I walked into my apartment one night a couple weeks ago to find two of my roommates having a pushup contest. The result: Anthony 47, Mike 40.
Imagine, then, the plight of the Army ROTC folks Saturday night at Doyt L. Perry Stadium, as they lined up one last time behind the south end zone after BG’s final touchdown. You see, every time the Falcons score, these fellas do as many pushups as BG has points. They had already done 343 pushups, in just a shade over three hours. As the Falcons’ final touchdown was scored, they got down to do 72 more, for a final total of 415. By my counts, the ones who have stuck out the Falcons’ scoring barrages have totaled 842 push-ups. That equates to some sore arms.
The culprits for those sore arms, you ask? Josh Harris. PJ Pope. Robert Redd. James Hawkins. Cole Magner. Shaun Suisham. Blame them, guys.
Simply, the team’s offense is astounding. BG now leads the nation in scoring, at over 50 points per game. Their season-low output is 39, against a Big XII team, Kansas. Saturday’s 72-point outburst set a school-record for points scored in a conference game, and ranks as the third highest point total in school history.
Josh Harris continues to lead the country in scoring, while Suisham and Redd rank high also.
Accolades and rankings aside, the nuts and bolts of the offense don’t seem too difficult to figure out. It’s either a halfback draw, a quarterback draw or out patterns by five receivers. From afar, there appears to be no intricacies to a seemingly simple offensive scheme.
Even in its simplicity, though, the offense seems to be unstoppable, due to either great coaching or unbelievably high talent levels at the skill positions. Josh Harris will soon be thrown into Heisman Trophy talk. Robert Redd is an electrifying player on returns and receptions. Joe Alls, though now injured, is as solid as they come out of the backfield. Center Jon Mazur and his mates in the trenches have finally begun to get credit for the offense’s productivity with their solid play.
The continuity of the unit presented itself Saturday, after Alls went down with a separated right shoulder. Pope, a true freshman, entered the game and proceeded to follow Harris before him in rushing for over 100 yards as freshmen. Exhibiting the leadership and experience of the entire offense, the Falcons didn’t miss a beat with the ball in hand.
And just when teams like Missouri or Kansas think they have neutralized that Falcons’ unmatched skill at said skill positions, Urban Meyer and offensive coordinator Gregg Brandon throw in something else, either big or small. Redd will go out and up instead of out. Touchdown. Alls or Magner throw to Harris for scores, instead of the other way around. And with new-found confidence and skill, Suisham hits his field goals.
And as the unit continues to put up gaudy numbers week in and week out, the focus turns from not if they can control a game, but what type of explosion or new fold they will throw into their game plan.
I know three guys who did all 415 pushups Saturday night that are hoping that they don’t score anymore.
