FalconBlog--Triumphs and Trials in the BGSU Falcon Nation

Down we go again

The Falcons lost a very exciting and entertaining football game to the Akron Zips on Saturday. Obviously, with a third loss in the conference, we are not out of the race for the MACC. At one point Saturday, it looked like we were going to climb back in, and with OU and Kent both losing (at one point), it looked like we might be back in a three way tie, which might have mediated our loss to Kent, and then Akron rallied like the well coached team they are, and OU won, too.

The basic gameflow is as follows. Akron bolted out to a first quarter 7-0 lead, but BG got their act together on offense with a 19-play 80 yard drive to tie it early in the second. About four minutes later Akron took the lead back on another 20+ pass, but BG drove 70 yards (penalty aided) to tie the game before the half.

Let us be honest, though, about what had happened. Akron scored on its first drive, missed a FG on the second, scored on the third, and threw an INT in the endzone on the next drive.

To start the second half, we got Akron to go three and out, and we drove the ball down the field (scoring on our third straight drive), this time 9 plays and 55 yards, and we had the lead. There, the laughter turned to sadness, as Akron's attack ramped back up and they scored on their next three drives to take a two TD lead.

BG was not done. The Falcons took the ball with 6:12 left in the game, drove 80 yards in 14 plays and 3:58 to score on an eight yard Turner run, and then we recovered the onside kick. BG drove back down the field and with time running out, Turner threw an apparent game-tying TD to Ruben Ruiz. However, Ruiz was called for offensive pass interference, and that was pretty much it.

On the call, I saw the game on the MAC video feed, and he did push off. Whether it is the kind of call you see in a situation like that, I don't know. It is pretty rare. But the defender was right on him, and he pushed off to get some separation, and I just can't say it was a terrible call.

Along the way, you had two storylines. First, the Akron offense ate us up for lunch. Note this.

• 28 first downs.
• 470 yards of total offense (on only 64 plays)
• One punt
• 178 yards rushing for Dennis Kennedy.
• Getsy was 17-25 for 248 yards, and was largely unbothered in the pocket.

The other storyline was on offense for BG. Anthony Turner played QB for us. I'm sure Falcon fans were screaming across the state, (I really expected Sheehan to start). In fact, Sheehan never got one snap...and for good reason. In Akron, AT gave us a tantalizing look at what he can be as he matures. He was 20-36 for 192 yards and no INT--and his numbers were slightly better before we were playing from behind. He also ran 22 times for 105 yards and three touchdowns.

His completion %, while not ideal, is about what Josh's was at that point in his career. If he can only tune his accuracy up to about 60%, then we still have someone who can be a real weapon for our football team. He was confident and assertive at the Rubber Bowl on Saturday, and his next challenge is to keep the momentum going against Miami.

Our team played hard and they did not give up. Faced with a crisis, Akron's solid coaching staff figured out how to exploit our defense and basically moved the ball at will for the whole football game. Having said that, our team fought through the struggles, and were in the game when it ended. We could have quit, but we kept playing, and playing hard.

I know emotions during a football season are a roller coaster. I just think that this 4-6 team has the potential to be good next year and the year after. It is more likely than not, though it is not done.