Falcons Soar Down To The Lone Star State on Saturday to Face No. 25 Texas A&M
Saturday, Sept. 21 | 7:30 p.m. | Kyle Field | Bryan-College Station, Texas
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BOWLING GREEN FALCONS (1-1, 0-0 MAC) |
at | TEXAS A&M AGGIES (2-1, 1-0 SEC) |
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Falcons Soar Down to the Lone Star State
• Bowling Green State University is back on the road this Saturday to face the Texas A&M Aggies of the Southeastern Conference.
• The game will kick at 7:30 p.m. ET and be broadcast live on SEC Network+ and ESPN+.
Bowling Green vs. Texas A&M
• Bowling Green is facing Texas A&M for the first time in program history.
• Texas A&M is the eighth different current SEC team BGSU will play. The Falcons have four wins against current SEC teams, with three coming against Missouri and one against Kentucky.
Five Top Storylines
• Through three weeks of the college football season and BGSU's two games, TE Harold Fannin Jr. is No. 1 in the nation among tight ends in receiving yards (204), YAC (131), first down receptions (13) and forced missed tackles (8). His 17 receptions are No. 2 in the nation among tight ends and he is the only tight end in the top 10 in that category to not play three games. Per Pro Football Focus among all receivers he has the top offensive grade in the nation (94.1) and is No. 3 for his passing routes grade (93.6), both of which are tops for tight ends.
• QB Connor Bazelak enters Saturday with 922 career completions, ranking No. 3 among active players (behind Washington's Will Rogers and Oregon's Dillon Gabriel). He needs 78 more to become the 41st player in FBS history to reach 1,000 career completions. He also needs 273 passing yards to reach 10,000 for his career.
• Counting Saturday, BGSU will have played in three of the four largest FBS stadiums in the United States since the start of the 2023 season. Also counting Saturday, BGSU will have played in four of the top six, five of the top 10 and six of the top 15 in the Scot Loeffler era. More info on page five.
• Bowling Green recorded five sacks in its season opener against Fordham and two at then-No. 8 Penn State. Since the start of the 2022 season, BGSU has accumulated 78 team sacks, which ranks 16th in the nation.
• Texas A&M are ranked No. 25 in this week's Associated Press poll. BGSU is 5-29 all-time against AP-ranked opponents. This is the fifth time in program history BGSU has faced multiple ranked opponents in the same season (2012, 2009, 2003, 1997), and the first time the Falcons have faced ranked opponents in back-to-back games after facing then-No. 8 Penn State on Sept. 7.
Bowling Green vs. the SEC
• Bowling Green is 4-11 all-time against current members of the SEC.
• The Falcons are 3-2 against Missouri, 1-2 against Kentucky, 0-2 against Tennessee, 0-2 against Mississippi State, 0-1 against Alabama, 0-1 against Florida and 0-1 against Oklahoma.
• The win over Kentucky (1985) is BGSU's lone victory over a team that was an SEC team at the time of the victory. The three wins over Missouri came when the Tigers were in the Big 12.
Elko Part of Impressive BGSU Coaching Tree
• Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko spent five seasons as Bowling Green's defensive coordinator from 2009 to 2013 under Dave Clawson.
• The Falcon defense led the Mid-American Conference in scoring defense, total defense, rush defense, and pass defense in each of his last two seasons. In 2013, four BGSU defensive players were named to the All-MAC first or second team.
• Elko's Bowling Green defense excelled at forcing turnovers and stopping opponents on third down. Over his five seasons as defensive coordinator, the Falcons forced 106 turnovers, or 1.7 per game. Bowling Green held opponents to just 35.9 percent on third-down conversions during those five seasons. In both 2012 and 2013, the Falcons ranked in the top 10 in the nation in total defense and scoring defense.
• The 2012 season was a banner year for the BGSU defense, finishing ranked sixth in the country in total defense (296.6) and 10th in scoring defense (16.7). The Falcons held opponents to under 100 yards rushing in nine contests, with six different players earning All-MAC honors, including three first-team members (Chris Jones, Gabe Martin, BooBoo Gates). Jones was later named a first-team All-American by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA).
• The 2012 defense finished as the fourth-best third-down defense in the nation, allowing a first down just 28.1 percent of the time. Their fourth-down defense was just as strong, ranking fifth in the country at 26.3 percent. They ended the season ranked 11th in sacks (38), 12th in rushing defense (106.5), 13th in pass defense (190.1), and fifth in first downs allowed (15.1). All of this was accomplished with just two senior starters.
Connor Bazelak is a Former SEC Starter
• BGSU quarterback Connor Bazelak is no stranger to the SEC, having appeared in 24 career games at Missouri as a quarterback from 2019 to 2021.
• Bazelak made 20 career starts for Missouri and notched a 12-8 record as the starter over three seasons.
• Bazelak was named the SEC Co-Freshman of the Year in 2020. During his time with the Tigers, he threw for 5,084 yards, 23 touchdowns, and completed 66.4% of his passes.
• Bazelak threw for 230 yards against Texas A&M on 29-of-43 passing in a game played on October 16, 2021, in Columbia. The Aggies won, 35-14.
• In 2022, Bazelak played in 10 games for Indiana, passing for 2,312 yards and 13 touchdowns before joining BGSU in 2023.
Malcolm Johnson Jr. Has SEC Ties
• BGSU wide receiver Malcolm Johnson Jr. is in his first season at Bowling Green after spending the last four years at Auburn.
• He appeared in 29 career games for the Tigers, with 14 career starts.
• The former four-star prospect left Auburn with 14 career receptions for 199 yards and a touchdown.
• So far at BGSU, he has almost matched those numbers through two games, entering Saturday's game with 11 receptions for 114 yards and one touchdown this season.
• Johnson played in Auburn's home win over Texas A&M in 2022 and the 2023 loss at Kyle Field but didn't record any stats in either game.
Back in the Heart of Texas
• Bowling Green is 3-6 all-time in the state of Texas and is playing its first game in the Lone Star State since losing to TCU, 49-12, in 1988.
• BGSU first played in Texas in 1960 when the Falcons took a 21-0 victory over UTEP (formerly Texas Western). BGSU dropped three at West Texas A&M in 1962, 1965 and 1969. BGSU also won at North Texas in 1964 and UT Arlington in 1971. The Falcons fell at UT Arlington in 1975 and at Baylor in 1981.
• The Falcons have three players who played high school football in Texas: CB Jacorey Benjamin (originally from Mobile, Ala., but attended Houston's Alief Hastings HS), RB Mar'Kel Porter (Dallas, Lancaster HS), and S Tracy Revels (Texarkana, Liberty-Eylau HS).
• Bowling Green has two California natives who transferred to BGSU from four-year colleges in Texas. TE Elijah Boyd (Fairfield, Calif.) spent the 2023 season at UTEP, while DL Chace Davis (Whittier, Calif.) played at UTSA in 2022 before joining the Falcons last season.
Bowling Green - Texas A&M Connections
• Texas A&M's Cashius Howell spent the 2021-23 seasons at Bowling Green. He earned third-team All-MAC honors in 2023 after leading BGSU with 9.5 sacks, which was tied for first in the MAC and tied for 16th nationally.
• Howell's 9.5 sacks tied for fourth on BGSU's single-season ledger with former NFL player Diyral Briggs (2008).
• Texas A&M defensive line coach Sean Spencer served in the same capacity at Bowling Green in 2009 and 2010 on Dave Clawson's staff.
Latest Football News
- Ali Saad Selected by the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the 2025 CFL DraftBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Bowling Green defensive lineman Ali Saad (Windsor, Ont.) was selected by the Saskatchewan Roughriders during Tuesday's first round of the 2025 Canadian Football League Draft. Saad was the fourth overall pick. He becomes BGSU's first CFL draft selection since offensive lineman Ryan Hunter was taken in the first round of the 2018 CFL Draft by the Toronto Argonauts.
- Harold Fannin Jr. Selected by the Cleveland Browns in the 2025 NFL DraftBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Bowling Green junior tight end Harold Fannin Jr. (Canton, Ohio) was selected by the Cleveland Browns during Friday's third round of the National Football Draft. Fannin was the 67th overall pick and the first tight end from Bowling Green since Greg Meczka was selected by the San Diego Chargers in the 15th round of the 1974 NFL Draft.
- Paying It Forward: Teddy Piepkow’s Lifelong Connection to BGSU
- Bowling Green to Host Third Annual Women’s Football Clinic on June 6BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Bowling Green head football coach Eddie George and the Falcon football program are hosting the third annual Bowling Green Women's Football Clinic on Fri., June 6. The event runs from 5:30-8:30 p.m. at Doyt Perry Stadium.
- Program Record Seven Falcons Earn NFF Hampshire Honor Society HonorsBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Bowling Green had seven Falcons earn NFF Hampshire Honor Society membership, as announced by the National Football Foundation & College Football Hall of Fame. DL Dontrez Brown, CB Todd Bumphis, DL Chace Davis, TE Levi Gazarek, OLB Demetrius Hardamon, ILB Brock Horne and OT Alex Wollschlaeger all earned the accolades.
- George Announces His Inaugural BGSU Coaching StaffBOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Bowling Green State University football head coach Eddie George has announced his first BGSU coaching staff, which includes 10 assistant coaches, an analyst, a special teams coordinator and three strength & conditioning coaches.