Football Finalizes HS Recruits

Wednesday was the second NSD for football.  There were four players announced, four more who self-announced (meaning, I assume, they are PWOs) and a position change.  Let's get rolling.  (h/t to @thetalontribune for tracking all this).

The four players were:

Darian Hawkins is a 3-star DL from California. He's a 6'4" LB.  He's a 3-star recruit on 247 and was apparently determined to play for a Falcon team, because his offers were Air Force and Bowling Green. He was honorable mention all-state and All-Mission League First Team and All-Area First Team (2025). 

Marceles Carey certainly has people excited.  He's 5'11" and 165 lbs and plays WR/RB.  If he reminds you of Ta'Ron Keith, a true clutch Falcon gamebreaker, then join the crowd.  He's also from the same hometown as Keith: DeLand, Fl.  He was the Orlando Sentinel Offensive Player of the Year. He had only one other D1 offer and a handful of FCS offers.  Which is fine...certainly appears to be a ballplayer.

• Rushed for 2,313 career yards and 34 touchdowns during career
• Caught 74 career passes for 1,456 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns during career
• As a senior he rushed for 1,479 yards (13.1 ypa) and 21 touchdowns, while also catching 27 passes for 693 yards and seven more scores
• Had 31 total touchdowns as a senior (21 rushing, 7 receiving, 2 INT returns, 1 PR)
• Also notched six interceptions on defense, returning two for scores and posting 40 tackles

Trent Merrell is a DL, 6'3" and 230 pounds. He's from Elyria and BG is his only D1 offer, though he had 3 reported FCS offers.  He was not ranked on 247.

He was, however, a highly recognized and productive HS player.

• Finished his career as a three-time First Team All-Conference, All-District and All-County selection (2024–26)
• Earned Third Team All-Ohio honors in 2024 and 2025, followed by Second Team All-Ohio recognition in 2026
• Helped Elyria Catholic reach the regional final in 2023
• Recorded 62 tackles, 22.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks during the 2025 season
• Posted 53 tackles, 25.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, two forced fumbles and two blocked field goals in 2026

Cameron Simmons is 6'3" and 245 and from Sugar Hill, GA. He's a highly recruited, 3-star player.  He had offers from Wake Forest, App State, Georgia State, Arkansas State, Southern Miss and Troy. His Father is 15-year NFL veteran and BG Assistant Clyde Simmons. Posted 81 tackles, 9.0 TFLs and 5.0 sacks as a senior in 2025 as Buford won MaxPreps National Championship.  He also helped lead Buford to the 6A state title, and all-region honors.

The FR class (get to the PWOs in a second) has 25 players.  247 ranks it as the best class in the MAC. CMU was second--and had 38 commits.

It reflects a philosophy of HS first recruiting that Eddie has talked about, as well as the dude from UT and we can see it in CMU.  I'm still not sure how that works, but I'm guessing those guys know what they are doing.

According to rankings, which we don't believe and yet we talk about them all the time, TE Kentrell White is the most highly ranked player we ever recruited.  OT Travis Robertson was #3, QB Jarin Mock is #4  and TE Maddox Hunsted is #7.  (Full bios, etc, available here).

So, after a disappointing season, we were excited to see what Eddie could do with a full season to recruit.  We are seeing it.  Obviously, it will need to translate to wins.

By position:

QB:  1

RB: 2

OL: 3

WR: 3

TE: 4 (Ay yi yi.  Honestly though, the new trend seems to be 13-personnel. And QB Carson Melvin moved from QB to TE).

Offensive total: 13

DL: 6

LB: 3

DB: 3

Defensive total:  12

So, a few other players who committed but were not in BG's announcement.

Carson Lovett is an ATH from Cass Tech, Detroit's D1 football factory.  (Alma mater to Diana Ross and John DeLorean).  He's where stars are funky.  No stars, but offers from Marshall, Louisville, Akron, CMU, Charlotte, Kent, Miami and UMass in FBS. He's listed at 6'1" and 205 pounds.  I don't see any other numbers or stats, except that he was an integral part of Cass Tech's state runner-up team.

Caleb Moyer is a QB from Wapakoneta and is one of those really interesting players.  He was an absolute stud in HS. He was Ohio NW District Offensive POY and first-team All-Ohio.  Coach's kid. And a winner:  they won 44 games in his time at Wapak. And yet, Bowling Green was his only offer. He's 6'2" so size shouldn't be the issue. He's from DIII, which is out of 7 (or VII) total), so not that small a school.  None of that will matter come August.  We've had guys like this shine before.

John Kolarchik is an OL from Orchard Lake St. Mary's. He's 6'6" and 318 pounds. He had offers from Wayne State, and a handful of other smaller schools.  He did get a PWO offer from OU.  That HS is a DII power in Michigan, and they won two state titles while Kolarchik was there. 

Lastly is Dylan Dreasky.  He's really interesting.  A 3-star ranked recruit, he received only one offer.  He is from Linden, MI and lists himself as a QB, WR, S.  Which makes you wonder if he's going to be moved to another position at some point.  He's described online as an explosive playmaker.  Will be fun to watch him.

So there you have it.  Coming up soon, I will look at how we look in the various position groups, with a special focus on the OL, which at this point is dancing with the ones already in the room (for the most part).

As always, you can dig in yourself here.  

Falcon MBB Coast to Easy Win

That's what that is supposed to look like.

BG took on Ball State, a team in the MAC that they should beat, especially at home.  BG never trailed, dominated on both ends of the floor, and rolled to a 25-point victory that was the biggest of the Simon Era.

BG led by 10 for the last 23 minutes.  It was never closer than 13 in the second half.

It was a win BG badly needed.  At 5-6 in MAC play, they need to stack some wins together.  Sadly, having lost opportunities against UB and CMU, the road will be a little rougher.  They have @NIU next after the Sun Belt, and have Toledo, Kent, Miami, UMass on the schedule, along with WMU and EMU.  The good news is that they play 4 of the 6 at home.

Again, qualifying for the tournament is the minimum.  You'd like to get to #6 to avoid MU or UA in the first round...although with Miami, we would have the chance to right a quarter-century-old wrong.

BG scored 1.23 points per possession, their 4th-best D1 game of the year.  They allowed .83 points per possession, their fifth-best D1 game of the season.  That's what we're talking about...that team has showed itself from time to time this year...but needs to stack games like this together.

Coach said they played the "web" zone defense for the whole game — that's a D they created out of necessity last year due to injuries and the need to hide Marcus Johnson.

It was BG's best shooting game of the year (D1), but FWIW, better than they shot against Bethany and Siena Heights. That's 60% on 2FG and 50% on 3FG. Meanwhile, BSU shot 43% on 53% and 19%.  BG destroyed BSU on the boards, and free throw attempts were almost the same, but BG was +6 when making 14 of 15.  Coach Simon rolled his eyes when he talked about how many FTs they have shot in practice.

Ball State actually won the turnover battle.

BG also had much more balanced scoring.  It was nice to have everyone working on it, rather than Campbell being forced to shoot every time. 

In fact, Josiah Shackelford led the scoring with 21 on 4 of 8 and 3 of 5 shooting.  He made 4-4 at the line and had 6 rebounds.  He was back starting, as well as Thomas, with Glover and Ruffin coming off the bench.  

BG actually started a small lineup with no center, though Goins and Glover played 15 minutes each.

Speaking of Goins, he had his best game in BG.  He absolutely abused Mason Jones in the post, scoring 10 points on 5 of 7 shooting, adding 5 rebounds.  Coach said Goins has completely transformed his body since he came to BG.  Also, he's got a 3FG game.  Would be huge to see him contribute.

Wol had 14.  He had been slumping, but went 1-2 and 4-7 in this one.

Campbell had 12 but was highly efficient, making 2-3 from 2FG and his only 3FG and all 5 FTs, to go with 6 assists, 2 blocks, and 2 steals but 5 turnovers.

Glover had 7 rebounds in 15 minutes.

One other thing...he didn't score, but Thomas seems to just solidify things for us.  He's coming off an injury.  He was +23.

So, one we go.  Now the mid-season Sun Belt game, which apparently no one wants to play....followed by the long ride to DeKalb.  Consistency is what we need. Let's have a good ride home.

Ball State MBB Preview

It's a cold winter, and a cold month or so for the men's basketball team, which has lost three in a row and 5 out of the last 7.  BG and UB are tied for the last playoff spot, with Ball State a half-game behind.

It's not looking great right now.

At one point, Ball State was a MAC basketball power.  From 1981 to 2000, they appeared in the NCAA Tournament seven times in 19 years.  That includes a Sweet 16 appearance.  It was a regular thing, and they had the best fan base in the MAC.  Since then, not so much.  They have not played in the MAC title game since 2000.

Michael Lewis is their current coach and is in his fourth year.  He has losing records the last 2 seasons and this year they are 7-14/5-14/3-6.  They started with a KenPom of 256, and now it is 309.

They were picked 8th in the MAC and 11th in Blue Ribbon. They lost their first 5 MAC games this year, then rallied to beat OU, CMU, and NIU, before losing to UT last time out to snap the streak.

Ball State has won 6 of the last 10 over BG, though the Falcons are 3-1 in the last 4 and the last 2 at the Stroh.

BG is a 12.5-point favorite. Dang.

They have had at least 3 players miss significant time.

This sets up very much like the CMU game.  (All Stats MAC ONLY). BSU is #10 on offense and #11 on defense.  On defense, they are last in allowing the shot, last in defending the 3FG, and 10th in defending the 2FG.  There's no reason BG shouldn't make shots against this team...

There are obstacles.  Beyond that, BSU is solid... they lead the MAC in forcing turnovers and are #3 in keeping teams off the line and #7 in defensive boards. (BG was getting to the line a lot earlier in the year, but in their last four losses, they have been under 25%.  The D1 average is 35%.)  Last FT trivia...BSU earns the bad luck award...they are last in FT% against, at 81%.

If BG is ready to defend again, they should be able to handle the Cards.  They are last in EFG...and last in making 2FGs and 8th in 3FGs.  They take an average number of 3FGs.  They are also last in offensive rebounding, so if there are misses, you hope there are chances to run.  The fewer half-court possessions BG has, the better. BSU is #1 at taking care of the ball, #7 at getting to the line, and #4 at FT shooting.

 They are led by Armoni Zeigler, who transferred from St. Peter's. He is scoring 17.2 PPG.  He's not efficient...making 46% on 2FG and 32% on 3FG.  He does make 84% at the line (#8), and he draws 5 fouls a game. He also leads the team with 5.4 RPG and has 30 turnovers, which, given the amount of time he has the ball, isn't as much as it seems.

Davion Hill is scoring 14.1 PPG. He transferred from NW Florida State College. (Also Trey Diggs). He's 6'2" and makes 58% from 2FG and 37% from 3FG. He takes excellent care of the ball.

They are not a big team...#328 in average height.  They play 8 players for 10 minutes or more, though with some injuries. They had a full lineup at UT, except for Joey Hart, who has not played since 12/20.

No regroup in Mt. Pleasant

 We were hoping to see a re-group yesterday in Mt. Pleasant.  Instead, we settled into 7th place.

BG did seem to play better defense, but they played the flattest and most listless game in years. And they dropped a game that you need to win to compete in this conference.  It's no mystery that yesterday's performance was not competitive.

After a rough start, BG led by 14 with 5 minutes left to play.  We led by 12 at the half and still led by 8 with 4 minutes gone in the first half.  At that point, CMU went on a 15-2 run and took the lead with 9 minutes left to play.  BG was up 5 with 6 minutes to play--on their 2nd 3FG of the game. CMU took the lead back with 4 minutes to play and the game was tied with 1:50 left and BG's ball.

BG missed a 3FG, and CMU turned the ball over.  Still tied, :58 to play.  BG is fouled.  Unfortunately, it's Glover, and he missed both of the FTs.  (Hard to have him out there late in games). BUT WAIT!  BG gets the rebound...and Campbell missed 2 FG.

Then the key sequence happened.  First, Adley got into the paint and hit a 2FG with :33 left, then Towns turned it over with :23 left, and Phat Phat made a 2FG, and CMU was up 4, and the die was cast.  BG hit a 3FG to make it one and had a 3FG to win, but it didn't go down.

BG was simply miserable shooting.  BG scored .84 points per possession, their worst offensive game of the season by a significant amount.  Our last games that were worst were in Simon's first year. BG's EFG was 39%...their previous lowest this year was 45%. We shot 39% from 2FG--worst this year--and 25% from 3FG, sadly only our 7th worst.

Turnovers and offensive rebounds were pretty even and made-FT's were even as well.  CMU didn't shoot a lot better--they only made 19% from 3FG, but they made 52% on 2FG and that was the difference.

It was an ugly, hard-to-watch performance by the Falcons.

Javonte Campbell continues to carry this team.  During a lot of possessions, he appeared to be the only Falcon moving his feet.

He scored 21, but they made him work for it.  He was 8 of 20 on 2FG, 5 of 7 at the line, 4 assists, 4 steals, and 2 TO.

Josiah Shackleford had 17, but 4 of 10 and 3 of 5 from 3FG.  He made 3 of BG's 4 3FGs, with Aidan Goins making the other.  Glover is efficient with 4 of 8 on 2FG and 6 rebounds.  Basically, I don't like to call guys out. If you played on our team and I didn't mention your name, we aren't getting anything out of you on offense.

Nathan Claerbaut was a real difference.  He blocked shots, altered shots, and has a really soft touch in the rim.  Look for him to move up next year.

So Ball State is next.  BG is a half-game ahead of Ball State to be out of the playoff mix.  BG has lost 3 straight and 5 of 7.  Last year, we had injuries...we are mostly healthy this year.  It's off track right now.

Toilet Paper/CMU MBB Preview

So BG tries to bounce back after a debacle on Tuesday.  We've shown resilience in the last couple years, but who knows?  I'm hoping to see it happen. We need a win in this one.  Apparently, there will be a big crowd because they throw toilet paper before the game.  You be you, Mt. Pleasant.

Historically, CMU has had some competitive teams in the MAC.  Under Dick Parfitt, they made 3 NCAA tournaments and produced multiple NBA players. Charlie Coles came next.  Jay Smith coached them to their most recent NCAA tournament in 2003.  He flamed out with 20 wins over the next 3 years. After that, they have been in the wilderness.  Ernie Zeigler. who brought his five-star son Trey, followed by Keno Davis and Tony Barbee. 

They have eight losing seasons out of the last ten in the MAC. When Barbee was fired, they made what I think was a smart move, hiring Andy Brokenma from Ferris State.  Rather than try to find some guy who crashed out at a higher level, they found a success who is used to winning in Mid-Michigan, which is no picnic.  He led Ferris State to the 2017-18 national championship, three NCAA Division II Sweet Sixteen appearances, nine overall NCAA tournament appearances and a 278-105 overall record. 

I think this was a good hire.  The hill got higher as he lost every player on the roster.  They were picked 12th in the MAC poll and Blue Ribbon.  

He went out and got 3 D1 players, 7 DII transfers, one NAIA transfer, one JUCO, and 3 FR.

It's been a tough year.  They are 6-15 and 4-15 in D1 games. One D1 win was over Coppin State, the second-worst team in D1. Their KenPom started at 309 and is 302 right now. They are 2-7 in the MAC, with an upset win over Kent and a blowout win over EMU their last time out.  EMU was playing their first game without Carlos Hart or Braelon Green.

Both wins were at home.

They have 12th-place stats.  They are #10 in offense and #9 in defense.

Offense is where the focus should be.  BG failed to guard in their last game and let a team with many shooters slice them apart.  I think it is safe to say they have been encouraged to guard better since Tuesday.  This would be the team to demonstrate that against.

They are 2-focused, trying only 33% from 3FG.  They also make only 32% from 3FG.  Their 52% from 2FG is slightly above average. They are 8th on the offensive boards and 8th at protecting the ball, both things that match against BG strengths.  And they don't get to the line (#12) and don't make the FTs when they are there (#12).

So, a sharpened BG defense that guards the shot without fouling, forces turnovers, and then turns rebounding into transition points should be a good matchup here.  We'll see BG responds to having the pressure turned up this week.

BG is #5 in offensive efficiency in the MAC, and CMU is #9 in defense, and we are on the road, where we apparently like to shoot better.  BG is even more 2FG-focused than CMU is, and BG makes 54%. CMU is #7 at defending the 2FG and #6 at the 3FG.  Their weaker areas are defensive rebounding and putting opponents on the line.  BG has been good at getting to the line and makes 73%, #8 in the MAC. If the defense clicks, BG should be able to score in this one.

CMU plays a nine-man rotation, with no one averaging 30 MPG, and has 5 scorers in double figures. (All stats are MAC only).

Tamario Adley is their leading scorer with 13.3 PPG and 5.4 RPG and #4 in the MAC in steals. He's efficient at 54% and 41%. He also leads the team in assists, but it's only 30 (#12 in MAC). He's a 6'1" G who played at Wayne State and Macomb CC.

Phat Phat Brooks is scoring 12.8 PPG, and takes mostly 2FGs and makes only 43%. He's a 6'2" G who was Mr. Basketball in Michigan (and a bunch of other honors) and played one year at Michigan, getting into 15 games last year.

Nathan Claerbout also scores 12.8 PPG, adding 5.7 RPG. He leads the MAC in blocked shots. He's a 7'0" who came over from Ferris.  He makes 57% of his shots, almost all from 2FG.

Logan McIntire is scoring 11.6 PPG on 33% and 38% shooting, mostly from 3FG. He's a 6'5" G who played at Evansville and then Kentucky Wesleyan.

Keenan Garner is scoring 10.3 PPG and leads the team with 7 RPG. He makes 56% on mostly 2FGs. He's 6'6" and transferred from IU-Indy.

So here we go.  BG is 4-5 and can't leave this one on the table.  CMU is not good, but they have beaten Kent.  And TOILET PAPER.

So here we go. 

BG Doesn't Guard. Bloodbath Scheduled.

Most of the time, I am glad I never really played sports.  In business, when we had a bad day, we might be subjected to questions about our value or (usually) empty threats, and we would spend a day wondering about our future and how we managed to take so many wrong turns.

Todd Simon has promised that practice tomorrow will be a "bloodbath." 

"They’re going to strap up. This is not what we’re about."

Woof.  I'm sure they would have rather skipped the day off and gotten it over with.

The whole thing has a positively Dakichian ring to it, except progress would have been at midnight after the game.

The cause of the bloodbath was BG's defensive performance against UB Tuesday night.  This was a winnable game.  BG has been working hard on defense and has shown some improvement.  Last night was the opposite of that...and therefore the bloodbath.

More Simon:  "The guys that are on the bus to play defense are going to move forward. The guys that are not will still have a seat, but it’s going to be more in different roles."

I'm not exactly sure how that is going to work, given that we only have eight guys or so who are playable.  Maybe we'll play four guys like in Hoosiers.

It was a bad performance in a game we really could have used. 

BG gave up 1.33 points per possession, their second-worst of the season. They allowed 69% EFG, the worst this year.  BG hasn't allowed 70% since 2017.  BG allowed 58% on 2FG...not great, but 54% on 3FG, the worst this season.  Note the similarity between those two numbers. You have to go back two years before you see a team making 3FGs against BG like that.

BG had 1.17 points per possession on offense, which was actually pretty good. BG is 7-2 in D1 games when scoring 1.15 or more.  We scored enough to win.  We did not guard at all.

If this works, I wouldn't want to be CMU on Saturday.  If it doesn't work, I guess it's best to find out now.

Javonte Campbell is having an incredible season.  He just can't be stopped.  He scored 31 on 11 of 17 and 2 of 3 shooting.  Added 7 assists over 2 turnovers. He was 3 of 6 at the line, where he is normally good.

The problem is, no one else got into double figures. Everyone else on the team appears to be slumping, with the exception of Glover, who was efficient with his opportunities.

Last case in point.  BG did get some stops in the second half...7 of 8 possessions that resulted in a 13-2 run and a BG lead. UB responded with a 4-point play, a stop, a 3FG, a stop, and a 2FG, and the lead was back to 8.

Our next 3 games are Central, NIU and Ball State.  This is no time for a slump.  On to CMU.

Football Update

It's game day for MBB, so a good time to peek in on the football team.  The portal deadline is closing, and signing day is next week.  As always, hat tip to @thetalontribune for tracking all this and keeping it in a public place.  It's there all the time.

The "official" roster was put on the BG website.  Not sure what triggered that since there are still portals open and the like, but it did contain some very good news.

JoJo Johnson and Myles Bradley, who had both been in the portal, have decided to return to the team.

This is big for our defense. Johnson was a key D-back for us, leading the MAC in passes defended. He was recruited at Notre Dame and played at Indiana.  And Bradley had 5 sacks and forced three fumbles.

There's four other DBs in the portal, Sanders Ellis at LB, and two (in particular) other additions we will discuss in a minute.  The defense is looking to be in a workable position.

The roster update included 2 new transfers, and since then, another DL has announced his commitment.

John Baker IV, EDGE

He went to Cass Tech in Detroit, riding a proven pipeline to UT, where he redshirted before leaving with the coaching change.  That's a legit D1 factory.  Listed as a three-star recruit by 247Sports and ESPN...No. 25 recruit by ESPN in the state of Michigan...247Sports lists him as the No. 30 player in the state...Two-time Detroit Free Press All-City selection, all-state in his senior year...As a senior, had 55 tackles, 21 tackles for loss, and 18 sacks, leading all edge rushers in Michigan the last two seasons in sacks and tackles for loss....He won three conference titles and the 2024 state championship.

Jonathan Goins, LB

He went to Pine Bluff and then to Alabama A&M, each for one year.  He appears to have been a good player in high school, but generated no numbers for either collegiate team.

Selah Brown, DL

This is another one of these huge prospects who has yet to click in college.  He is a transfer from Louisville.  Has played in 7 games over 2 years. Before that, he was a four-star prospect … listed as the No. 4 player in the state by the ON3 Consensus rankings … ranked as the No. 78 defensive lineman and the No. 6 athlete in Kentucky by ON3 … rated the No. 2 player in the state of Kentucky and the No. 1 defensive end in the state …four-star prospect by 247Sports …named Class 6A Player of the Year by Kentucky Football Coaches Association … finished with 31 tackles and 3.0 tackles for loss as a senior  Had offers from Illinois, Kentucky, Boston College, Northwestern, Missouri, Tennessee, Stanford, Purdue, UCF, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, West Virginia.

As for the players leaving BG, most have found a home. There were 35, plus one guy who dropped off in the roster update. 18 are playing in the FBS, 14 in P4 and 4 in G5.  10 are in FCS. 2 are in D2. 5 more remain in the portal or unkown.  Bam Booker retired.

Interesting that there were few lateral moves.  People either moved up for money or exposure, or down for playing time, which they could use to move up again.

Drew Pyne is not on the roster.  9 of the portal players were on defense, 6 on offense, and only one on the OL to date.