Game day prep

Game Day At Last

This is the day I have been waiting for since I watched the Falcons walk off the floor at the Gund in March. We're back! I can't wait to be in my familiar seats and watching the return of the Falcons and the first game of the Clawson era.

The weather is spectacular, it is a great day to be a Falcon.

I won't be there, but they are also breaking ground on the Stroh Center today.

More updates as the day goes on, but Go Falcons!!

Motor City Bowl is now.....

25 Trojan Questions...

1. How do you use these things?

2. Do they come in sizes?

3. Do I have to?

(Ohhhhhhhhhh. Not that kind of Trojans? Now you tell me. Never mind).

OK, last year I started a way of previewing our opponents by asking 25 questions about each team. I didn't start until the middle of the season when we had a season track record to look at, so as we do it this year, we need to look more at last year for a body of work, etc. We can transition to this season after a few weeks.

Anyway, here goes.

What is their body of working coming into the season?

Troy is a consistently successful program. They have won eight games the last three seasons. Their program is stable. Their coach has been there 18 seasons and their OC and DC are back from last year.

What was their best result last season?

I am tempted to say leading OSU and LSU in the 4th Quarter (and leading LSU 31-3). But, since the question actually says result, I'm going to say beating Florida Atlantic on the road.

What was their worst result last season?

A one-point loss to Louisiana-Monroe.

What was the turnover margin?

They were +6 last year. Typically, they run just south of even, so +6 was a good season for them.

Offense:

How is their QB play?

They are strong at QB. Levi Brown is their starter (Coach Clawson recruited him to Richmond). He had 62% completions and a 15-3 ratio. They also have a capable backup in Jamie Hampton, more of a run/pass threat.

What was their yard per play?

5.5 yards per play, which is very solid and would be in the upper third of the MAC. For reference, Bowling Green had 5.3 yards per play.

Can they run the ball?

Their rushing game was very solid last year. They averaged 4.9 yards per rush with sacks deducted and would have been over 5.0 if the sacks were excluded. Only Kent and Ball State rushed that well in the MAC last year. DeJuan Harris is their RB, and he got most of their carries and is a quality runner.

Do they pass the ball?

They can, for what they do. They execute a high-percentage offense very effectively. As mentioned, they have good QBs and Jerrel Jernigan is a wideout with real big play ability and 77 catches last season. They also have picked up Josh Jarboe, a transfer from Oklahoma.

Are they high efficiency or big play?

They are high percentage. Like a true spread, they hope for mismatches and missed tackles for big plays. They complete 62% of their passes, but only get 6.1 yards per pass, which is half a yard less than BG's last season, which in turn was not very good. It is a safe offense. They are rarely intercepted or sacked.

Do they convert on 3rd Down.

They are not especially good. They converted 38% last year, which would have been second to last in the MAC in 2008.

Do they score in the red zone?

Again, this is nothing special, 4.4 yards per red zone trip last year.

Do they protect the quarterback?

They allowed only 13 sacks last year, which is microscopic. When you are playing this quick passing attack, it is very difficult to get sacks.

In summary, their offense has very good players, and last year was able to control the ball and score points. They did this @OSU and @LSU. They bring enough players back that you might think they are even better this year.

They did score 32.8 points per game, which would have been second in the MAC.

Defense:

Topline: Scoring and yards per play.

For as good as the Troy offense was last year, the defense was even better. They allowed 4.5 yards per play. The best defense in the MAC allowed 5.0. They allowed 21.3 PPG, which would have been third in the MAC. Their front seven is back intact (although WLB Bear Woods is ineligible for the BG game), though they did lost their entire secondary, creating a potential opportunity to move the ball.

Do they defend the run effectively?

Teams gained only 3.5 yards per rush against them (sacks included). This would be more than half a yard per play better than the best MAC rushing defense.

Could they be passed on?

Uh, not last year. They allowed only 55% completions and 5.8 yards per pass, both outstanding results. (Note losses here, both graduation and Jorrick Colvin, however....this at least qualifies as a question mark).

Did they get off the field on 3rd down?

Teams converted only 36% of their third down plays, which would have tied for the MAC lead.

Do they defend in the red zone?

Last year they allowed only 4.1 points per red zone trip, which is outstanding. They also allowed only 43 red zone trips while creating 63. If you get in the red zone two more times per game then your opponent, it is hard to imagine that you can lose that game.

Do they pressure the QB?

Last year they had 37 sacks, which was very similar to CMU, who led the MAC. With their front seven back, you can expect them to continue to excel here, taking pressure of their secondary. I don't know this, but I am guessing if their D-ends are as good as everyone says, then they can get pressure with four men, which makes a team nearly impossible to pass against.

Special Teams:

Punting?

Their net punting (36.5) would be near the top of the MAC. Their punter is back.

Punt Return?

This is a question mark. Jorrick Calvin got most of their returns last year but he is ineligible. My guess is that with their team speed, they will find someone else who can do this.

Placekicking?

Last year, their kicking was OK. 20-29, with 2 over 50 and essentially low percentage kicks. He was better beyond 40 (7-9) than inside 40 (13-18). There were 2 blocks.

Kickoff?

Their kickoffs were about average (or a little below), with opponents starting on the 28, with short kicks and short returns. They did nail 9 touchbacks, (about 10%) which is around what BG had.

Kickoff Return?

Again, Colvin got more of the returns, so this is a question mark.

Miscellaneous: Overall atmospherics and intangibles.

Hard to tell. Some considerations:

• BG has a new coach--big advantage.
• BG has a new coach--big problem.
• Troy plays Florida next. Could they look past us?

One last note. I can hear the Bowling Green fans saying, yeah, dude, those numbers were earned in the Sun Belt conference. That's a weak conference.

In fact, according to the Sagarin rankings, it is the weakest FBS conference with a mean ranking of 60.77. The MAC is next lowest at 61.96...which is pretty close. The difference between the Big 10 and the Mountain West was more than double that, for comparison purposes.

All-time, that MAC is 7-6 against current Sun Belt teams, and 6-4 since 2004. Certainly, no cakewalk....

And don't forget the OSU and LSU games.

I have picked the Trojans to win this game. I just think they are a really tough match up for us. That said, we don't really know what to expect from our new coaches and system. We have some talented players on offense, and if we can come out with a new energy and execute our game plan, we could beat this team.

It would be a great way to get things started for the Clawson era.

Motor City Bowl to become Little Caesar's Bowl....

Or something like that. Announcement is due tomorrow.

Blog Swap, Trojan Style

As I mentioned a week or so ago, we've arranged a blog swap with the Troy blog. These are fun and a great way to learn about the teams we are playing. The basic idea is that we ask each other questions, and then put the answers onto our blog.

Greg at GoTroyTrojans sent me six questions, which are answered below. I sent him six questions too, which he answered here....

What I really enjoy is meeting people I consider pure college football fans.....rooting for their team with passion, following their every move, but maintaining a sense of humor and not acting like a jerk. Greg is in that category.

Finally, love the explanation for the tradition behind "Burn the Horse."

Looking forward to doing this again next year when we make the return trip to Alabama....

1.) What exactly does Ay-Ziggy-Zoomba mean? Where did it come from?

Ay-Ziggy-Zoomba is perhaps our most unique tradition at Bowling Green. The song is theoretically an adapted Zulu war chant brought back from Italy during WWII by a BG Grad (I'm not going to pretend that I know where, precisely, he found an enclave of Zulu war chanting in Italy in the mid 1940's.) Anyway, many fans probably think it is the fight song, even though it is not. ("Forward Falcons" is.) Ay-Ziggy-Zoomba played a role in the movie Paper Lion when BG Grad Mike Weger sang it as part of rookie initiation at the Lions training camp. Should we win Thursday, the team will head over to the band and sing the song and celebrate with fans on the field, as we do after every win (Don't want to think we would ONLY do it after beating Troy!)

2.) What people do you feel are the past, present, and future of Bowling Green Football?

I think Falcons feel are proud of the past of Falcon football. We won the 1959 Small College National Championship, and have had some great players and teams over that time. We've had good coaches (Don Nehlen, Urban Meyer), and a number of MAC Championships. It has, however, been 17 years since we won a MAC Title and that is very disappointing given some of the players who have come through here over that time. And I think fans have been frustrated at having good teams, but never the best team in our conference. As always, I think we are also optimistic for the future. Dave Clawson is a proven winner and I believe he will end our championship drought.

3.) Why the Falcon Mascot? Any interesting stories about how that came to be?

The Falcon mascot was actually suggested by the editor of the local paper. BG was founded as a teacher's college (as I believe Troy was) and we were known as the Teachers or the Normals, and apparently those didn't fit in headlines too well. The editor had read a book on Falconry, was impressed, and felt it would be easier to work with. And the Falcons were born. We are told that we were attracted to the fact that it often attacks birds much bigger than it is.

4.) What is the biggest moment on Bowling Green football history? Why?

This is a tough question. I have been attending Falcon football games for the better part of 40 years, and I guess I would say that it really boils down to two moments.

The boring, but probably correct answer is when that 1959 team went undefeated and received national honors.

The more current, and more emotional answer is the day when GameDay came to Bowling Green and we beat NIU in front of a high profile national audience. We really showcased our team that day and I know it will last forever in the memories of the people who were there.

5.) Tell me why BGSU is a good choice for a high school player looking for a college to play for.

Excellent question. People who go to Bowling Green say that what they appreciate is the family atmosphere. I hope every athlete who comes to Bowling Green appreciates it. You will be able to compete at a high level and the University is committed to you completing your degree and living a successful life.

6.) What type of season do people expect the Falcons to have this season? Why?

I have been previewing the team on the blog for the past week or so. In short, on one hand, the Falcons blew three games in the fourth quarter last year. Had we won those, and we should have won all three, then we would have been in a bowl game, probably have the same coach and might have won the MAC title. So, on one hand, you can think we were pretty close to winning and with the new focus a coach brings, perhaps we can get over the top.

However, we lost tons of players on defense, and I think it is difficult to think about how we are going to be able to get off the field enough to win. I personally expect a 7-5 or 6-6 season (my game by game predictions were on my blog on Monday morning).

On offense, we have a very solid QB in Tyler Sheehan and a very good receiver in Freddie Barnes. We are hoping to run the ball more, especially with the RBs. How much spread we play remains to be seen, but Clawson says he is not a "system guy" and will run whatever works for the players he has. We have the potential to score a bushel-full of points.

Our non-conference schedule is really though. Besides playing Troy (a very good team, from what I can see), we also host Boise and travel to Missouri and Marshall. If we come out of that 2-2, it will be very surprising.

Depth Chart....

We've had a couple of mentions of the new depth chart, which is the first once since the media guide came out...it is now officially out with the Troy game notes, so let's take a look.

The biggest point of interest is on the defensive line, where we are bringing in all new players. Here is what we show.


The surprise is Brandon Jackson starting on the end. He was listed as a LB on the roster on the web, and has played a total of 9 games over his previous seasons with four career tackles. Coach says he had a great camp and knows what he is doing, so we're all hoping he can help to bring some senior leadership to the line.

Coach said Magnone had the job coming out of the Spring, and that there will be a lot of rotation, so I think you can expect to see most of those guys in and out. Chris Jones, btw, is a true freshmen and is backing up at one position, merely adding a counterpoint to our need for bodies.

The rest of the depth chart is at follows, and contains far fewer surprises.

The defense is pretty much as expected. The good camp of Keith Morgan has allowed Calvin Marshall to move down to be a backup at linebacker. True freshmen Tim Moore is also on the two-deep at safety.

On offense there are also few surprises. The set we chose to illustrate in the chart is a two RB, Two WR, one TE formation. With that in mind, Barnes and Pronty are the WRs, with Hutson and Chris Wright in reserve. Probably the only interesting part of this is that Willie Geter is listed as starting at TB and Chris Bullock is at FB.

There are a couple of things that are interesting about that. First, when we use that formation, we are getting our two best RBs on the field. And, Bullock is a clear threat to run out of the FB position, and would not be a one-dimensional blocking FB. Secondly, I think it shows how much Willie Geter has shown this Fall. He certainly has the speed to be a game changing back, if he can stay healthy. Finally, it does not preclude him getting touches at TB.

We have four redshirt FR on the two deep, and they are some good sized young men. If they develop and mature, we are going to have a very strong line during their junior and senior seasons.

Finally, as I noted previously, Jerry Phillips is listed as the K and Willie Geter will be returning punts--another spot where he could be an absolute game-breaker as well.