The Mid-American Conference (MAC) football media day was yesterday held at the iconic Fox Theatre in Detroit, Michigan. The BGSU representatives were, inside linebacker Darren Anders, wide receiver Odieu Hiliare, and Head Coach, Scot Loeffler. The morning kicked off with a statement from the Commissioner, Jon Steinbrecher. Steinbrecher talked about the excitement he has for the upcoming football season, CFB playoff expansion, NIL, the evolution of the transfer portal, sports wagering, and forward-thinking about change. Steinbrecher said “We all too often romanticize the past, thinking days gone by were better than the present. We’re living in greatness today. Failure for us to look forward may lead us to reject change that could make us better. There exists amazing opportunities in front of us, despite the challenges and obstacles.”
Overcoming early challenges is one of the big things that Loeffler is looking forward to in the upcoming year for the Falcons. “We have to find a way to come out the blocks versus Liberty fast, and then going to having to play Michigan at 7’o’clock at night. Then we have a monster game week 4 against OU. We have to play our best football early and find a way to win some games against some really good opponents” said Loeffler.
Playing at Michigan has been circled on the calendar for quite some time now. Loeffler played at Michigan from 1993-1996. Following his playing career he became a graduate assistant on the team. He mentioned how it’ll be an incredible opportunity for he and his team. “It’s gonna be really really special day for our kids. They get to go into one of the greatest venues in college football. It’s gonna be an incredible opportunity to play a really great football team, so it’ll be really fun”.
BGSU is coming off a 6-7 record from the previous year, the Falcons made a bowl game for the first time since 2015, but this year the Falcons have consistency on their mind. “Taking that next step in consistency in my opinion is going to be very important, especially with the monster schedule that is as tough as tough can be,” Loeffler said.
Linebacker, Darren Anders, doubled down on the message, “I think a big goal for is to stay consistent. These previous years we’d win big games and then the next week we’d fall apart and lose to teams we should have beat. So I think just staying consistent is the main goal.”
Wide receiver, Odieu Hiliare, also brings up consistency and why being consistent in his game is the most important part for the team as a whole. “Just getting better, you either get better or worse. So I’m just trying to get better at everything I do and at every aspect in my game on and off the field. So just getting better each day.” Hiliare said. “Bringing along my teammates to get better every day motivates me. So if we do that everyone’s gonna get better”.
A growth mindset is nothing new for Darren Anders. Anders has been on the team since Loeffler’s first season back in 2019 and reflects on how much the culture has shifted over these past few years. “I got here in 2019 which was Coach Loeffler’s first year and it was at its worst back then and we just weren’t good and the culture was horrible and just that transition of helping build this program up to where it’s at now has helped me so much as a player to get better,” said Anders.
The Falcons are coming off a year in which they reached the Quick Lane Bowl against New Mexico State in Detroit. Now, the Falcons are hoping to get back to Detroit, not just for a bowl game but to compete in a MAC Championship game. Bowling Green will have high hopes coming into this year and they kick off the 2023 season at Liberty on September 2nd.
