Week 1 2020 at Toledo

 Recap

Well, it's Thursday Morning and reality has set in. Bowling Green did not upset Toledo for a 2nd straight year. Instead, BG got waxed 38-3. Last year Bowling Green was able to upset Toledo as 27 point underdogs. They did so on the back of some amazing defense, lead by juco transfer Brandon Perce, held the 4-1 Rockets to just 7 points. On the other side of the ball, the 1-4 Falcons put up 20 led by walk-on Grant Loy who was making his first career start. Truly one of the most iconic games in BGSU history, followed up by an equally memorable one but for all the wrong reasons. 

1st Quarter

The game started out as bad as it could for the Falcons as an early punt snap sailed over Matt Naranjo's head. He made a great play by scooping it up into the endzone and getting the ball away but it still started Toledo at the 20-ish yard line. Toledo scored the touchdown but missed the point after to make it 6-0 Rockets. The next drive added to the theory that Bowling Green never practiced because Matt McDonald threw a terrible ball that got picked and Toledo start at the 25 yard line. Then down 13-0, McDonald actually throws a good ball to Tyrone Broden Jr who fumbled just as Falcons were going to enter the redzone. The Rockets drove down the field and made the game 21-0 as their offensive line just bullied our defense and their new QB Eli Peters looked stellar. 

2nd Quarter

The 2nd quarter went much better for the Falcons on defense as they held Toledo to 0 points. The defense led by sophomore Darren Anders were tackling machines. The BG defense forced Toledo to punt or turn the ball on downs for 5 straight drives, while the offense continued to struggle. The 2nd quarter was quite uneventful except for another interception by McDonald but the defense really looked solid so there was some positives to take away here.

3rd Quarter

The 3rd quarter was the only quarter to feature points for the Orange and Brown. Toledo went up 28-0 by converting on a 3rd and 18 not only for the first down but brought it all the way to the house. It was the most bizarre call by Brian Van Gorden all game and it was punished. Bowling Green then ran a double reverse into a flea flicker to get the ball to Julian Ortega-Jones for a 42 yard reception from McDonald. However 1st and goal for the Falcons at the 1 yard line was too difficult so they settled for a Nate Needham field goal. Honestly, I am more than okay with that kick. Anything is better than getting shutout to our big rival. 

4th Quarter

The 4th quarter still was not a bad quarter for the defense. They allowed another Toledo touchdown as well as a kick but they were tired as the offense couldn't stay on the field for more than 3 plays. The touchdown drive was another UT drive that started within the Bowling Green 30. Just like that, the pounding was over, 38-3.

Bowling Green

Passing

This was the worst offensive performance I have seen in a long time for the Falcons in a MAC game. The Falcons have not been held under 10 points against Toledo since 1988. Matt McDonald, the should be leader of this offense looked like he had never thrown a football before this game. McDonald transferred over from Boston College with coach Scot Loeffler and finally became the starter. Now let me start by saying that we did not have a regular off-season, and no warm up fcs games either, but this was terrible. McDonald was missing wide open targets, and finished the day 8-30 with 2 picks, no touchdowns, and just 128 yards. The offensive line wasn't great, but there is no excuse for completing just 27% of your passes.  Quintin Morris, senior TE with NFL hopes was held to just 2 catches for 19 yards due to McDonald's inaccuracy. Only 4 different receivers had a catch, with just Julian Ortega-Jones having more than 2. 

Running

The ground game was much better for the Falcons, as the team averaged 4.3 yards per carry. Matt McDonald led the team with 41 yards on the ground. Freshman Trevon Raymore also had 41 yards on just 7 carries. Bryson Denley, the star of last year's game was held to just 2 yards a carry and star RB Andrew Clair left the game injured at the start of the 3rd quarter. The offensive line was inconsistent, where as some drives they looked solid and other drives they couldn't stop a wet blanket. 

Defense

Like I have said before, the defense was solid. The box score will never agree, but they had 15 points due to turnover and 3 scoring drives starting within the BG 30 yard line. Darren Anders led the way in tackles and Kholbe Coleman had a solid game as well. Coleman is the leader of this defense and will need his linebacking unit to step up every single game. Roland Walder had a solid game on the d-line but that unit could not get much pressure throughout the game. Eli Peters was comfortable, and the UT running game proved effective as they ran for a whopping 310 yards. The defense, despite zero help from the other side of the ball actually comes away with some morale victories and something to take into the next game. 

Special Teams

Matt Naranjo had 6 punts, all solid and had an amazing scoop and kick out of the BG endzone after a high snap on the first drive. Nate Needham came up with the only points of the game on a hurried field goal attempt from just 25 yards. 

Future

The future is not as bleak as some may see for this team. The youngest team in the FBS this year just played the 2nd best team on their schedule behind Buffalo. If the offense improves a ton with McDonald in practice, they could steal a win from Kent State. The Falcons need to run the football more and allow McDonald to just manage the game in his first few starts. Bowling Green will continue to play many young kids as the season does not count in terms of eligibility years. With that being said, a 3-3 season is still possible. The defense needs to build on this decent game and continue to apply pressure in timely situations to keep the opposition off balance. Urgency and Consistency should be the motto to live by as it is just 6 days till the home opener against Kent State. I am not giving up on Matt McDonald, and Tuesday cannot come fast enough. Talons Up!

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