BG Football, 2013....game by game.

Tulsa W

This is a really tough opener.  Tulsa is a very solid team and will be tough for us to beat.  I'm picking the win because I believe we will have a big crowd and a good atomsphere and our guys will be hungry to make a strong showing in the opener.

@KSU W

Another tough game and on the road.  Kent had a lot of stuff fall their way last year, though, and they are weak at QB and I don't see the defense being as strong as in the past.  BG has been a decent road team and picks this win up.

@Indiana L

The Hoosiers are much improved and after losing to Ball State the last 3 years, they are not eager to lose to another MAC team.  They pick this one up.

Murray State W

Picked to finish 6th in OVC....a win for BG.

Akron  W

Still on the way back up, BG wins.

Umass  W

Homecoming, BG gets win.

@Mississippi State L

Toughest assignment on BG's schedule, loss to former Falcon assistant Dan Mullen.

Toledo W

This is the year.  Bye week leading in, home field, UT maybe one year away from a dominant team.  BG gets back on the winning side.

@Miami W

This is a tough one...coming off Toledo and, you know, its Miami. The RedHawks lost a lot off an already porous defense.  I think BG wins this one.

Ohio W

Toughest conference game on the schedule.  Honestly, at this point this one is a coin flip with BG getting the edge strictly because of home field.  The healtheir team might win this game.

@EMU W

This will be a sneak game after the Toledo, Miami, OU stretch, but I think the Falcons are just better than the Eagles.

@Buffalo L

This is the year Buffalo starts to get back, and I believe they will be very tough to beat this late in the year on the road at the Ralph.  Bring your long undies.

So, I have us 9-3 and 7-1 and that gives us the East win.  That's pretty close to a best case scenario.  You beat Buffalo and you are 10-2 and 8-0, so that would be the best case, though a win @Indiana is also not completely unthinkable.

If you want the worst case scenario, Tulsa, Kent and OU and are all games I could just as easily have picked us to lose.  The only games on the schedule I am sure we will win are Akron, UMass and Murray State.

So, if you lose those 3, you finish 7-5, a very disappointing season.

The first two games are so important.  If BG starts 2-0 then a double digit win season is within reach.  If BG loses to Kent, in particular, than the character of the season changes a lot, because you are under pressure to win the rest of your conference games.  That trip to Miami, in particular, starts to get a lot more frightening.

If you lose to Tulsa you could finish 8-4 and still have had a very good year if you win the division.

Depending on how the season plays out, I would expect it to come down to the Ohio game for the East title.

Anyway, as Coach has said many times, there are high expectations and there should be.  This is the team we have been pointing to since Tyler and Freddie left the field in Boise in 2009.  I will do a more extensive preview tomorrow, but I believe this team will win 9 games this season and play for a MAC title.