BOWLING GREEN — One final over-arching question remains for Bowling Green State University football in 2021.
Will it be 4-8 or 3-9?
The Falcons have lost two in a row entering their season finale, but could earn a win in its final game of the season against an Ohio team that’s also 3-8 overall, but is 3-4 in Mid-American Conference play.
Lets break down Friday’s noon matchup between the Falcons and Bobcats.
When BGSU has the ball
The Falcons have struggled to move the football and get into the end zone over the previous two weeks, but one constant has been the resurging Terion Stewart at running back.
Stewart was shaken up in the Miami game and was wearing a walking boot afterwards, so his situation will be one to monitor entering Friday. If he is unable to go, Nick Mosley could be the team’s feature back after rushing 15 times for 96 yards in clean-up duty against Miami.
If Stewart can play, the Falcons will have their hottest weapon in the lineup. Stewart had seven carries for 71 yards and a touchdown against Miami, and he extended his streak of games with at least one TD rush to four.
Stewart has been solid for BGSU since returning to full speed from injury against Northern Illinois. Since the Eastern Michigan game, Stewart has carried the ball 39 times for 340 yards (8.72 per carry) and five TDs.
When Ohio has the ball
The Bobcats rank 10th in the MAC in scoring offense and ninth in total offense.
Ohio (23.7 points per game) relies on their rushing attack, which is fifth in the conference at 193.5 yards per game. De’Montre Tuggle is eighth in the MAC in rushing with 69.4 yards per game, and he has scored seven touchdowns.
Ohio’s passing attack averages a MAC-worst 191.5 yards per game, but quarterback Kurtis Rourke has been solid lately. Over the past four games, Rourke has completed 69 percent of his passes for 1,060 yards (265 per game) with seven touchdowns and one interception. Last season against Bowling Green, Rourke completed 10 of 11 passes for 63 yards and a touchdown.
The Bobcats also use change-of-pace quarterback Armani Rogers, who has two 100-yard rushing games this season. On Oct. 16 at Buffalo, Rogers rushed for a 99-yard touchdown, setting an NCAA record for the longest run by a quarterback.
Special teams
And then there were two.
Bowling Green’s Nate Needham is still perfect on field goal tries this year at 15-for-15, and the Lou Groza Award semifinalist is one of two college place-kickers who have remained perfect on the season. Texas Tech’s Jonathan Garibay (12-for-12) is the other. Needham’s season-long is from 52 yards.
Ohio’s Stephen Johnson is 15-for-21 on the season with a long make of 44 yards.
BGSU will win if...
The Falcons will win if the offensive line can keep a clean pocket for quarterback Matt McDonald. McDonald was sacked eight times against Miami, and the unit struggled to protect McDonald against Toledo. But the offensive line has showed flashes of capability this season, and it can do so again against an Ohio team that has registered 16 sacks this season.
Ohio will win if...
The Bobcats will win if Tuggle and Rogers can break through the strong linebacking corps of Brock Horne and Darren Anders, both of whom are tackling machines and have a nose for stopping the run. Anders (111 tackles) leads the team, and Horne (83) is No. 2 in the nation to Ohio State’s Ronnie Hickman for the most tackles among underclassmen who made their collegiate debuts in 2020 or 2021.
View from the other side:
Kevin Wiseman, sports editor for the Athens Messenger:
“Ohio has dealt with its first losing season since 2008. The sudden retirement of long-time coach Frank Solich in July due to health reasons was followed by a series of close losses that have defined the Bobcats' season. Ohio coach Tim Albin also announced last Friday the retirement of defensive assistant coaches Ron Collins and Pete Germano. I think the Bobcats will at least end the season on a high note, and send out Collins and Germano with a victory. Ohio 42, Bowling Green 28.”
First Published November 24, 2021, 5:00 p.m.
