Bowling Green is the home team for Friday’s game in Columbus Crew Stadium against
Buffalo. Kickoff is at 2 p.m.
However, the Falcons will be traveling two hours by bus on Thursday, staying in a
hotel that night, and having a normal pre-game meal, which won’t include
Thanksgiving turkey. After the game, it’s back on the bus for another two-hour
ride.
"It really is a road game. It’s not a home game. Our home games are right here
at Doyt Perry Stadium,” BG head coach Dave Clawson said on Tuesday. "We
are handling it just like an away game.
"I don’t know if there is a football coach who wants to give up a home
game," Clawson continued. ”But, having said that, it certainly makes sense
why we are doing this.”
Games on the Friday after Thanksgiving at Mid-American Conference schools will draw
few, if any, students and lack overall general attendance, resulting in a very
small crowd.
"This is worth giving a shot to, and we’ll see how we draw,” Clawson said. ”If
we get 8 to 10 thousand (fans) that’s probably four times more than we would get
here.”
Also, Columbus has a good BGSU alumni base and is a big recruiting area for the
Falcons, both for athletics and the general student population.
Jude Adjei-Barimah is one of seven players from Columbus on BG’s roster.
"To be able to go back and play in front of family and friends, my old football
coaches and everybody being able to come down and watch me play at this level is
exciting … I’m really excited about the opportunity to go back home and
showcase our team,” Adjei-Barimah said. "Every single one of us (from
Columbus) I know is excited to go back and be able to play back at home.
"We also joke around about it, but we take the fact that we are from Columbus
really serious,” Adjei-Barimah added. "We just all want to be able to go
down there and come out with the win.”
When Clawson recruited the Columbus athletes, he told them they would be playing in
Columbus, as the Falcons were scheduled to play Ohio State last season. The
Buckeyes bought Bowling Green out of that commitment to play Colorado. Bowling
Green played at West Virginia instead.
"This gives our players from Columbus the opportunity to play in front of
friends and family,” Clawson said. "Since it is considered a home game, we
are allowed to treat it with tickets like a home game. So for a lot of our
players, their high school teammates can go to the game, their coaches can go;
we can put them on a pass list.
"The coaches in that area appreciate that their area is so important to us as a
recruiting standpoint that we are actually bringing a game there.”
Also, potential football recruits can be guests of the Falcons.
NEUTRAL: The last time BG played in a non-bowl game neutral site contest was the
season opener in 2006 against Wisconsin at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Wisconsin
won the game 35-14.
SAMUEL: Anthon Samuel has rushed for 970 yards this season and is looking to become
the first BG player to rush for 1,000 yards in a season since P.J. Pope went for
1,098 yards in 2004.
The Falcons have had a 1,000-yard single-season rusher 10 times in school history
with Paul Miles achieving the milestone three times (1971-72-73) and Pope making
it twice (2003-04).
TURNOVERS: Last season the Falcons had 28 turnovers, 14 interceptions and 14 lost
fumbles, and were a minus-13 in turnover ratio.
BG has improved in that area this season with 14 turnovers through the first 11
games. Meanwhile, the Falcons have forced 20 turnovers, 10 fumbles and 10
interceptions, for a plus-6 turnover margin.
"We were one of the worst teams in the country in turnover margin (in 2010 and
2011) and right now we are sitting with a positive turnover margin,” Clawson
said. "That has been huge.
"On the offensive side of the ball our kids have taken to heart protecting the
football, securing it, not forcing it into coverage, carrying the ball and
protecting it,” he continued. ”They (the offense) saw for two years that we
have lost games because we didn’t do that … There is a complete buy-in now of
how important that is to winning football games.”
INJURIES: Safety Jerry ‘BooBoo’ Gates did not play against Kent State because of a
sprained ankle.
Wide receiver Je’Ron Stokes did not play against Kent State because of a head injury.

Cornerback Darrell Hunter missed portions of the Kent State game with an ankle
injury.
All three could play Friday against Buffalo.