Bowling Green eeked out a tight victory over Ball State on Wednesday night, and they did so riding the momentum of the guys who don’t see all the usual glitz and the glam.
The defense and the special teams were the driving force for the Falcons, forcing two turnovers and aiding the team to victory on the scoreboard and in the field-position game.
“I thought our defense at times played exceptional…” head coach Scot Loeffler said. “I thought our special teams came up big. Overall, we’re excited to be 1-0 in November.”
The defense got things rolling – forcing Ball State to a three-and-out on their first possession and forcing a fumble on their second. Ali Saad punched the ball out of Kiael Kelly’s clutches and Davon Ferguson hopped on top of it, giving the offense the ball at the 31-yard line.
Two drives later, the defense jumped on another fumble – Kelly tried to dump the ball off to Marquez Cooper in the flat but threw it behind him, bouncing off the nameplate on his jersey and onto the ground, where Trent Simms corralled it.
Both fumbles led to points for Bowling Green’s offense.
“When we win the turnover battle, we win the game,” Loeffler said. “Fact of the matter is, we protected the ball, and they didn’t. That was the difference in the game for sure.
Those two fumbles extended Bowling Green’s lead in turnovers gained in all of college football. Now up to 22 on the season, they have three more turnovers than the next best team (Liberty).
All these turnovers are causing quite the ruckus, bringing out the turnover chain on the sidelines, and even in the stands.
“I think Coach (Loeffler) mentioned when we win the turnover battle, we win games. I think we’ve just got to keep doing that,” defensive tackle Dontrez Brown said, who leads the team in fumble recoveries. “It feels great. It puts a smile on our face, just makes us want to do it week after week.”
When it was crunch time, the special teams unit got in on the fun.
After a Ball State touchdown tied the game up at 21-all late in the fourth quarter, Ta’ron Keith took the kickoff 47 yards, and into Cardinals’ territory.
“I’ve been trying to get a kick return for the last month now. I think people have been kicking away from me,” Keith said. “I finally got a chance, and I just trusted my vision and my teammates to make the right blocks, and just hit the seam.”
That kick return set up the eventual game-winning field goal.
“He’s awesome,” Connor Bazelak said when asked about Keith. “The guy can play football. I was actually just talking to my parents about how he’s similar to one of the running backs I played with at Mizzouri, Tyler Badie.”
After the offensive drive stalled out inside the 10-yard line, Alan Anaya and his right leg drilled a 22-yard kick to put the Falcons up 24-21.
The first MACtion game of the year is in the past, but there’s still plenty more where that came from. Bowling Green is on the road next week against Kent State with the opportunity to gain bowl eligibility for the second consecutive season.
“The coaches have been preaching that people remember the teams that win in November,” Bazelak said. “We’ve got to keep finding ways to win games. It was fun, I liked playing under the lights. But that’s how it’s going to be for the next three weeks too. So, it was good to get that first MACtion win, get used to the schedule throughout the week. It was weird, but it is what it is. That was our fifth win, you’ve got to get to six to make a bowl. This week we beat Ball State, next week we play Kent State, tough road game. We’re going to have to focus on going 1-0 that week, not looking forward to any other games or anything down the road.”
The Falcons and Golden Flashes square off at Dix Stadium next Wednesday, 11/8, at 7 p.m.
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