Miami 27 Bowling Green 20

College Football
Home Team: Bowling Green Falcons
Visiting Team: Miami RedHawks
Venue: Doyt Perry Stadium
Game Time: 12:00 p.m.
Fellow Attendees: Brandi

What a disappointment.

Not too long ago, Miami and BG could both be counted among the class of the MAC. This game was like watching two blindfolded and dizzy little girls hack away at each other with foam bats - you knew one of them was going to win eventually, you just weren't sure if it would mean anything or not, and it certainly wasn't pretty.

This Bowling Green team had plenty of talent back from last year, when they went 8-4 and earned a bowl bid, and they were expected to challenge for the MAC title this year. Instead, they're a mess, particularly on offense, which used to be what Bowling Green was known for. The defense I didn't think was too bad outside of too many penalties, although they've been hot and cold this season, and special teams were okay.

The offense, though, makes me want to gouge out my eyes. The one place the Falcons did lose guys from last year is from the offensive line - we have a bunch of new starters up front, but that doesn't look like the problem to me, not by a long shot. Those guys look like they're holding their own. No, it looks to me like the problems stem primarily having three "primary" running backs, none of whom get regular touches from the running back spot, and one of whom actually subs in for the QB for the majority of his carries, which take the form of highly predictable draws or sweeps.

If I were to be put in charge of the BGSU football program tomorrow, here's what I would do:

Institute a policy that, for every yard in stupid penalties (personal fouls, late hits, unsportsmanlike conduct, etc.), the whole team will run ten sets of stadium stairs.

Take all designed QB runs out of the playbook, except option plays.

Put a few plays into the playbook that are not run from the shotgun formation so when it's 3rd-and-1 (or less), we can do something other than a QB draw.

Pick a primary running back (probably Chris Bullock) and commit to getting him at least 15-20 carries per game.

Head coach Gregg Brandon came to BG as Urban Meyer's offensive guru, and that reputation got him the big job when Coach Meyer left for Utah. But the playcalling is largely vanilla and predictable and has been for several years, and having players with such ill-defined roles leads me to the conclusion that he just doesn't know what he's doing. I think he's a good recruiter - there's plenty of talent on this team - he just doesn't know how to maximize his players' talents to put them in the best position to win games. At least, that's how it seems to me. I don't know how else to explain these losses to teams like Miami and Eastern Michigan, teams which I don't think there's any doubt BG is more talented than.

So yeah, it's frustrating, watching a team that had everything lined up this year to make a serious run at a MAC championship and is letting it slip away. Of course, they still aren't out of it, which is pretty sad, to be honest, but I don't think there's much question that they will be at some point. I have a hard time seeing a team like this all of a sudden putting things together and becoming competent halfway through the season. If it was a team full of young guys, maybe, but for the most part these are veteran guys who should already be better than this.

Also, while I'm venting, I hate noon kickoffs. They suck, and they were bad enough when I lived on campus or in town. When they put lights up at the Doyt a few years back, I thought noon kickoffs were behind us forever. Having the game so early eliminates (for me, and probably for a lot of people) the possibility of getting there early for tailgating, and I think it cuts pretty heavily into student attendance as well. Again, if I were in charge, 7:00 p.m. would be the standard kickoff time, with absolutely no starts before 4:00 p.m. Any weeknight games would start at 7:00 or 8:00, although they'd be avoided wherever possible; and Friday night games would be absolutely, 100% off the table.

But hey, it was good to be at the Doyt, and it was good to spend some time back in ol' BG. A win, or even a solid performance by the team, would have made it more enjoyable, of course, but anytime we can get back is never going to be a total loss.