Coaching carousel

[FalconTurf]

1-3 non-conference was expected, reasonably 2-2 at best (different combination of W/L than expected). If the team is 5-2 going into the 12th game with a shot at the MAC championship game is that not where we want to be? Lose it and finish 6-6 then fire the coach? I’m not sure that’s reasonable. Losing to EKU was horrible. Can low budget BG fire coaches based on one embarrassing loss? I don’t think so. There’s a lot of football to be played and I don’t think running the table in MAC play is the standard. 5-3 in the MAC would be a HUGE STEP in the right direction and personally I’d be satisfied.

[jpfalcon09]

People being satisfied enough with a 6-6 record in yr four of a coaching regime to keep that coach around is practically the epitome of a lowered bar....moreso when you consider what was promised in yr four

Genuine question: What record should we have?

Kent State won the East last year at 7-5. In 2019, Miami won the East at 7-5. Same with Akron in 2017, 7-5 won them the East. With the way we schedule now, the days of winning 10 games are probably over around here. The MAC as an entire conference hasn’t had a single team win double digit games in a season since Buffalo in 2018. Winning 6 games puts you in the top half of the league more often than not nowadays, and that’s not something we’ve been in 7 years.

6-6 this season means we are very competitive and win a ton of MAC games, potentially even competing for a MAC East title. That would be a huge step forward, wouldn’t it be?

I’m trying to figure out what the expectations for our program should be moving forward when we’re playing 2 or 3 P5 games per year, because we probably aren’t winning those games, which shrinks our margin of error quite a bit. Thoughts?

Schedule right and two wins in non-conference play can be achievable, FCS and another G5 opponent. Maybe you get lucky every so often and play an Indiana or Northwestern and eek out a third win. Then a winning conference record gets you 7-9 wins. It's a formula we've seen success during the 2013 and 2015 seasons.

[jpfalcon09]

1-3 non-conference was expected, reasonably 2-2 at best (different combination of W/L than expected). If the team is 5-2 going into the 12th game with a shot at the MAC championship game is that not where we want to be? Lose it and finish 6-6 then fire the coach? I’m not sure that’s reasonable. Losing to EKU was horrible. Can low budget BG fire coaches based on one embarrassing loss? I don’t think so. There’s a lot of football to be played and I don’t think running the table in MAC play is the standard. 5-3 in the MAC would be a HUGE STEP in the right direction and personally I’d be satisfied.

Despite the financial constraints on the athletic department I'm sure the Board and President Rogers can finagle the funds together to pay for a buyout if they needed to, especially in a crisis. They've sort of already shown that hand with the Moosbrugger firing.

[FalconTurf]

1-3 non-conference was expected, reasonably 2-2 at best (different combination of W/L than expected). If the team is 5-2 going into the 12th game with a shot at the MAC championship game is that not where we want to be? Lose it and finish 6-6 then fire the coach? I’m not sure that’s reasonable. Losing to EKU was horrible. Can low budget BG fire coaches based on one embarrassing loss? I don’t think so. There’s a lot of football to be played and I don’t think running the table in MAC play is the standard. 5-3 in the MAC would be a HUGE STEP in the right direction and personally I’d be satisfied.

Despite the financial constraints on the athletic department I'm sure the Board and President Rogers can finagle the funds together to pay for a buyout if they needed to, especially in a crisis. They've sort of already shown that hand with the Moosbrugger firing.

I agree that they can get the money but in my scenario of contending those resources are not tapped in my opinion. Contending is not a crisis.

Buying out the current coach is half the picture to me as well. Pay for the search and endow part of the head coach’s salary to sign someone new as well. This is the only path to consistency imo

[jpfalcon09]

1-3 non-conference was expected, reasonably 2-2 at best (different combination of W/L than expected). If the team is 5-2 going into the 12th game with a shot at the MAC championship game is that not where we want to be? Lose it and finish 6-6 then fire the coach? I’m not sure that’s reasonable. Losing to EKU was horrible. Can low budget BG fire coaches based on one embarrassing loss? I don’t think so. There’s a lot of football to be played and I don’t think running the table in MAC play is the standard. 5-3 in the MAC would be a HUGE STEP in the right direction and personally I’d be satisfied.

Despite the financial constraints on the athletic department I'm sure the Board and President Rogers can finagle the funds together to pay for a buyout if they needed to, especially in a crisis. They've sort of already shown that hand with the Moosbrugger firing.

I agree that they can get the money but in my scenario of contending those resources are not tapped in my opinion. Contending is not a crisis.

Buying out the current coach is half the picture to me as well. Pay for the search and endow part of the head coach’s salary to sign someone new as well. This is the only path to consistency imo

The wildcard is that you're able to find coaching talent who wants to come here. The last two hires have had zero head coaching experience at a major college football level and it speaks to the relative undesired nature that BGSU football holds in the national landscape. If the university wants football to succeed as much as they claim then they need to put their money where their mouth is and pay a decent salary to attract talent. Otherwise it's probably going to be more of the same. Unproven coach takes a flier on the job hoping he'll hit a home run and parlay it into a P5 job, while perhaps a FCS or G5 retread stays away because it's career suicide.

[Schadenfreude]

Next year, we’ll absolutely lose at Michigan and at Georgia Tech.

Georgia Tech doesn't look that tough. They went 3-9 this year, and their head coach just got fired.

If Bowling Green improves the way it should next season, why not a win in Atlanta?

I do expect to beat teams like that once in a while at some point. We are Bowling Green, not Cumberland.

[mbenecke]

Next year, we’ll absolutely lose at Michigan and at Georgia Tech.

Georgia Tech doesn't look that tough. If Bowling Green improves the way it should next season, why not a win in Atlanta?

I do expect to beat teams like that once in a while at some point.

That's fair, at least. Every once in a while, it would be great to jump up and bite a P5 team. It's just becoming harder and harder with the discrepancy in athletic funding between the P5 and G5 level to get the staff and facilities necessary to compete at that level. Still, yes - I saw Georgia Tech fired both their head coach and their AD this weekend, so they may be vulnerable next year in the first year of a rebuild next year.

However, I still won't enter the game expecting to win. I just can't bring myself to do that - and maybe that's something that I've been conditioned to believe, as I was too young to remember when BG was regularly beating P5 teams in the early to mid 2000s. Of course I remember last year against Minnesota (and what a fun win that was!), but that feels like a fluke more than something that I should expect to reasonably happen every year, or even every few years.

[Schadenfreude]

I still won't enter the game expecting to win.

I won't either. I rarely feel that way in these games. But I would like to go in there thinking we have a chance, which is the way I felt when we hosted Indiana and when we made trips to Purdue and Maryland a few years back.

[jpfalcon09]

I still won't enter the game expecting to win.

I won't either. I rarely feel that way in these games. But I would like to go in there thinking we have a chance, which is the way I felt when we hosted Indiana and when we made trips to Purdue and Maryland a few years back.

Useless to speculate. Quite possible both programs go into 2023-24 with new coaches, we already know GA Tech will. They probably experience a ton of transfer attrition and BG probably does too if SL is gone. On the broader landscape I do believe BG should be scheduling regional P5 opponents as opposed to the UCLA's, GA Tech's, Miss ST's, and A&M's. Perhaps those schools are offering more money for us to play them, but being able to see BG play the regional big programs within driving distance is nice from a fan perspective.

[mbenecke]

I still won't enter the game expecting to win.

I won't either. I rarely feel that way in these games. But I would like to go in there thinking we have a chance, which is the way I felt when we hosted Indiana and when we made trips to Purdue and Maryland a few years back.

Useless to speculate. Quite possible both programs go into 2023-24 with new coaches, we already know GA Tech will. They probably experience a ton of transfer attrition and BG probably does too if SL is gone. On the broader landscape I do believe BG should be scheduling regional P5 opponents as opposed to the UCLA's, GA Tech's, Miss ST's, and A&M's. Perhaps those schools are offering more money for us to play them, but being able to see BG play the regional big programs within driving distance is nice from a fan perspective.

Agreed on the regional point. I'm finding it very tempting to drive up to Ann Arbor for the game against Michigan next year. But there's no chance of me traveling to Texas or Mississippi to see a regular season game.

[BillyLP]

I still won't enter the game expecting to win.

I won't either. I rarely feel that way in these games. But I would like to go in there thinking we have a chance, which is the way I felt when we hosted Indiana and when we made trips to Purdue and Maryland a few years back.

Useless to speculate. Quite possible both programs go into 2023-24 with new coaches, we already know GA Tech will. They probably experience a ton of transfer attrition and BG probably does too if SL is gone. On the broader landscape I do believe BG should be scheduling regional P5 opponents as opposed to the UCLA's, GA Tech's, Miss ST's, and A&M's. Perhaps those schools are offering more money for us to play them, but being able to see BG play the regional big programs within driving distance is nice from a fan perspective.

Agreed on the regional point. I'm finding it very tempting to drive up to Ann Arbor for the game against Michigan next year. But there's no chance of me traveling to Texas or Mississippi to see a regular season game.

I'm planning on going to the GT game next season. Family in the area and I love going to away games. When you're an OOC underdog, the fans are typically really nice to you.

I'd like to see some games with the service academies, too, and not just because Navy is like 40 minutes away from me (though, it doesn't hurt). Feels like we could easily get a 2-for-1 deal with those programs and it would be cool to have Army/Navy/Air Force at the Doyt.

[jpfalcon09]

I still won't enter the game expecting to win.

I won't either. I rarely feel that way in these games. But I would like to go in there thinking we have a chance, which is the way I felt when we hosted Indiana and when we made trips to Purdue and Maryland a few years back.

Useless to speculate. Quite possible both programs go into 2023-24 with new coaches, we already know GA Tech will. They probably experience a ton of transfer attrition and BG probably does too if SL is gone. On the broader landscape I do believe BG should be scheduling regional P5 opponents as opposed to the UCLA's, GA Tech's, Miss ST's, and A&M's. Perhaps those schools are offering more money for us to play them, but being able to see BG play the regional big programs within driving distance is nice from a fan perspective.

Agreed on the regional point. I'm finding it very tempting to drive up to Ann Arbor for the game against Michigan next year. But there's no chance of me traveling to Texas or Mississippi to see a regular season game.

It's worth going for the gameday experience alone. Did it all the time at Yost for hockey even back when BG was terrible, you can't say no soaking all that in. I think the most fun I've had at a non-conference game was at Notre Dame a few years ago. We all knew what the outcome was going to be but being able to witness all the cool stuff they did on gameday was nearly worth the price of admission on it's own.

[Schadenfreude]

On the broader landscape I do believe BG should be scheduling regional P5 opponents as opposed to the UCLA's, GA Tech's, Miss ST's, and A&M's. Perhaps those schools are offering more money for us to play them, but being able to see BG play the regional big programs within driving distance is nice from a fan perspective.

This I believe is the future nonconference schedule:

2023: at Liberty, Eastern Illinois, at Michigan, at Georgia Tech
2024: Fordham, at Penn State, at Texas A&M, Old Dominion
2025: Lafayette, at Minnesota, at Louisville, at UMass
2026: at Arizona State, Saint Francis U., at Iowa State, UMass
2027: at Ohio State, Iowa State, at Marshall
2028: at South Alabama, Liberty
2029: at Louisiana Tech

I'm okay with this, although those 2024 away games look very tough.

I love that home and home with Iowa State.

I'm planning on going to the GT game next season...

I'd like to see some games with the service academies, too, and not just because Navy is like 40 minutes away from me (though, it doesn't hurt). Feels like we could easily get a 2-for-1 deal with those programs and it would be cool to have Army/Navy/Air Force at the Doyt.

This would be fun to do again. We had a two-for-one with Navy in the 1990s. The Falcons absolutely crushed them at our place in 1994 before a very nice crowd.

Air Force and Navy would probably be tough to schedule given that they only have a couple of free conference slots each year. On the other hand, I don't think we've ever played Army. Maybe they could use some games.

I think the most fun I've had at a non-conference game was at Notre Dame a few years ago. We all knew what the outcome was going to be but being able to witness all the cool stuff they did on gameday was nearly worth the price of admission on it's own.

I love going to road games, and it was very cool to tour the Notre Dame campus and all that.

I will say that the Falcons looked absolutely awful that day. We caught the Irish at about the worst possible time.

[notkithughes]

1-3 non-conference was expected, reasonably 2-2 at best (different combination of W/L than expected). If the team is 5-2 going into the 12th game with a shot at the MAC championship game is that not where we want to be? Lose it and finish 6-6 then fire the coach? I’m not sure that’s reasonable. Losing to EKU was horrible. Can low budget BG fire coaches based on one embarrassing loss? I don’t think so. There’s a lot of football to be played and I don’t think running the table in MAC play is the standard. 5-3 in the MAC would be a HUGE STEP in the right direction and personally I’d be satisfied.

Despite the financial constraints on the athletic department I'm sure the Board and President Rogers can finagle the funds together to pay for a buyout if they needed to, especially in a crisis. They've sort of already shown that hand with the Moosbrugger firing.

I agree that they can get the money but in my scenario of contending those resources are not tapped in my opinion. Contending is not a crisis.

Buying out the current coach is half the picture to me as well. Pay for the search and endow part of the head coach’s salary to sign someone new as well. This is the only path to consistency imo

I say it again, we do not have the resources to compete in football. Where is this money we supposedly have? Our football program has been a dumpster fire since 2016. Arguably the worst program in FBS. If these wealthy donors haven't ponied up yet, they aren't going to now.

[Tony4BG]

Guess UAB should have been first

Arizona St - Herm Edwards out
Georgia Tech - Geoff Collins out
Nebraska - Scott Frost out
UAB - Bill Clark out