Urban Meyer watched the BG-Temple film from last year while preparing for the Owls. There wasn’t much good for BG to come out of Temple’s 31-14 handling of the Falcons. The Owls passed for 247 yards in the game that sent BG to 0-3 on the season. The Bowling Green football coach wasn’t impressed with the Falcon’s performance in the game.
But it’s hard to compare last year’s Falcon squad to the newly revived team. At 2-0, the Falcons are off to their best start since 1985 and are near the top of the Mid-American Conference in most defensive categories, including net yards per game. Their offense put up a respectable 55 points in the two games and the special teams helped set up many of those scores.
“This is a completely different team from last year,” sophomore quarterback Josh Harris said. “We have a different attitude. We’ll be fired up and we’re seeking a little bit of redemption from last year.”
Redemption for the Falcons may take a great effort though. The Owls have 26 seniors returning who have played in a combined 533 games. They also return the Big East leading tackler Taylor Suman. The 6-foot 2-inch linebacker is a three-time Butkus Award candidate and is sixth in Temple history in tackles. Meyer is worried about Temple’s defense, especially its line.
“I’m concerned we are not good enough to block their defensive line,” Meyer said. “We’re facing some excellent inside players.”
The BG offensive line is a great turnaround story though. Last year the Falcons’ offensive line gave up a nation-leading 51 sacks. This year it has protected its quarterback well and has yet to give up a sack this season.
Another bright spot for the Falcons is the return of some key injured players. Quarterback Andy Sahm, who suffered a level two concussion against Buffalo, was cleared by doctors to play. Junior running back Godfrey Lewis may see his first action of the season against Temple after suffering a knee injury that has kept him out up to this point. Tight end Jason Van Dam is listed day-to-day.
BG may be able gauge its performance against the Owls to show how well it will be able to hold up in the MAC. Toledo, playing probably as well as any team in the MAC, beat Temple 33-7 at Veterans Stadium two weeks ago. Toledo running back Chester Taylor rushed for 99 yards and two touchdowns in the Rockets’ win.
