Michigan Football: Getting to Know the Bowling Green Falcons

We’ve officially reached the Wolverines’ final non-conference game of the 2023 college football season. The Michigan football Wolverines are set to face off against Scot Loeffler and the Bowling Green Falcons for this week three matchup.

Who are the Falcons?

The Bowling Green State University Falcons are a part of the Mid-American Conference in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision. 

Last season, the Falcons went 6-7 overall – their best record since 2015. The team clinched a bowl game, playing New Mexico State in the Quick Lane Bowl in Detroit, Michigan. They also beat their most hated rival, the University of Toledo, who later won the MAC championship.

Their other wins included Marshall, Akron, Miami (OH), Central Michigan and Western Michigan. Meanwhile, they lost to UCLA, Eastern Kentucky, Mississippi State, Buffalo, Kent State, Ohio and New Mexico State in their bowl game.

However, Bowling Green is no stranger to college football upsets. In 2021, they upset Big Ten opponent Minnesota in Minneapolis in their homecoming game.

Michigan has only played Bowling Green twice in its history. The last meeting was in 2010, and before that, 2000. Michigan leads the series 2-0.

This season, BGSU is 1-1. They lost their first game to Liberty and came out on top in convincing fashion last weekend against Eastern Illinois, which is a part of the FCS. 

Head Coach – Scot Loeffler

Head coach Scot Loeffler is in his 5th year coaching at BGSU. Loeffler is a University of Michigan alumni and is no stranger to the Big House. 

Before becoming the head coach at Bowling Green, he coached for eight different teams. Among them were programs including Boston College, Florida, Auburn, and the Detroit Lions. When his playing time came to an end, he coached at Michigan football from 1996-1999 as a student coaching assistant and a graduate assistant. He returned in 2002 and was the quarterbacks coach at Michigan until 2007.

When Loeffler was hired as the 20th BGSU coach in history, he had a massive rebuild project on his hands. Both the Bowling Green offense and defense ranked close to last in college football the season prior.

Throughout the tenure of coach Scot Loeffler, the team has improved year by year. Last season, the team made their first bowl game since 2015.

Offense

BGSU’s offense had two completely different games from week one versus week two. In their game against Liberty, quarterback Connor Bazelak threw the ball 21 times, completing just six for 71 yards and three interceptions. Furthermore, senior Camden Orth threw it 10 times, completing five passes for 66 yards and two interceptions.

Last weekend was a completely different story, however. Versus Eastern Illinois, Bazelak completed 23 of his 28 passes and threw for 319 yards.

Overall, in 2023, the offense is averaging 166 yards per game rushing. As for passing, they are averaging 252.5 yards per game. It’s important to mention that this is based on two games, one of which was against a far inferior FCS team in Eastern Illinois.

Bowling Green is also largely unimpressive when they fall behind the chains. On the season, they’ve been converting just 28.57 percent of their third downs. However, they are highly effective in the red zone, scoring a touchdown six of their nine times.

Defense

Bowling Green’s defense allows, on average, 24.5 points per game. Additionally, they’ve allowed 160.5 average rushing yards and 196.5 passing yards through two games.

They have had seven sacks in two games, totaling 41 yards for loss. Notably, five of those sacks were against Eastern Illinois, while just two were against Liberty.

The good news for Michigan football fans is that their defense rarely forces turnovers. They have one interception so far this season and zero fumbles recovered. While it’s early in the 2023 college football season, they haven’t shown the ability to force turnovers, and it would be surprising if it started this weekend.

Additionally, while this 2023 team is very different from last season, the Bowling Green defense allowed an average of 250.69 passing yards and 168.9 rushing yards in 2022.

Overall Thoughts

Bowling Green has had two opposite games in terms of performance on both sides of the ball. The Falcons will have to play an A+ game in every aspect if they want to compete with the 2023 Michigan football team. 

You can watch this weekend’s game against the Bowling Green Falcons at 7:30 p.m. EST on Big Ten Network.

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