Falcons Shut Down Bobcats For Season Finale Victory

Friday, November 26

Bowling Green, OH

12:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

4-8 , 2-6

Ohio

3-9 , 3-5

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Ohio

Bowling Green

Photo by: Mallory Hiser, BGSU Athletics

November 26, 2021 | Football

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By: by David Dietrich, BGSU Strategic Communications

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University football team concluded the 2021 season with a 21-10 victory over the Ohio Bobcats on Saturday (Nov. 26) afternoon in Doyt Perry Stadium. Nate Needham kicked four field goals for the Falcons, who limited Ohio to four total yards in the third quarter. BGSU finishes the season with a 4-8 overall record and 2-6 mark in the MAC. Ohio ends the season with a 3-9 overall record and 3-5 clip in conference play.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Bowling Green received the opening kickoff and scored on their opening drive, covering 70 yards on 14 plays in nearly seven minutes. Terion Stewart and Nick Mosley each carried the ball four times, with Stewart converting on a 3^rd-and-1 on the drive's third play. The Falcons later faced a 4^th-and-1 at the Ohio 42-yard line, but Matt McDonald gained three yards on a quarterback sneak. On the ensuing play, McDonald connected with Jamal Johnson for a 31-yard gain, putting the Falcons in the red zone. Nate Needham's 23-yard field goal attempt was successful, giving the Orange and Brown an early 3-0 lead.
Ohio went three-and-out on their opening drive, punting the ball back to the Falcons. McDonald found Cavon Croom for a gain of 18 yards on the drive's second play, but Bowling Green punted four plays later.
The Bobcats started their next drive inside their own 20-yard line, then covered 86 yards on nine plays. Quarterback Kurtis Rourke ran for plays of 20 and 45 yards on the drive, converting on a 4^th-and-1 near midfield. On the first play of the second quarter, Armani Rogers ran in from one yard out to score the first touchdown of the game. Stephen Johnson's extra point gave the Bobcats a 7-3 lead.
The Falcons converted an early 3^rd-and-7 on the next drive, with McDonald hitting Austin Osborne for a nine-yard gain. McDonald found Croom on the next third down, giving the Falcons a 4^th-and-1 opportunity at their own 37-yard line. Mosley's rush attempt was stopped at the line, turning the ball over to Ohio.
Ohio's next drive began with another rush from Rourke, then De'Montre Tuggle ran for back-to-back first downs to reach the BGSU seven-yard line. The Falcons' defense stood tall, forcing two incompletions and a one-yard rush to limit the Bobcats to a field goal. Johnson's 22-yard boot gave the Bobcats a 10-3 lead.
BGSU once again drove 70 yards on their next possession, this time finding the end zone. An offsides penalty gave the Falcons a first down early, then McDonald completed an 11-yard pass to Croom and a 19-yard pass to Osborne. McDonald connected with Osborne again, hitting him with a 14-yard strike that Osborne secured through contact in the end zone. Needham tacked on the extra point to tie the game, 10-10.
Bowling Green had another opportunity to score in the half after Deshawn Jones Jr. intercepted Rourke at the OU 31-yard line. A sack on first down pushed the Falcons back to the 39, but a pair of completions put BGSU at the 25. Nate Needham's 43-yard field goal was wide right, keeping the score knotted at 10-10.
The Bobcats received the ball to start the second half and threw a lateral across the field to return the kick to the 39-yard line. Ohio went three-and-out and punted the ball back to the Falcons.
The Orange and Brown drove to the Ohio 30-yard line, with a pair of third-down completions keeping the drive alive. McDonald hit Taron Keith for a ten-yard gain on the drive's third play, then connected with Croom for a 27-yard catch-and-run a few plays later. Facing 4^th-and-11, the Falcons lined up in field goal formation but opted to punt with Nate Needham, resulting in a touchback.
Ohio began the ensuing drive with a 12-yard rush from Jake Neatherton, then followed with a two-yard rush from Neatherton. Two consecutive incompletions forced a fourth down, but the Bobcat punter fumbled the snap and was tackled in the backfield by JB Brown.
Bowling Green took over at the Ohio 28-yard line and gained three yards in three plays. Needham gave the Falcons a 13-10 lead with his 43-yard field goal.
OU went three-and-out on their next drive, with Anthony Hawkins sacking Rourke on third down. Bowling Green started their next drive at midfield, with McDonald completing another pass to Croom on third down to put the Falcons at the Ohio 33-yard line. On the final play of the quarter, BGSU extended the drive with a nine-yard Osborn reception, reaching the Ohio 18-yard line. Two completions put the Falcons at the four-yard line, but the Bobcats stood up Mosley on fourth-and-goal to take over at the three-yard line.
A false start pushed the Bobcats back to the one-yard line, then an Armani Rogers rush was stopped in the end zone by Blaine Spires and Karl Brooks. The safety gave the Falcons a 15-10 advantage.
McDonald hit Christian Sims for a 19-yard completion on the third play of the next BGSU drive, then McDonald completed an 11-yard pass to Keith for another first down. Facing 3^rd-and-6, McDonald scrambled for a nine-yard gain to extend the Falcon drive. Four plays later, Nate Needham converted on a 40-yard field goal to push Bowling Green's lead to 18-10.
Two Rourke completions gave the Bobcats a pair of first downs on their next drive, but a holding penalty pushed them back to the BGSU 41-yard line. On 4^th-and-12, Rourke's pass over the middle was intercepted by Trent Simms. Simms found space on the sideline and returned the ball to the Ohio 28-yard line before being forced out-of-bounds by Rourke.
Taron Keith was the bell cow for the Falcons on the next drive, carrying the ball seven times for seven yards. Nate Needham converted on his fourth field goal of the day, a 39-yard attempt from the middle of the field.
On the game's final drive, Rourke started with five consecutive completions, with four being reeled in by Ryan Luehrman. Simms intercepted Rourke again on the final play afternoon, snagging the ball in the end zone to secure a 21-10 victory for the Falcons.

STAT LEADERS

QB Matt McDonald: 24-of-37, 255 passing yards, one touchdown
RB Nick Mosley: 15 carries, 35 yards
WR Austin Osborne: 10 receptions, 79 yards, one touchdown
WR Cavon Croom: 7 receptions, 67 yards
LB Darren Anders: 13 tackles, 1 TFL
DL Anthony Hawkins: 1 sack, 2 TFLs, 1 forced fumble
DL Karl Brooks: 1 sack, 1.5 TFLs
CB Deshawn Jones Jr.: 2 interceptions
DB Trent Simms: 1 interception, 0.5 TFLs
K Nate Needham: 4-for-5 field goals, long of 43 yards

TIE GAME!!!

McDonald ➡️ Osborne on the #SCTop10 MVHS Diablo connection 🔥

OU 10
BGSU 10

4:48 | 2 QT#AyZiggy 🟠🟤 pic.twitter.com/derbTbz4t3
— BG Football (@BG_Football) November 26, 2021

TEAM NOTES

Bowling Green yielded 223 yards of total offense to Ohio. It was the fewest yards the Falcons allowed against an FBS team in 2021.
Bowling Green shut out Ohio in the third quarter. This year BG yielded an average 10.1 yards per third quarter entering the day.
Bowling Green forced at least one turnover in the ninth game of the season.

PLAYER NOTES

CB Deshawn Jones Jr. is the first Falcon since Jamari Bozeman (2016 vs. Akron) to notch two interceptions in a game.
PK Nate Needham's streak of consecutive made field goals was snapped at 16 after he missed a 43-yard field goal in the second quarter. Needham finished the game 4-of-5, including makes of 40 yards and 39 yards in the fourth quarter.
QB Matt McDonald threw for 255 yards, which marks the eighth time this season and ninth time in his career he has surpassed 200 passing yards.
WR Cavon Croom finished the game with a career-high 67 receiving yards and a career high with six receptions.
With eight catches, WR Austin Osborne extended his active streak with a reception to 12 games.

FROM THE LOCKER ROOM
"It was a small win because there's going to be a time when it's the last game of the year, you feel like hell, you're tired, you're beaten up, and you got to find a way to win the championship and go to Detroit. So, this was an important game for us just for the sense of finding a way to win at the end whenever you're tired." – Scot Loeffler