Bowling Green Falcons 2018 Football Preview

Bowling Green Falcons 2018 Football Preview

Opening Statement: The college football landscape has not been kind to these Falcons ovr the last couple of seasons, and Mike Jinks, the head coach that replaced the successful Dino Babers, has not gotten close to matching the feats of his predecessor. The Falcons finished 2-10 last fall, with their only wins coming against Miami (Ohio) and Kent State. They even found a way to lose to a solid FCS program in South Dakota. In fact, the Falcons dipped last fall from where they were in 2016, when they won 4 games. The program is in dire straits right now, and it's hard to see a doorway leading to brighter days at this time.

Breakdown Offense: Offense had some issues for the Falcons last fall, especially when it came to finding consistency at QB, but they did manage to score some at times, averaging 25.8 points per game. They passed for 235 yards per game, while rushing for 151.67 yards per contest.

The QB position thinned out some last November when James Morgan announced he was leaving the program after playing in 7 games, and passing for 1260 yards. He was eventually outplayed by Jarret Doege, who passed for 1381 yards, 12 TDs and just 3 INTs. He completed 63.8% of his passes, while Morgan had completed just 45.3% of his. Morgan eventually landed at FIU, where he will sit out a year after the transfer. Doege, who came up just shy of 200 yards passing per game, will be a huge key on whether or not this offense can pick up the pace to score enough to save a leaky defense. Sophomore Grant Loy, who played in 6 games as a backup last fall, will be the primary backup in camp. Bryce Veasley and Ricardo Marble come into camp battling for the 3rd spot.

Josh Cleveland has moved on after rushing for 793 yards and 4 scores, but his partner in crime, Andrew Clair, returns, as he is coming off a 725 yard season. He rushed for 4 scores as well last fall, and the Falcons will need more production out of him, and will also need to find a running mate, as the Falcons like to rotate their backs. Clair has some explosiveness, as he averaged 6.28 yards per carry last fall. Matt Domer and Terrence Stephens will battle for that number 2 spot, but neither has a ton of productivity or experience in that role.

Scot Miller caught 63 passes for 722 yards last fall to lead the team, and will return for his senior season. He hauled in 4 TD passes while averaging 11.46 yards per catch. Teo Redding, who led the team with 8 TD receptions, has moved on. Datron Guyton returns after hauling in 31 passes last fall, and should pair up with Miller. Matthew Wilcox is no longer with the program, but expect Quentin Morris to get a stronger role in the offense as a sophomore. Janarvis Pough and Deric Phouthavong are also in play for starting jobs as we head into the fall.

The line was incredibly young and inexperienced last fall, and the hope is that they took their lumps last fall, and will return as a more cohesive unit this time around. Zach Sharp was projected as the LT, but was not on the spring roster for the Falcons. Austin Labus is the starter at RT. Lorenzo Taborn will start at LG, while John Kurtz returns at RG. Caleb Bright returns at C. Depth is thin to non-existent, however, and injuries really took their toll late last fall. If this group cannot stay healthy, the Falcons are in for a world of hurt.

Breakdown Defense: The words "breakdown" and "defense" fit well together while describing this side of the ball for the Falcons. In 2017, Bowling Green allowed 38 points per game, good for 123rd nationally. It doe not get much worse than that. They allowed 253.3 yards passing per game, and 253.25 yards rushing per game, good for 127th nationally. In short, the entirety of this unit needs work, and a ton of it.

David Konowalski and Brian Sanders return at DE for the Falcons. Konowalski was one of the best defenders on this football team, finishing with 8.5 TFLs, while Sanders finished with 1.5. Konowalski finished with 56 tackles, while Sanders finished with 24. Jonah Harper and Dirion Hutchins provide some depth there.

Kyle Junior is back as the starting DT, while Nico Lautanan is the starting NT. Junior was fairly active inside last fall, finishing with 6.5 TFLs on the season. Lautanan finished with 4.5 TFLs. This group shows some promise as we head into another season, but those improvements must be seen early for the Falcons to have a shot. Josh Croslin provides some depth in the middle.

The Falcons could be transitioning to a new look defensively, implementing a STUD hybrid spot this fall. Brandon Harris should be the guy there, as he finished 3rd in tackles for the Falcons with 92. He added 3.5 TFLs last fall. Jack Walz III should back up there, with Romeo Masuku looking for reps as well.

In a standard 4-3 set, Armani Posey starts at OLB after finishing with 52 tackles last fall. Kholbe Coleman is projected to start at MLB, but had just 21 tackles a year ago. Nate Locke and Aaron Banks, who combined for 134 tackles, have both moved on. Again, finding depth is going to be an issue to deal with in the fall.

The secondary obviously needs some work as well. Clint Stephens and Montre Gregory will be the starting CBs as we head into camp. They both finished with 8 PBUs a piece last fall, and should be improved this fall. They were victimized last fall by a lacking pressure system up front. Stephens tied for the team lead with 3 INTs last season. Robert Jackson is the lone provider of any real depth at the position.

Fred Garth returns as the ROVER this fall, and he led the team with 95 tackles last fall. He added 4 PBUs, a pick, and a TFL. He may be the most talented overall player on this defense, along with Konowalski up front. Marcus Milton projects to start at FS, as he finished with 6 PBUs last season to go with his 60 tackles. Torrian Hampton returns as his backup, but there is little depth behind Garth.

Breakdown Special Teams: Jake Suder has moved on at PK, leaving the job wide open as we head into fall camp. He was not on the spring roster, and after hitting 18/22 FGs last fall, he leaves a gaping hole.

Josh Davidson was one of the strongest Punters in the nation last fall, averaging over 44 yards per punt, and he, too, is gone. RS sophomore Grant Tinnerman will try to fill his shoes.

Andrew Clair is slated to return kicks, while Marcus Milton will return punts.

Final Analysis: There was a bit of an exodus of young talent from the program at the end of last season, and that has left some issues with depth and development. Mike Jinks appears in over his head with this job, and was never one of my favorite hires to begin with for this program. Jinks could be on his way out if we get a repeat of what happened last season, and looking at the spring roster and depth chart, he may very well be in a ton of trouble here. It looks like another long go for Bowling Green.