Falcons Get One Step Closer to MAC East Title with Win Over Akron

Tuesday, November 4

Akron, OH

8:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

6-3 , 4-1

Akron

4-5 , 2-3

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Bowling Green

Akron

Photo by: Alyssa Benes

Falcons Get One Step Closer to MAC East Title with Win Over Akron

November 05, 2014 | Football

Box Score

By: by James Nahikian, BGSU Athletic Communications

Final Stats: Box Score (PDF) | Box Score (HTML)
Audio: Babers, Dino | Johnson, Nick | Royster, Taylor | Coppett, Fred

AKRON, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University football team defeated the University of Akron, 27-10, at InfoCision Stadium Tuesday (Nov. 4) night in a crucial Mid-American Conference East matchup. Stiff winds and constant rain affected both teams, making offensive drives difficult to sustain.

The victory pushes Bowling Green to 6-3 (4-1 MAC) and makes the Falcons bowl eligible. One more win will send BGSU to the MAC Championship Game in Detroit on Dec. 5.

"I'm really proud of the young men to be able to play a game like they played in conditions like these," head coach Dino Babers said. "To be able to go old school, three yards and a cloud of dust, and do things the old-fashioned way – it was really fun to watch."

A pair of second-half turnovers forced by the Falcon defense turned the momentum completely in BGSU's favor. After a 44-yard Joe Davidson punt was downed at the Akron nine-yard line early in the third quarter, defensive lineman Taylor Royster recovered a fumble in the end zone after a high snap on Akron's next play from scrimmage. The defensive touchdown gave Bowling Green a 13-3 lead.

"I was just at the right place at the right time," Royster said. "I go hard every play, and I expect anything to happen. To be a part of this unit – it's just a different kind of swagger that our defense goes about doing things. We feel like we are a good defense, we know that we are a good defense. It's all about having confidence."

On the Zips' ensuing drive, true freshman defensive back Nick Johnson intercepted his second pass of the evening. Johnson, who was tracking an Akron receiver down the Falcon sideline, turned around just in time to leap for the ball and pick it off at the BGSU 38-yard line. Eleven plays later, James Knapke found Roger Lewis for an 11-yard touchdown pass on third-and-goal. The score gave the Orange and Brown a 20-3 lead with 4:54 remaining in the third quarter.

As a whole, the Bowling Green defense forced a season-high five turnovers – four of which were caused in the second half.

"The steel curtain, the purple people eaters, the monsters of the midway – the defense did a great job," Babers said. "The interceptions, the turnovers – anytime you can win the turnover battle on a field with the weather conditions like this, you have a very good chance to win."

The loss drops Akron to 4-5 (2-3 MAC). The Falcons now sit two games ahead in the loss column to the next closest team in the East division.

BGSU outgained Akron on the ground, 219-94, and posted 389 yards of total offense. Bowling Green gained 21 first downs and held Akron to just four successful third-down conversions across 18 attempts.

Running backs Fred Coppet and Andre Givens – who both rushed for over 100 yards, and each set new career highs – led the Falcon rushing attack. Coppet rushed for 113 yards on 18 carries, while Givens ran for 101 yards on 14 touches with one score. Knapke connected on 17-of-34 passes for 170 yards and one touchdown. Redshirt-junior Ryan Burbrink led all Bowling Green receivers with a team-high seven receptions for 52 yards. Gehrig Dieter added three catches for 61 yards, while Lewis hauled in four passes for 36 yards and the third-quarter touchdown.

Defensive backs Jude Adjei-Barimah and Ryland Ward registered a team-high 10 tackles for the Falcons. Defensive lineman Kendall Montgomery recorded BGSU's lone sack, while linebacker D.J. Lynch and defensive linemen Bryan Thomas and Izaah Lunsford also chipped in with tackles for loss. Along with the touchdown on the fumble recovery, Royster recovered a second fumble – his fourth of the season – in the third quarter. To go along with his two interceptions, Johnson notched nine tackles and three pass breakups. Adjei-Barimah and Thomas also forced a fumble apiece.

"I have grown up a lot [since the season opener at Western Kentucky]," Johnson said. "I make better decisions, and I just don't make those young mistakes as much. I'm more disciplined."

Tyler Tate connected on a first-quarter field goal from 30 yards out and added a second-quarter field goal from 45 yards out to stake BGSU to a 6-3-halftime lead.

The Falcon defense limited the Zips to just 129 total yards of offense in the first half, while getting off the field on 8-of-9 of Akron's third-down attempts. Johnson's first interception ended an Akron drive that was moving deep into Falcon territory.

On a second-and-10 play from the BGSU 17-yard line, quarterback Kyle Pohl's pass sailed over the head of his attempted receiver and Johnson made a diving interception that resulted in a touchback. Bowling Green proceeded to drive 53 yards over nine plays, setting up Tate's 45-yard kick that put the Orange and Brown on top, 6-3.

Royster's fumble recovery for a touchdown at the 9:23 mark of the third period gave the Falcons the lead that they would never relinquish. Akron did pull within 10 after a rushing touchdown early into the fourth quarter, but an interception by true freshman Clint Stephens – the Falcons' fifth forced turnover of the contest – set up a Givens' 46-yard rushing touchdown with 2:38 remaining that put the game on ice.

"We will regroup and get ready for Kent State, but this is something that we'll enjoy for as long as we can," Babers said. "We've now put ourselves in a situation where if we can win one more, we'll capture a MAC East title."

Bowling Green will host Kent State Nov. 12 at Doyt L. Perry Stadium at 8 p.m. #MACtion will continue as Bowling Green will play its second consecutive mid-week game, prior to playing two more week-day football games to conclude the regular season.

Notes
* Fred Coppet recorded a career-high 113 rushing yards on 18 carries.
* Andre Givens also registered a career-high 101 yards rushing, including his 46-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
* Tuesday night's game was the first time since Nov. 6, 2004 that Bowling Green has had two players rush for more than 100 yards in the same game.
* Gehrig Dieter returned to the field, catching three passes for a team-high 61 yards.
* Taylor Royster's third quarter fumble recovery for a touchdown marked the first time since Nov. 23, 2013 that a BGSU player has accomplished that feat.
* Royster recovered two fumbles in the game to move his season total to four, which is the best in the Mid-American Conference.
* Bryan Thomas' forced fumble in the third quarter marked his fifth of the season, best in the MAC.
* Nick Johnson's two interception moved him into a tie for first in the MAC with Miami's Quentin Rollins with four on the season.
* Bowling Green's five turnovers forced were the most in a single game this season. The Falcons four second-half turnovers matched the previous single-game high for a contest this season when the Falcons had four at UMass.
* The Falcons have won six consecutive games in November, dating back to 2012. In fact, no team has scored more than one touchdown in any of those six games against the Falcons.

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