The Bowling Green football team improved to 3-0 last weekend after defeating Kansas 39-16 Saturday night.

ìI think it was exactly what the doctor ordered for our team,î said head coach Urban Meyer. ìIt was a beautiful environment. The student body was right behind us. The band was right behind us.î

This victory marked the Falcons second win this season against a Big 12 school, and BG improved their record under Meyer to 5-0 against BCS-affiliated leagues. The Falcons defeated Missouri 51-28 two weekends ago.

However, the game against Kansas didnít start out the way the Falcons had hoped. ìWe did not play a perfect game,î Meyer said. ìIt did not look like our football team in the first half. The offense was not in synch. Our quarterback was getting hit. Defensively we were missing tackles.î

On their first three possessions, the Falcons were forced to punt and BG had just 15 total yards in a scoreless first quarter.

ìOur defense for the first time all year had to play three times, three times we were three and out,î Meyer said. ìThey played 45 plays in the first half. Thatís the first time they had their backs against the wall and having to make stops. Thatís a young defense.î

However, the defense did their job and stopped Kansas from scoring.

As the game progressed, the Falcons improved both offensively and defensively and began to gain control of the game.

Junior quarterback Josh Harris kept the high numbers coming. He had 236 yards in total offense and scored three touchdowns.

Harris currently leads the NCAA Division I-A in scoring, averaging 16.67 points per game.

ìOn offense, if we had to do it over again, we wouldnít have put Josh Harris in that kind of a situation,î Meyer said. ìWe came out and emptied right away and didnít know how they were going to line up. We knew where Missouri was going to be.î

The Falcons had never played Kansas before, but with Missouri, BG knew what was coming because the two teams played last year.

ìKansas had never played a spread offense yet with their staff,î Meyer said. ìWe had no idea where the checkers were going to be, so that was not fair for Josh. Weíd start a little more conservative until we figured out where they lined up.î

Once the Falcons were able to figure out the Jayhawks defense they ran away with the game.

Senior running back Joe Alls played one of his best games, as he rushed for a career-high 161 yards.

Alls also threw a touchdown pass to Harris in the second quarter to increase their lead to 22-9.

As a result for his efforts, Alls was named Mid-American Conference Offensive Player of the Week.

Two other Falcons also received MAC honors. Senior nose tackle Alex Glantzis was named MAC Defensive Player of the Week, and senior punter Pat Fleming was named MAC Special Teams Player of the Week.

Glantiz lead the Falcons with nine tackles. He also recorded two sacks and forced two fumbles on the evening. Fleming punted the ball seven times and averaged 48.5 yards per kick.

ìItís hard to win at Division I-A and Northern Illinois figured it out,î Meyer said. ìWe will always appreciate a win, and I think there is a winning attitude here.î

The Falcons have a bye this weekend and will open up MAC play at home on Oct. 5 against Ohio at 4 p.m.