Recruiting Roundup

The real goal....

So national signing day was yesterday.  You can see all the coverage for yourself.  Beyond that, I would add a few thoughts...

First, I'm perfectly happy with the job our coaches did.  To paraphrase the song, we might have "99 problems, but recruiting ain't one."  They might be new and untested, but the coaches are clearly good recruiters, especially off that season.  They brought in an excellent class.

Now, as far rankings go...I'm a little bit of skeptic.  What I like is that most of our guys were sought after by other schools.  Whether they are 2-star or 3-star...I'm glad if they are three-star, but these are 18-year old men.  Some 18-year olds are late bloomers, some are topped out...they can be coached up and they can mature.  They can be put into systems they can thrive in and they can be put into systems they will languish in.

Yesterday was a good start.  In fact, probably better than that.  But winning signing day is one thing.  Winning the big trophy---that's what it's about.  You have to recruit well to do that--as Coach Jinks noted with the strong Clawson recruiting years setting the stage for a big run--but you also can coach a guy up.

For today it is good.  We'll know in '19 if we are starting to get some results.

Maybe sooner.  Coach said he'd like to redshirt everybody but given our depth issues that might not be possible.  But, know that his ultimate vision is to redshirt a whole recruiting class.

Other general notes:

The Blade indicated there were 11 preferred walk-ons, too.  Those are not public until they enroll this summer.

BG went heavy on lineman.  Out of 24 players there were 5 O-lineman and 5 d-lineman.  Beyond that, 2 of the o-lineman were JUCO guys who could start right off the bat.

There also were 5 WRs, which is a big issue given today's offense.  Even if BG does go to a more running style, you might well have four receivers split out with one back.

There were 13 players on offense and 11 on defense.

The most interesting was Travis Koontz who was committed to BG, de-committed, committed to Toledo and then re-committed to BG.  There was talk of him having P5 offers and he could be a difference maker as a matchup problem out of the TE slot.

No kicker...though maybe with the walk-ons.

BG's biggest de-commit was Noah Harvey, who ended up at MSU.  Shows we were on the right track.  Best of wishes to him.  MSU is getting slagged for stealing a BG commit--which is as much a slam on us as them--so I hope he destroys some people.

Anyway, the recruiting appears to be in good hands.  It shows a re-commitment to succeeding on both sides of the ball and being strong up front, which has been one of the consistent things during our recent success.

Falcon MBB Cruises to Win

As my preview noted, BG was playing the only team in the MAC that has a worse rating than they have and it was at home and BG got what they needed, which was a comfortable W, 83-72.  Having said that, I felt like BG played among their better games of the year.  Certainly, we're not going to look down our nose at the win, which was needed.

Miami led only once, 10-8, about 6 minutes into the game.  A couple minutes later BG was on a +9 run to go up 7.  Over the last 5 minutes of the first half BG outscored Miami 9-2 and let by 15 going into the locker room.  From there on in it was no contest.  The lead was in double digits for nearly the entire 2nd half.  Miami did get it to 9 with about a minute left but in the end the Falcons cruised to the victory.

BG had 1.16 points per possession, their best since the Akron game.  They allowed Miami 1.01 per possession, their best in a MAC game that wasn't played against a team whose name rhymed with Schmall Schmate.  Here's what's weird.  Miami actually shot very well against BG.  They had an effective FG% of 65%, which is really good.  They made 72% of their 2FGs, the most in a couple years by a BG opponent.  They also made 38% of their 3s.

So wha happen?  Well, they had a horrible game for turnovers.  They literally turned the ball over 1 out of every 3 times down the court.  That's the most since BG played WMU in 2012  (on this day, in fact).  Their all-star PG Michael Weathers had 0 assists and 10 turnovers, which is just an incredible line.  He sat most of the second half.

How did BG make it up?  First, BG made 44% from 3FG, their best since the Norfolk State game.  BG took better, if not great, care of the ball.  And then BG had a very good day on the offensive boards and at the FT line.  BG was 23 of 31 from the line while Miami was 12 of 16.  That's 74% for BG, which among their better games this year.

Individually, it was interesting.  BG started the same lineup they used when the four guys were suspended.  The big surprise is Malik Hluchoweckyj.  He was getting zero minutes before, and he has now started twice and played very well.  Coach says he works hard on the defensive end of the floor and he had 10 points on 4 of 5 shooting in 19 minutes.   In this two games, he has made a real difference and adds depth to the overall unit.

The games biggest star was Wes Alcegaire, who scored a career-high 25 on 9 of 15 shooting, including 6 3FGs.  Zack Denny had 10 points but continued to struggle with his shot, shooting 1 of 7.  BG also got contributions from Rasheed Worrell, who had 8 rebounds, and Rod Caldwell, who had 3 assists against 0 turnovers.  Dylan Frye plays with a lot of energy but has been struggling as a starter as well.

Even so, I like our young guys.  They are freshmen.  It happens.  Ask Michael Weathers.

So, in come the Rockets Saturday.  This is a tough one.  BG hasn't won 2 in a row in the MAC since their tournament run this year.  And, kenpom literally projects them to lose out.  There's no better time to turn all of that--including the Rocket streak--around then this Saturday.

National Signing Day!!

Tweets by @BG_Football



It's here!  National Signing Day.  BGSU has you covered.  You can check them out on any social media you like, as well as here where the twitter feed will stream.  They will update as they get every LOI faxed it.  Later, they will do a presentation on the recruits and then I'll post a summary later.  For now, this feed is your best source of information.

National Signing Day Eve....

So, things will mostly be settled by tomorrow morning.  Just got back from the men's basketball game....post on that coming later.  For now, a couple updates at least on recruiting.

The biggest news is that Noah Harvey is going to MSU.  You had to worry when he took the visit up there.  He would have been very good for us, but this is what happens when you recruit at that level.  I always say...it is his life and he should go to college where he wants.  Wish him nothing but the best.

BG also now has a verbal from Derek Downs, a 6'7" 305 OT from Westerville North.  According to this, BG was his only FBS offer, but he had a dozen other offers and until today he was a commit to Youngstown State, which has a pretty good coach and program.  Usually I try to find more about guys, but frankly we will see all that tomorrow.

There might be some other changes....there were hints of a lot of movement from John Wagner today.  It will all be clear soon.  Your best source of info is BGSU tomorrow, they will do a great job updating you as each signee's letter comes in.  I have a widget set up here that you can use to watch their feed if you prefer.

Football Returning Depth Chart

So heading into signing day, here is the depth chart for the Buffalo game with known departures removed, just to give us an idea what things look like heading into next year. BG has at least four JUCO players at last count who can step in right away (or at least 3 of them).

Additional O-line Verbal

Extremely thankful to have received an offer from BGSU. Also proud to say I have committed academically and athletically to BGSU #GoFalcons pic.twitter.com/2eMlw0YoCJ

— NEV☭ (@samuelneverov) January 30, 2017

BG has an additional o-line verbal coming in.  It is Samuel Neverov from Dublin Jerome HS.  He's 6'5" and 288 pounds.  He played inside (G.C) in HS but you can never tell, guys seem to be able to move around a little bit.  He was named first-team all-district.  There's not a lot of information out there, but maybe we will get more on Wednesday.

In the meantime, welcome to the Falcons, Samuel.

Falcons Land Highly Ranked JUCO O-lineman

🚨Committed!!🚨@JUCOFFrenzy @JuCoFootballACE @CoachRasoolEAC @BGathletics pic.twitter.com/xruoc98itz

— 〽️atthew Tanner (@matthewgtanner) January 31, 2017

And this has the potential to be a big one.  And in this case, that pretty much can be taken two ways.

His name is Matthew Tanner and he's a 6'7" and 345 lb offensive guard.  Here's what's interesting.  He had an offer to Auburn.  And visited last weekend.  The offer from Auburn was said to be meaningful on the blog, and he certainly seemed excited.  In fact, he said he was 99 percent going to Auburn.

So, something happened to turn that around.  We may hear more about what it was.  For now, honestly, who cares?

And he also had reported offers from Mississippi State along with UAB, Georgia State, and Louisiana-Monroe.

24/7 has him listed as a 3-star recruit and as the #4 JUCO G available.

He's from Jacksonville originally but was playing at Eastern Arizona College.  He was first-term All-Western State Football League and second-team All-Arizona Community College Athletic Conference.

So, however you slice it, this would appear to be a guy who can step right in on day one and play on a line that has lost players to graduation.  He played for a triple option team at Eastern Arizona, so run blocking is a strength and that's our new identity and all.

Anyway, Tanner has the potential to be one that we are really happy about.  Welcome to the Falcons Matthew.