Falcons Fall To Ohio In MAC Opener, 35-20

For the Falcons, Myles Bradley led the defensive surge with two sacks and a forced fumble. Offensively, Chris McMillian rushed for 89 yards while adding a score on the ground. Bowling Green will now head into a bye week before resuming their schedule on Oct. 11 against the rival Toledo Rockets in the Battle of I-75, taking place at Doyt Perry Stadium. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Bowling Green won the opening coin toss and elected to receive the kick. Ohio selected to defend the south end zone.
• Cameron Pettaway took the opening kickoff 49 yards to the BG 49, starting the first drive just a yard shy of midfield. 
• Ohio tallied the first score of the game with an interception returned for a touchdown, taking a 7-0 lead.
• The Falcons quickly responded with a six-play scoring drive. Drew Pyne and the horde of BGSU running backs worked downfield, including a 33-yard rush by Chris McMillian to move into OU territory. Pyne capped off the drive by locating a wide open Kaderris Roberts down field for a 27-yard score, tying it up at 7-7.
• The back-and-forth scoring continued with Ohio working downfield for a touchdown, reclaiming the lead at 14-7.
• The Falcons made their way down field on their next drive, highlighted by a 38-yard rush by RJ Garcia. Jackson Kleather ended the drive with points, hitting a 26-yard field goal to cut the score down to 14-10.
• Moving into the second quarter, Ohio added a score to their total for a 21-10 advantage.
• Bowling Green used a 12-play drive to chip away at the deficit before the half. An 18-yard pass to Finn Hogan followed by a 12-yard run by Roberts moved BGSU into plus territory. Kleather closed out the drive with a 33-yard field goal to bring the tally to 21-13.
• Ohio tried a 39-yard field goal before the half, but it clanged off the left upright to keep the score at 21-13 at the midway point of the game. 
• The Bobcats opened the second half with the ball, working into BGSU territory. However, JoJo Johnson picked off OU to take over possession for the Falcons.
• The BGSU drive resulted in a punt, but the defense went back to work. On the ensuing Ohio drive, Myles Bradley worked around for a strip sack with Isaiah Thomison picking up the fumble for the Falcons.
• The Bobcats worked to get the ball back, adding a touchdown to their score, 28-13.
• The Falcons later took back possession with MJ Cannon picking up a loose fumble. Coming off the fumble recovery, the Falcons orchestrated a touchdown drive. Pettaway gained 11 yards through the air and then 18 on the ground on back-to-back plays to move BGSU into the red zone. McMillian took over from there, punching in a 15-yard rushing touchdown for a 28-20 score with just under 10 minutes left in regulation.
• Ohio answered with a touchdown to push the score to 35-20 with six-and-a-half minutes left in regulation.

GAME NOTES

• BGSU accumulated 282 yards of total offense in the first half, which is the most this season in the opening half. 
• BGSU notched 106 rushing yards in the first quarter. 
• BGSU has forced at least one turnover in 37 of the last 44 games (2022-25). 
• With two sacks, BGSU has notched at least one sack in 38 of the last 44 games (2022-25).
• WR RJ Garcia II had a career-long 38-yard rush in the first quarter. 
• WR Winn Sharp notched his first career reception in the second quarter for six yards. 
• CB JoJo Johnson notched his first career interception in the third quarter. 
• DL Isaiah Thomison recovered his first career fumble in the third quarter off the sack by Myles Bradley. 
• With one reception, TE Jyrin Johnson extends his active streak with at least one catch to 38 games. He entered the weekend with the second-longest streak in the nation. 

STAT LEADERS

• Drew Pyne: 19-for-29, 170 passing yards, 1 touchdown
• Chris McMillian: 11 carries, 89 rushing yards, 1 touchdown
• RJ Garcia: 4 receptions, 34 receiving yards, 1 carry, 38 rushing yards
• Gideon ESPN Lampron: 11 tackles
• Myles Bradley: 3 tackles, 2 sacks
• JoJo Johnson: 3 tackles, 1 interception, 1 pass breakup

FROM THE LOCKER ROOM
“Clearly, a disappointing loss here against a really good football team. What’s disappointing is that you see glimpses of what we can be, but then the mistakes, the turnovers they hurt us. We created some, but didn’t capitalize on some of them, didn’t capitalize on theirs. That’s what happens when you play on the road, in conference against the reigning champions. They have a championship pedigree, a really good quarterback. They’re going to take advantage of those opportunities. We just could not get out of our own way at times. The third quarter continues to be our Achilles heel, second straight week we haven’t produced anything in the third quarter. I don’t think we had a first down, just 14 plays and five yards. We loss the turnover margin, two delay of games to start drives. That’s not on the kids, that’s on us, that’s on me, that’s unacceptable. That can’t happen. I’ve been in this profession too long for that to happen. We shot ourselves, collectively again, in the foot. But, the thing I’ve seen, we were able to move the ball well at times, put ourselves in position to win it, to pull within eight. But we have to find ways to score. I told the team this, listen, this is who we are right now. In order to become champions, in order to become great, we have to take ownership in the fact that we’re just not a very good football team when we make mistakes like this. So, we’ve got to change that. We’ve got to get better. There’s a chance we could see this team down the line, but that’s not here or there. We have to focus on next week, the bye week, get better, be critical of ourselves. The greatest opponent right now is ourselves and we have to figure that out the next two weeks before we play our next opponent. Again, just disappointed in the fact that I’m saying the same things over and over again, but that’s where we are right now. That’s where I have to meet this team, where I have to meet this staff, where I have to meet myself. I have to raise that level of standard, so today’s loss really falls on my shoulders.”

UP NEXT

• Bowling Green will be on bye next weekend before returning home for the Battle of I-75. The Falcons will take on the rival Rockets on Oct. 11 at Doyt Perry Stadium. The kick time will be announced closer to the game.