Falcons Open 74th Season of MAC Play on Saturday at Ohio
Saturday, Sept. 27 | 12 p.m. | Frank Solich Field at Peden Stadium | Athens, Ohio |
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BOWLING GREEN |
vs. | OHIO BOBCATS (2-2, 0-0 MAC) |
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WATCH : CBS Sports Network | LISTEN : WFRO The Eagle 99 | STATS : View |
Falcons Open 74th Season of MAC Play
• Bowling Green State University opens its 74th season of play in the Mid-American Conference on Saturday against the Ohio Bobcats.
• This will be the 76th meeting between the Falcons and the Bobcats.
• The game will kick at 12 p.m. and broadcast live on CBS Sports Network.
Bowling Green and MAC Openers
• Bowling Green begins Mid-American Conference play on Saturday at Ohio.
• Since 2011, the Falcons are 6-8 in MAC openers, with all six victories coming on the road. BGSU is 6-3 in road conference openers during that span, with wins at Miami (OH) (2011), Kent State (2013), UMass (2014), Buffalo (2015), and Akron (2022, 2024).
• Saturday's contest marks the sixth time since 2015 that Bowling Green has opened league play on the road.
Five Top Storylines
• LB Gideon Lampron is one of three players in the nation with 30+ tackles, 4.5+ TFLs, 1.5+ sacks, and 1+ passes defended. The others are Keyshaun Elliot (Arizona State) and Mekhi Mason (Louisiana Tech).
• TE Jyrin Johnson has 11 receptions for 159 yards this season. His 159 receiving yards rank No. 19 nationally among tight ends, while his 11 catches rank No. 28. Both totals lead all MAC tight ends.
• CB Kal-El Pascal is one of only five players in the nation with 29+ tackles, 1+ interception, and 1+ forced fumble. Others on the list include Mac Harris (South Florida), Ronan Hanafin (Clemson), Xavian Sorey Jr. (Arkansas), and Shane Whitter (North Texas).
• PK Jackson Kleather is tied for No. 2 in the nation with 10 made field goals.
• TE Jacob Harris is tied for No. 7 nationally among tight ends with two receiving touchdowns. That mark is tied for the MAC lead with Jake Bruno (Ohio) and Joshua Long (Eastern Michigan).
Bowling Green vs. Ohio
• BGSU leads the all-time series with the Bobcats, 41-32-2; however, Ohio has won seven of the last eight meetings and 10 of the last 15 contests.
• Since 2000, Bowling Green is 9-1 against Ohio when holding the Bobcats below 300 yards of total offense.
• Since 2000, Bowling Green is 6-5 against Ohio when recording 400+ yards of total offense.
• Since 2000, Bowling Green is 7-0 against Ohio when winning the turnover battle. The Falcons are 0-9 when losing it, and 1-2 when turnovers are even.
BGSU Caps 1959 Championship at Ohio
• In 1959, Bowling Green traveled to Athens and defeated Ohio, 13-9, in front of 12,000 fans at what is now Peden Stadium. The victory capped a perfect 9-0 season—the first and only perfect campaign in BGSU history.
• The win clinched both the MAC title and the small college National Championship for the Falcons.
• Jerry Colaner electrified the crowd with a fourth-quarter interception return of 30 yards for the deciding touchdown. It was BGSU's only interception of the game, but arguably the biggest of the season.
• Bob Colburn completed just 3-of-9 passes but managed to break Bill Lyons' career record of 108 completions. One of his completions accounted for Bowling Green's first touchdown.
• The Falcons set a then-MAC scoring record with 208 points on the season, surpassing Ohio's previous mark of 201 (1953).|
• Bowling Green missed two scoring opportunities in the first half after recovering Ohio fumbles deep in Bobcat territory.
• Ohio built a 9-0 lead after a field goal and a touchdown following a Falcon fumble. John Dickinson scored on a sweep but was stopped short on the two-point attempt.
• Chuck Ramsey's 29-yard field goal attempt into the wind fell short late in the first half.
• Ohio threatened several times in the fourth quarter, but costly fumbles halted their chances.
• The game ended with Bowling Green driving to the Ohio one-yard line.
Bowling Green - OU connections
• Ohio long snapper Dominic Konopka started his career at BGSU (2022) and left for Marshall in 2023 before joining the Bobcats.
Sacking the Quarterback
• Since the start of the 2022 season BGSU ranks No. 20 in the nation with 114 team sacks.
• BGSU has played 43 games since the start of the 2022 season and has recorded at least one sack in 37 of those 43 games.
Are 21 Points the Magic Number?
• Bowling Green has an all-time .752 winning percentage (308–100–4) when scoring 21 points or more.
• Since 2000, that winning percentage is .681 (139–65); since 2010, it stands at .779 (74–21).
• During BGSU's current three-season bowl streak, the Falcons have won 71 percent (22–9) of games scoring 21+ points.
• BGSU's all-time record jumps to 232–36 (.866) when scoring 28 or more points.
Total Offense
• BGSU gained 375+ yards in 9 of its last 17 games.
• Since 2022, the Falcons have reached 350+ yards in 22 of 43 games, going 15–7 in those contests.
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