As if the season for BGSU football couldn’t get any more dire, the dagger struck in the hearts of the Orange and Brown faithful as the Falcons will not appear in a bowl game after a 27-21 loss against Eastern Michigan. The first non-appearance since 2021.
Now with a guarantee of finishing below a .500 record, Mike and Jan Wilcox, head football coach Eddie George emphasize that finishing the season strong in the last two games is still something worth fighting for in a season where expectations were not met.
“These are the growing pains that you are going to have when taking on a new adventure,” George said in the weekly presser. “The key for us is to continue to play hard, regardless of the circumstances; you are always playing for something.”
With it being the first year coaching at the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level, George also acknowledges that while the season has been disappointing, it hasn’t come without any positives whatsoever, seeing it as a learning tool for gathering information on what to do better for years to come.
“I don’t look at this year as a failure,” George said. “Those losing seasons teach you where you need to go and how you respond to that; it’s been a wonderful year of gathering information.”
Meanwhile, off-field activities have taken a turn for the worse. With the most recent news of the arrest of three players, Brennan Ridley, Leo Kemp, and Caleb Goodloe, George assures us that the situation has been put behind them and that the team will move forward.
“It’s been handled; it’s a university deal,” George said. “They’re going back on the team; they learned a valuable lesson.”
Another matchup on the schedule also leads to another quarterback discussion. George, at the press conference, announced that redshirt freshman Hunter Najm will once again be at the helm. In his first start in the aforementioned EMU game, Najm went 11 for 15 on passing with 129 yards, with one touchdown and one interception on the day.
George also mentioned how pleasing it is to see Najm being surrounded by veteran leadership, with other signal callers like seniors Drew Pyne and Baron May helping the young player through the highs and lows.
“Having those two veterans to help Hunter, who is wise beyond his years, has been remarkable,” George said. “I’m looking forward to seeing his growth from his first start to the very next.”
The overall message for the BG group still remains the same: keep getting better each time you are able to step foot on the field and let the results speak for themselves.
“Just keep getting better. This is the phase of growing pains,” George said. “For the guys coming back, you have to jump into the offseason with momentum; I am not trying to backdoor my way into anything. If we aren’t good enough to make a bowl game, ok, get focused on doing that.”
Bowling Green will look to finish the year on a high note, facing the Akron Zips on Tuesday under the lights at Doyt L. Perry Stadium at 7:30 p.m.
