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I gotta say this as a football fan. Yesterday's effort at the Doyt was questionable, at best, and downright pathetic at worst. I think BG felt comfortable winning the East and then taking the last two weeks off. I see players huddled around heaters instead of on sidelines cheering on the other side of the ball. I see a team who fought and earned the MAC title last year turn into a team that expects to win just cuz they roll the ball out on the field. Yes, there is a ton of talent on BG but guess what fellas? You gotta earn it each week. Ball State earned it yesterday while we stood around trying to stay warm and talk about the plans for the weekend. One positive about playing in a 24,000 seat stadium as opposed to 100,000 is the ability to watch the players much more closely. You see who's into the game and playing their ass off and those that don't seem to care. When I see players that don't seem to care, it is very disturbing. You don't stay on top by taking plays and games off despite winning the division two weeks earlier. You bust your ass and win every game you play. Yeah, we're headed to Detroit on Friday to play for the title but we better be ready cuz NIU is pissed we took the title from them last year and they want it back. All of this falls back on the coaching staff. Yes there have been a ton of injuries this year but EFFORT and EXECUTION must be shown on every play in every game. The play calling was suspect, at best. Everyone in that BG locker room needs to look in the mirror and ask themselves "Did I give it all today?" I'm afraid there would be a good number that wouldn't be able to say yes. I want a championship caliber program every year...not a "It was good enough".

As Forrest Gump would say, "That's all I have to say about that". Better get our heads outta our asses.

Amen, Freak.

At this point I'm hoping for the best but expecting the worst on Friday. That may have been the most embarrassing home game since the 2010 season when Kent and Western took BG to the woodshed. I believe this program is developing an attitude problem and its stemming from the coaching staff. I don't see any engagement from the coaches to the players on the sidelines when there are blown assignments, poor throws or missed blocks. Its been that way all season long and it appeared yesterday that the boys flat out quit playing once they got behind. I feel like this team has lost their identity and doesn't know what type of football they should be playing.

As for the coaches, I appreciate Babers honesty yesterday in the post game. I still feel he has a lot to learn as a head coach and BG is likely going to be experiencing those growing pains in the next few seasons. The offense is a train wreck because of poor execution and play calling. The coaches must open up the playbook on Friday for BG to have any success of winning.

As I mentioned in another post, they've got six days to prove a lot of fans and pundits wrong in Detroit. Many people don't believe BG deserves to play in this game and those skepticisms are warranted. I'll be watching very closely on Friday how the players and coaches interact on the sidelines.

I'm never one to question another person's effort because I think that's unknowable. However, this team has not reacted well to adversity. There was that very questionable third down spot that gave Ball State the first down in the second quarter. The next play was the blown coverage and the touchdown. They never recovered. I'm also thinking of the end zone interception of Wisconsin that completely turned the game around.

In any event, I'm betting the Falcons will put on a much better performance against NIU. It's just a hunch. They beat Indiana after losing to WKU and they won 3 in a row after the problems in Madison.

I don't know if improved play will be enough to win, although ounting them out before kickoff seems foolish.

Sometimes the truth can hurt brutally. I'll be there Friday at Ford Field as well. I hope the effort is there and I think it is ok to question one's effort. You can tell the guys taking the day off and not seeming to care.

BG can beat NIU....every team in the league this year is beatable. But if we give the same effort as yesterday? It will be a long night in the Motor City.

jpfalcon09 wrote:

As I mentioned in another post, they've got six days to prove a lot of fans and pundits wrong in Detroit. Many people don't believe BG deserves to play in this game and those skepticisms are warranted. I'll be watching very closely on Friday how the players and coaches interact on the sidelines.

A lot of people are saying that. I think they were saying something similar last year. Not necessarily that it was undeserved, but ultimately fruitless.

Yesterday's outcome has been brewing all season. A lot of problems have been masked by playing a piss poor MAC east. This isn't a good team. There are good players but they are not a good team.

I too will hope for the best Friday but a win wouldn't bury the real problems lying underneath either.