Bowling Green has a date with a certain rival school a few miles up I-75 in just over a week. The
non-divisional contest could potentially be the first of two meetings for the teams that barely utter
each other’s names.
Not so fast.
The Falcons have another matchup coming this Wednesday that needs all of its attention first. Bowling
Green (6-3, 4-1) hosts Kent State (1-8, 0-5) in a classic trap game. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. at Doyt
Perry Stadium.
A Bowling Green win over Kent puts the Falcons in the Mid-American Conference championship game for the
second consecutive year. Bowling Green is vying to become the first team from the MAC East to make two
consecutive appearances in the conference title game since Miami (OH) did it in 2003 and 2004.
"We’re going to go out there and prepare like they’re an undefeated team because everything rides on
this game right now," Falcons right guard Alex Huettel said.
"We put ourselves in a very positive situation," Bowling Green coach Dino Babers said.
"Now that we put in all that hard work after a 16-day bye we need to go out and finish the job.
"I feel good about our situation," he said. "The job is not done yet. We need to win a
game to get into that title game as soon as possible because that takes the pressure off and lets us
relax and blossom into the team we can become. It’s very important that we try to do that as soon as
possible."
Bowling Green will enter Wednesday coming off a win over Akron in an East division game that had MAC
title implications written all over it. On the other hand, Kent comes to town having lost two straight
after picking up its lone win on Oct. 18 over Army.
The Golden Flashes have lost five of their eight games by 10 points or less, yet they are scoring just
16.6 points per game.
"We don’t want to take anyone lightly. Every game is a ring game for us," Bowling Green
linebacker DJ Lynch said.
"We keep the focus on going back to the MAC championship," added Falcons defensive back Brian
Sutton. "We don’t want to put our fate in any other team’s hands. We don’t want it to be them that
comes in and ruins our hopes of going back to the MAC championship."
NEW BACKS: Travis Greene left the Akron contest after what appeared to be a lower-leg injury on the
second play from scrimmage. But Fred Coppet, Andre Givens and even fullback Chris Pohlman filled the
void.
Coppet (113 yards) and Givens (101 yards) ran for career highs and Pohlman became a short-yardage back,
running six times for 14 yards.
"We weren’t doubting any of them and we knew they were up to the challenge," Huettel said of
the running backs.
He especially praised Pohlman.
"That’s what Chris has always been," Huettel said of Pohlman. "He’s always been the Swiss
Army Knife of an offense. He can do anything you ask him and it showed on Tuesday."
STOUT D: Bowling Green is coming off one of its best defensive performances of the year in a 27-10 win
over the Zips. The 10 points allowed is the least points the Falcons have given up to an FBS opponent
this season. Virginia Military Institute was held to seven points in week two.
"That was probably our best game on defense all year I would say," Lynch said. "We stuck
to the gameplan, were in the right spots, made plays when they came to us."
But Bowling Green is yet to be satisfied on that side of the ball, especially after its early-season
woes.
"We’re not even close," Lynch said when asked if the defense is where it wants to be. "I
have seen good defense around here so I know what it takes and I know what it’s supposed to look like
out there, and we’re not there yet. We’re getting better every game, no doubt."