Every first-year football coach at the University has won his first game with the program since 1935.
For Dave Clawson, continuing that trend will be a challenge as the Falcons take on defending Sun Belt Conference champion Troy tonight at Doyt Perry Stadium, but it does seem his team is on target for where they need to be for their season opener.
‘The only thing I judge is that we’ve gotten better, and we have gotten better,’ Clawson said. ‘I’m sure we’re going to see some good things, and I’m sure we’re going to see a handful of mistakes.’
Problem No. 1 is that Troy is a team that can make another team pay for any mistake it makes. The Trojans have forced 214 turnovers since 2001, which is 14th best among Division 1-A football teams.
Problem No. 2 is that the Trojans were picked to repeat as Sun Belt champions in the conference’s preseason coaches poll and come into the game with a vote in the USA Today/Coaches poll and the AP poll.
Meanwhile, the Falcons were picked to finish fifth in the Mid-American Conference preseason poll, but considering how good Troy is, a win tonight could earn BG some recognition and spike their confidence.
However, Clawson admitted there are teams from bigger conferences that would certainly be easier teams to play in week one than one of the top mid-major programs in the country.
‘There’s a lot of BCS teams that would be a much easier first draw than Troy,’ Clawson said.
And that is because of all the talent the Trojans are returning on offense and defense this season.
Troy has two future NFL draft picks in their defensive ends, Brandon Lang and Cameron Sheffield; and star linebackers Boris Lee and Bear Woods anchoring a defense that finished third in the country with 3.23 sacks per game last season. Those four returners accounted for 22.5 of the team’s 37.
The man they will be after – senior quarterback Tyler Sheehan – is well aware of what they are capable of and knows no play is over until the whistle blows.
‘They fly around and they hit people,’ Sheehan said. ‘They can make some mistakes in coverage, but they can catch up with the speed they have.’
If Sheehan is given time to throw, he will find easier company downfield, as the Trojans have four first-year starters in the secondary.
And given the tough front Troy will put forth, it’s not unlikely to think Sheehan will be looking for his top receiving targets – seniors Freddie Barnes, Tyrone Pronty and Jimmy Scheidler – fairly regularly if Willie Geter isn’t able to move the ball on the ground.
On the Falcon defensive front, there is very little experience. Of the front seven, the only returning starter is senior linebacker Jerrett Sanderson. In the secondary, the Falcons return senior safeties Jahmal Brown and P.J. Mahone.
Troy will go against them, returning its three best offensive players from last year – quarterback Levi Brown, running back DuJuan Harris and receiver Jerrell Jernigan. Brown showed exceptional accuracy in his eight starts last season, completing 61.7 percent of passes and throwing just three interceptions.
That offensive core has had Clawson’s attention throughout his preparations for the game saying the top-notch talent and balance the offense holds will pose his team quite a challenge.
But the way he has coached his team has them ready for any challenge.
‘Hopefully [we see] a team that plays hard,’ Clawson said. ‘The one thing that we’ve preached to our guys all along is good football teams are tough ‘hellip; good football teams always play hard regardless if they are up 14 or down 14.’
And while it’s impossible to know of the Falcons will ever be up by 14 points tonight, Clawson does seem to have his team in position to make him the 10th straight Falcon coach to win his first game in the orange and brown.
