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I just read thru my rant that I posted after the game. Maybe I need to take this BG football stuff a little less seriously. Sure, Freak...and the Browns will win the Super Bowl this yr. I really feel for ya hammb, and all other Cleve fans. The Brownies looked horrible today and there is no light at the end of the tunnel.

I am gonna go write a new column over in the columns forum. I was totally bummed all weekend but in the last few hours had a thought come bustin' into my brain...

Lighten up you pansy!! It was ONE freakin game...a very important game, but still just one.

I apologize for the rant...Damn! I just really thought BG was gonna take the win.

GO FALCONS!!!

Welcome back 'Freak. We missed you. Well, the loss to NIU will certainly give us something to chew on the rest of the season, now won't it? We'll also be more in tune with what the rest of the MAC does from week to week, especially NIU. My biggest worry is right now, we do not control our own destiny. Even if we win out the rest of the way and post eight consecutive wins to go 9-2, we could end up sitting home for the Holidays! We just got to start wining, keep it going, and hope NIU loses twice and that we can get some help from our friends in the MAC.

MY biggest concern now is that half the fan base (and a great many members of this board) have taken an "oh well, we're f---ed" attitude. True, we're now forced on the long road to getting to the MACC and even longer road to get another bowl game. It sucks, and not just the loss, but the overwhelming way we lost on Friday stings, but as you guys said, its just one game!!! We're seeing the same mistakes from the past year or two, and that's crappy, but they made the mistakes last year and had a great year. Even more importantly, losing AT NIU for the second straight trip, and dismantling them at home last year should prove that support at home games is even more important. Not saying that anyone has given up to that extent, but if die hards like everyone on this board are thinking "oh well, we'll try again next year", what must the "fringe students" be thinking, who are debating between going to the Doyt and drinking/going home/watching OSU or Michigan by the time the next home game rolls around?

The loss is almost 2 days old, I say its time to focus on Temple, and doing everything in our power to tear up the rest of the MAC, and let what comes, come. And if it doesn't mean another trip to the MACC, at least remember that there is a group of seniors on this team that have earned the support over the past 4 years, which should NOT be forgotten.

As for the Browns... call me in 10 years, please. UGH!

I'm concerned about where we stand, but I haven't given up on us. It won't be easy, but we've got to keep fighting and hope for the best to happen around the MAC.

I said in a post a few weeks ago before the NIU game that I couldn't remember us having such a big game so early on in the schedule in years. I couldn't recall one like the NIU game the other night. Yes, I do mean even BIGGER than BG's games with Ohio State or Oklahoma. We lost both of those games and we were feeling really good about ourselves after those losses. That is totally not the case after this loss to NIU. This NIU game was a much bigger loss because it was a bigger game for BG, it meant more to us than those other two combined in the "ways of the MAC."

I'll be at the Ball State game (our next home game) and I'm coming from Charlottesville, Virginia! I bleed orange, win or lose.

First the Falcons, then the Browns...I hate football...

On that note...BRING ON THE OWLS! GO FALCONS!!!!

I too an fearful that our fanbase will write this year off. They're nuts if they do because this season IS NOT over. There isn't a dmoinant team in the conference year. There's no Miami from 2003 or a Marshall from 97-99.
I think that NIU will drop a game before they play the Rockettes. Maybe Western will get them, maybe Testicle Tech will...somebody's gonna get them though.

Will somebody get us too? They won't sat the Doyt if we keep packin' the place. But hey, I'm preaching to the choir here right? Maybe I need to get all Jed Smock about it ans start preaching by the union!!

Can I get an AMEN!!

Flipper wrote:I think that NIU will drop a game before they play the Rockettes. Maybe Western will get them, maybe Testicle Tech will...somebody's gonna get them though.

Starting next week, we'll get our Davey O'Brien watch list starting QB back. I suspect our O will be even better when we don't have to scale back the O in order to avoid turnovers.

33,
I look forward to sharing some beers and brats with ya at the Ball State game!

Flip and TG,
AMEN! Even in my crappy mood this weekend, I NEVER thought about packing it in. Heck, I wait too long every year for football season to do that!

HuskieDan,
You guys are in the drivers seat at this time. NIU could be in for a very special season.

Yes the Falcons lost on Friday, but a lot of you are taking this loss way too seriously. The season isn't over and the only ones writing the Falcons off are some of the people on this board. The players aren't quitting. This was a wakeup call for many of the players. I think most of the team had a little too much confidence going into the game and thought the game was going to be won by just showing up. We kind of needed this to happen. Friday is over and now it's time to look ahead to Saturday's game.

I hope everyone gets over their funk soon, because Lord, Lady and Princess Byron are coming to homecoming and I'm looking forward to having some fun at my first AZZ tailgate.

Tricky_Falcon wrote:This was a wakeup call for many of the players.

Ouch, there it is. We made it three days...

Tricky_Falcon wrote:We kind of needed this to happen.

Give me a break.

We're a veteran team that shouldn't need wake-up calls. We want to be a consistent championship program, and that doesn't happen to those teams.

In college football, every game means everything--especially in your league. Sure, you gotta look ahead now. But I don't minimize the debacle from Saturday, and that it never should have happened. We certainly didn't need it to happen.[/u]

I too was at the game and, at the half, I very much thought we would win the game. Our offense, aside from self induced stops, had performed well and we had a big time goal line stand on defense late.

In retrospect, the third down and 2 call on drive two (when the game looked like a version of last year's BG-NIU game) was huge. PJ narrowly missed a TD on the previous 8 yard screen play and then it appeared to me we were perhaps setting up a reverse on the third and 2. Nobody was there and Omar loses four. Perhaps something else was called but it looked like a broken play/assignment. FG never had a remote chance due to penetration in the middle. Easily could have been a 14-0 game- with a much more nervous NIU and a quieter crowd.

The second half was a disaster from the word go- literally as Sheldon runs right by our kid play one. They only threw the ball down the field or even in the middle of the field twice. That one and a beautiful end zone break up by Jordan on Sheldon. Our DB's were always close- but always ONE step off- resulting in regular 6 to 12 yard gains.

And with number 1 running wild, it is no wonder we had trouble with the pass. He seemed very fast to me (first TD). I love PJ Pope- great player- but it would certainly be great if we could sign somebody really, really fast to compliment. Hard to find I suppose.

Obviously, our other issues at the goal line (two needless penalties cost us four points) and clock management (what in the world were we doing hurrying a third and 5 call in the last few seconds of the third quarter? Key play- talk about it at the quarter break then get it.) were killers.

NIU has one less TD if that is Big Ten replay (worst call ever- and I mean it), but we just didn't tackle. Period. I saw 57 Parks and 17 Newsom trying to get the boys fired up. But I thought we were strangely unemotional on defense. Very poor performance. Coach Beck, let's get 'em going.

As for the season, fans hang in there. Sure it is a tough spot. Sure we have the toughest schedule. Sure our students see the inside of the stadium one time the first 8 weeks they are on campus. But let's stay with these guys and coaches all the way. Hey, NIU is good; ask Maryland. NIU was p.o.'ed from last year; NIU had 25,000 people there. We lost. I sure hate HOW we lost, but anyone who thought we would be a sure winner had to be in La La Land.

We need to help this team and support this team. For every Hawk and Magner and Jovon and Newsom and Mrukow, we have many more young players in the two deep line up.

So my reaction is simple. I will now invite MORE people to the Homecoming Game and I will now redouble my efforts to get freshmen/students involved at the games and I will look forward to a major announcement on the Student Athlete Center I hear is coming. We need to support this team right now. We are in a tough stretch with these road games after this bad loss.

I'm unhappy. But I don't want to stay unhappy.

As an aside, my son attended the funeral of Aaron "Mike" Richardson and, based on what he told me, you can all be very proud of Bowling Green State University, Dr. Wanda Overland (Student Affairs), Coach Brandon and the Bowling Green football family. My son was also in De Kalb and, as he said, the experience at the church in Sandusky puts the game in a different perspective. We all wanted to win for many reasons- including Aaron. We fell short- and we need to keep playing (and cheering) for this young man, our school and our team.

Go Falcons!

The debacle happened Friday. I'm betting you weren't at the game.

Am I saying that it was the greatest thing that BG lost? No. But even from the stands you could see that our players didn't exactly take NIU too seriously before the game...this game certainly grounded our team. In that respect we needed this just to show that we can't take people lightly. You can analyze my post further if you feel necessary.

Also the whole point of my initial post was to tell people to relax and that the season isn't over yet. You're letting this loss hit you a little too hard.

Tricky_Falcon wrote:The debacle happened Friday. I'm betting you weren't at the game.

Am I saying that it was the greatest thing that BG lost? No. But even from the stands you could see that our players didn't exactly take NIU too seriously before the game...this game certainly grounded our team. In that respect we needed this just to show that we can't take people lightly. You can analyze my post further if you feel necessary.

Also the whole point of my initial post was to tell people to relax and that the season isn't over yet. You're letting this loss hit you a little too hard.

And I will continue to maintain that if you need a loss to "wake up" in college football you are not a well coached team.

We needed to take ourselves out of the driver's seat of the conference in order to learn not to take people lightly? Great...

I'm probably as big a defender of Gregg Brandon as you'll find here. I don't think we looked ready on Friday and I don't think we made the needed adjustments to the game plan. That is directly attributed to the coaches.

You shuld not need a wake up call to play in one of the games that will decide your season. Coming in to the year, it looked like a three game schedule (NIU, Marshall and UT) We just let the first one go right by us. There's no way that shopuld happen.