The Falcon football team was able to control the pace of the game from start to finish to pick up its first win of the season Saturday night.
Facing Division I-AA Southeast Missouri State, BG used a well-balanced attack to down the Indians 49-10 at Doyt Perry Stadium.
The Falcon offense got off to a quick start and scored on their first three possessions. Omar Jacobs threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Charles Sharon, and Shaun Suisham hit field goals of 40 and 43 yards to put BG up 13-0 after the first quarter.
Sharon broke the game open early in the second half when the Falcon defense forced SEMO to punt. Sharon fielded the ball at the BG 21, cut across the field, followed his blockers downfield and returned the punt for a touchdown to put BG up 32-3.
“That was a big time play to start the second half,” Falcon head coach Gregg Brandon said. “If (SEMO) had any aspirations about getting back in the football game, that kind of took it out of them.”
Jacobs was able to spread the ball to 10 different receivers and finished the game 24 of 37 for 285 yards, with four touchdowns and one interception.
“Omar’s a poised kid,” Brandon said. “If we can protect (him), which we did (Saturday), he can throw that ball around. He’s going to keep getting better and better.”
BG’s defense did not make things any easier for the Indians. They pressured SEMO all night and were able to force four turnovers, three fumbles and one interception.
“Our defense just totally dominated the football game, I felt,” Brandon said.
Seniors T.J. Carswell and Keon Newson each recorded seven tackles with a forced fumble and fumble recovery.
Despite giving up a lot of yards late in the game, the defense was able to come away pleased with their effort.
“We played good tonight,” Carswell said. “We gave up a couple big plays (late)… but all of our mistakes are correctable. It’s nothing we can’t correct the next day.”
The Falcon defense put a few points up as well, as defensive tackle Monty Cooley stuffed David Taufoou in the endzone to record a safety in the second quarter.
The Falcons then marched 27 yards in 59 seconds, leading to a Suisham 42-yard field goal before the half to go up 25-3.
BG put an emphasis on running this week after struggling to run the ball effectively against Oklahoma. They totaled 216 yards rushing on 50 carries, led by P.J. Pope’s 68 yards.
As the BG lead grew, many reserves received playing time, which Brandon was pleased to see.
“We got a lot of young guys in there and we needed to see some of those backups.”
The Falcons have a bye this week, which will give them more time to prepare for their next opponent, MAC rival Northern Illinois.
Falcon Notes:
BG totaled 501 yards of offense on 88 plays, while controlling the ball for 34:57… Sharon’s 79-yard punt return TD was the fourth longest return in school history… Pope led the team in receptions with six, while James Hawkins led in receiving yards (82)… Josef Timchenko made a 40-yard FG in the fourth quarter, the first make and attempt of his career… Redshirt freshman Bryan Jackson recorded the first interception of his career in the fourth quarter.
