MAC a year ago. Gabe Martin and BooBoo Gates were first team all-league honorees, while punter Brian Schmiedebusch made the second team. Alex Bayer, Dominic Flewellyn, Ted Ouellet and Cameron Truss were named to the third team.
* In all, the Falcons had 10 All-MAC players a year ago, the most for the team since 2004.
BACK TO THEIR ROOTS
As expected, Bowling Green football draws far more student-athletes from Ohio (44) than from any other state. But after the Buckeye State, the Falcons have pulled 15 players each from the states of Michigan and Florida. Seven players on the roster hail from Illinois, the same number that come from Indiana. Pennsylvania is the hometown of six Falcons and four players have traveled across the country from California. Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Ontario are each represented by one Falcon.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
* BGSU earned seven Mid-American Conference East Division Player of the Week honors over the first eight weeks of the season.
* Travis Greene was named MAC East Offensive Player of the Week after rushing for 142 yards and adding 71 more yards receiving in a 31-14 win over Akron. Greene also had a rushing touchdown and a receiving score.
* Matt Johnson earned three MAC East Offensive Player of the Week awards for his efforts against Kent State, Murray State and Mississippi State.
* Paul Senn earned MAC East Special Teams Player of the Week after blocking a punt and returning it for a touchdown against Indiana. He also recovered a fumble on a kick-off after the Falcons took a 10-7 lead in the second quarter.
* William Houston was named MAC East Offensive Player of the Week after scoring three touchdowns in his first collegiate game against Tulsa.
* Ryan Burbrink was named MAC East Special Teams Player of the Week after a 67-yard punt return for a touchdown against Tulsa.
ALL ALONE
Senior BooBoo Gates has two kick returns for touchdowns, one punt return for a score and has two interception returns for TD in his career, 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 five years, Scheier's special teams have:
* three kick returns for touchdowns.
* four punt returns for scores.
* blocked 15 kicks.
* returned a blocked punt for a touchdown.
* converted on two fake punts.
* produced two All-MAC returners (BooBoo Gates and Eugene Cooper).
* produced two All-MAC punters (Brian Wright and Brian Schmiedebusch twice).
HEY BOOBOO
Senior BooBoo Gates was named to the Paul Hornung Preseason Watch List, an award given annually to the most versatile player in the country. Gates was named first team All-MAC as a safety a year ago and is also a dangerous kick returner, producing an 80-yard punt return for a touchdown against Rhode Island in 2012.
HAIL TO THE CHIEF
David "Chief" Kekuewa was named to the Rimington Fall Watch List, an award given annually to the top center in college football. Kekuewa started all 13 games at center a year ago and was part of a unit that helped produce more than 150 rushing yards per game.
BAYER FOR MACKEY AWARD
Senior tight end Alex Bayer was named to the John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List, an award given annually to the most outstanding tight end in college football. Bayer was a third-team All-MAC selection a year ago after catching 36 passes for 410 yards and three touchdowns.
TWO NAMED TO LOMBARDI WATCH LIST
Dominic Flewellyn and Gabe Martin were each selected to the Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List, an award given annually to the best down lineman in the country, either on offense or defense. Flewellyn was a third-team All-MAC performer on Bowling Green's offensive line in 2012, while Martin earned first-team All-MAC honors as a linebacker.
PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
Almost every preseason poll in the country has picked the BGSU football team to finish first or second in the MAC East, splitting most of the votes with Ohio. The Falcons were picked first by Athlon, The Sporting News and Phil Steele. The MAC media and USA Today picked Bowling Green to finish second in their respective preseason polls.
SWEET SEVENTEEN
One of the most respected college football writers in the country, Phil Steele, picked 17 Falcons among his preseason All-MAC teams, the most of any team in the conference. The Falcons had four representatives on the first team, three second-team members, four players on the third team and six more Falcons were named fourth-team preseason All-MAC. Toledo had the second-most picks in the conference with 14.
ON THE TUBE
BGSU has had eight games selected to be aired on the ESPN Family of Networks. Games against Tulsa and Indiana were televised on ESPNU and the Kent State game was aired on ESPN Regional. The Murray State, Akron and UMass games were broadcast on ESPN3 as is this week's game against Toledo. The Nov. 5 contest at Miami is an ESPN2/ESPNU telecast. Games Nov. 12 vs. Ohio (ESPNU/ESPN3) and Nov. 29 at Buffalo (ESPNU/ESPN3) will also be televised. On top of that, the game at Mississippi State was televised on Fox Sports Net. Any home game that is not selected for ESPN coverage can be seen locally on BCSN and webstreamed live on BGSUFalcons.com.
THE NFL DRAFT
• BGSU alumnus Chris Jones joined a select fraternity in April when the defensive tackle was picked in the sixth round of the 2013 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans. Jones was the first Falcon drafted since Kory Lichtensteiger in 2007. Jones, the MAC Defensive Player of the Year, was joined in NFL camp by classmate Jordan Roussos, who was signed by the Seattle Seahawks as an undrafted free agent.
• Jones has already made his way around the NFL but may have found a home in New England. After being released by Houston, signed and released by Tampa Bay, the defensive tackle was picked up by the Patriots and is now starting. He had 10 tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss and two sacks in the Patriots' most recent game against the New York Jets.
MORE NFL RUNDOWN
• BGSU alumnus Kory Lichtensteiger has started five games at left guard for the Washington Redskins this year after starting all 16 games at the position a year ago.
• Shaun Suisham has been the Pittsburgh Steelers' kicker since 2010 and is 10-of-10 on field goals this year. He has made all 97 extra point attempts in his time with Pittsburgh as well.
