Something has been missing in my life lately.

My Kentucky Wildcats lost in the Austin Regional finals a few weeks ago and recently I’ve gotten so good at Madden 2005 that winning in that has lost all meaning.

Baseball season has rolled around, but I would rather continue my running tally of who is getting busted for steroid abuse than watching a bunch of overpaid pansies complain about not being paid enough. Sorry Major League Baseball, you suck.

That is why Saturday will mark a good day in my life.

That is when I will get a taste of that wonderful sport we like to call college football. That is when the Bowling Green football team will play their annual Orange and Brown game.

For me, this is good because it will bring back memories of covering the team in the fall.

It will remind me of that one game Omar Jacobs threw for over 300 yards. Well, he did that eight times, but it will remind me of all of them.

It will also bring me back memories of wishing the game ended after 30 minutes, this was especially evident in games against Temple and Western Michigan. What really made things bad is when P.J. Pope added insult to injury in both of those games while breaking touchdown runs of 77 and 88 to give BG halftime leads of 42-9 and 49-0.

It brings back memories of Keon Newson picking off Heisman Trophy winner Jason White and returning it for a touchdown.

And yes, it even reminds of a hung over trip to Ohio University in which I showed up to the press box to see they had hotdogs and no buns, then returned to the lunch room at halftime to find out they had buns but no hotdogs.

Even with all those fond memories, the 2005 season has a chance to be more memorable than the 2004 season.

Two of the three players mentioned return for the Falcons and at the same time give them one of the most talented backfields in the nation.

Pope and Jacobs team with B.J. Lane to give the Falcons more talent than a Barbara Streisand concert in which Jay-Z is the opening act.

Jacobs’ sick numbers are well documented, but still fun to talk about. In his sophomore campaign, he threw for 4,002 yards and 41 touchdowns while getting picked just four times en route to winning MAC Offensive Player of the Year.

Pope has developed as one of the top all-purpose backs in the nation. On the ground, he averaged 6.2 yards per carry while picking up 1,098 yards and 15 touchdowns for BG last season and was as impressive receiving, racking up 490 yards and six scores.

The X-Factor for the Falcons is Lane, who still may not get a lot of touchdowns until football changes its rules and allows the game to get played with two balls. Even with a limited amount of touches, Lane still racked up 375 yards and pair of touchdowns while emerging as one of the top return men in the MAC.

But it goes beyond just the backfield.

Chuck Sharon and Steve Sanders combined for 2,054 yards and 23 touchdowns. The Falcons lose the production of Cole Magner, James Hawkins and Cornelius McGrady, but still have enough young talent coming up to provide Jacobs some able players to throw to. At the beginning of last year, It was the veteran receiving corps that helped Jacobs in his first few games. Now it is his turn to return the favor.

The offensive line, as usual, will decide how far the Falcons go. They return All-MAC performers Rob Warren and Kory Lichtensteiger but lost NFL-bound Scott Mruczkowski to graduation. He takes with him a BG record 49 starts.

But still, these are the parts of a line that helped their runners average 4.7 yards per carry and allowed Jacobs to be sacked just 10 times.

The defensive side of the ball is where the Falcons have traditionally had some problems, even though many of their problems come at the end of blowout victories.

They lost play maker Newson, team leader Jovon Burkes, steadfast Daniel Sayles and NFL early entrant Mitchell Crossley but still have enough coming back to impose on teams in the MAC.

The main key will be replacing Newson and Burkes. Newson stepped in last season to become the guy who could step up and make a play when the Falcons had their back against the wall. And Burkes was the one who led the defense. Both were first team All-MAC performers and both of them will be missed.

Regardless of what the Falcons do next season, just thinking of next season is exciting.

Here’s to hoping they can pull out a big win Saturday and show any critics and doubters who the boss is at the Doyt.