The BG football team is traveling to Ypsilanti, Mich., to take on the Eastern Michigan University Eagles Saturday.
The plan is to keep its Mid-American Conference Championship destiny in its own hands.
The Falcons are coming off a 49-0 victory against the Ohio University Bobcats on Nov. 12, which took the Bobcats out of the MAC eastern divisional race. The Falcons need to defeat Eastern Michigan and next week’s opponent, the University of Buffalo Bulls on Nov. 24.
“We’ve had a lot of long breaks,” head coach Dave Clawson said. “This is our third extended-game week. I think our guys are looking forward to get up there and play a game.”
Eastern Michigan has had a rough 2013 season. The Eagles began the first half of the year 1-5 with a 34-24 win against Howard University in the first game of the season, then lost the next five games to Penn State University, Rutgers University, Ball State University, Buffalo and the United States Military Academy.
The Eagles’ season took a dark turn when wide receiver Demarius Reed was found murdered on Oct. 18, a day before the team’s game against Ohio.
Eastern Michigan lost to Ohio 56-28 and then lost to then-ranked No. 22 Northern Illinois University, 59-20, on Oct. 26 and the University of Toledo, 55-16, on Nov. 2. Following the loss against Toledo, head coach Ron English was fired.
Since then Eastern Michigan University has a 1-0 record with a 35-32 overtime win over the Western Michigan University Broncos.
BG must win this game and the following game against Buffalo to make the MAC Championship in Detroit Dec. 6.
Northern Illinois clinched the West Division title for the fourth-consecutive year. The Huskies have won the MAC Championship the past two years and was defeated by the Miami University RedHawks in 2010.
If BG makes it to the championship, it will be the first time in 10 years that it has done so. The Falcons lost the MAC Championship game at Doyt L. Perry Stadium in 2003 against Ben Roethlisberger and the No. 14-ranked Miami RedHawks.
“We know we need to win this game just to have momentum into the next game,” defensive lineman Dominic Flewellyn said. “We need to win this game for us. We know the implications for the next [game] but we just focus on this week.”
The Falcons and the Eagles will kickoff at 1 p.m. and will be broadcasted on ESPN3 for those who cannot attend the game in Ypsilanti. Follow @BGNewsSports for live updates from Rynearson Stadium on Saturday.
