Home Field "Disadvantage" = 1-3 vs. the MAC

BGSU33 · Post by **BGSU33** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 9:57 pm

This is not a "bash" post, it's a post out of concern. The fact of the matter is, we went just 2-3 at home this season, including a mark of 1-3 at home vs. the MAC. Let me repeat that - the 2005 Falcons went just 1-3 at home against the MAC, with the likes of Ohio, WMU, Akron and Toledo on the schedule. We also lost three consecutive home games to close out the season. What happened to our home field advantage this year? Yeah, I know the loss of Omar in some of those games didn't help, but we had a lot of things going to offset that as well.

I remember how in the last couple years for our home games, the question wasn't if BG was going to win, the question was by how much. I mean our home field advantage was so good, I felt we could beat just about anyone there. After watching us get flattened by WMU, then crumble against Akron and then have Toledo hit us with a heartbreaker....the losses were tough enough, but with them coming at home, it made them even harder to swallow. It was clear that besides Temple, teams came to BG knowing they could win and that they were going to win, and nearly all of them did. We have got to get back to establising a home field advantage.

TG1996 · Post by **TG1996** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 10:09 pm

Truth is, WMU caught lightning in a bottle with Hiller at QB, combined with our "customary for 2005 except for Wisky and Temple" flat start, and when Omar went down, things got out of hand in a hurry. That probably gave Akron some confidence, and considering they're a win from the MAC East title, they've gotta be a decent football team SOMEHOW, and again, we came out with a different, unproven offensive approach, and got burned. Toledo is Toledo. I'd like to think we'd defend our house no matter who comes in, but Toledo is a good football team (with lapses similar to ours) that was a kitten backed into a corner. Home field *should* have been an advantage, but against a heated rival with that much on the line, anything can and will happen. That game could have gone either way.

Not saying the 1-3 is acceptable, or anything to be brushed aside, but, going game by game, it's understandable how it could have unfolded.

cowboyjoe · Post by **cowboyjoe** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 10:54 pm

We win all of the games we lost in the MAC if Omar is quarterbacking...period. However, AT should have gotten it done for us.

orangeandbrown · Post by **orangeandbrown** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 11:00 pm

I assume you aren't counting the loss he actually did play in.

cowboyjoe · Post by **cowboyjoe** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 11:04 pm

He only played on two possessions and had about 90 yards at the time of the injury.

orangeandbrown · Post by **orangeandbrown** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 11:09 pm

How about the Rocket game? I think he put a full game in.

Falcon 77 · Post by **Falcon 77** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 9:15 am

I'd like to believe that we win those games with Omar at QB, but the fact is that Omar doesn't play defense. Western went up and down the field against our defense and Northern Illinois practically shut them down yesterday, although I realize they had to play with their backup QB just like we did. If our D doesn't improve, we'll continue to lose games we should have won no matter how good our offense is. We can't expect the offense to score on every possession.

BGGrad01 · Post by **BGGrad01** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 9:16 am

cowboyjoe wrote:We win all of the games we lost in the MAC if Omar is quarterbacking...period. However, AT should have gotten it done for us.

I don't think we would have lost to Western, either. We were up 7-0 and already at mid-field to go up 14-0. Give Western alot of credit, though, they saw blood and went for the kill. Our guys could have won that game, but they chose to give up when Omar went down.

No excuse for the Akron game. None. To go into that game with the "get it to the 4th quarter with a chance to win" mindset was ridiculous. I know they're about to win the MAC East, but they are lousy. NIU will show that next Thursday.

As for UT, I'm saddened to say that the better team won. Bald Boy made the play of the game on the quick snap on 4th and 1 on the final TD drive. In the same situation, we tried to draw them offsides instead of doing a quick snap or calling a TO. They made plays, we didn't. All of that said, though, the UT game should have been for nothing more than bragging rights. We should have wrapped up the East with the win at Miami last Tuesday.

BGSU33 · Post by **BGSU33** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 1:52 pm

What was really odd about our home field woes this year was, for years we couldn't come up with the big MAC road wins, but this year we went undefeated on the road in the MAC including the much needed win over Miami in Oxford. But what came back to haunt us was, we weren't able to take care of the same business at home. The shoe was certainly on the other foot for us this season.

doughash · Post by **doughash** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 5:33 pm

I can recall last year some were concerned that our big home wins were becoming boring to the fans because of a lack of competitiveness from the opponents. What a difference a year makes.

Falconboy · Post by **Falconboy** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 8:17 pm

Ha the're's no such thing as far as I'm concerned. The Doyt is probaby the one of the easiest places to play at for a team that has been as good as we've been over the past 4 seasons. The Doyt just doesn't get that loud period. Call it a lack of enthusiastic fans or whatever , the Doyt is not an intimadating place to play for opposing teams even before we this season when we blew everyone out of the water.

Home Field "Disadvantage" = 1-3 vs. the MAC

Home Field "Disadvantage" = 1-3 vs. the MAC

Home field advantate at the Doyt...