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Opponent Stat Preview: Bowling Green

Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports


State University of New York at Buffalo Bulls (2-2) vs. Bowling Green State University Falcons (2-2)

#FalconFast heads to Buffalo this weekend and looks to assert their offensive dominance against the Bulls. Matt Johnson leads the nation in passing yards and he has quite the weapon in NFL caliber WR Roger Lewis. The obvious silver lining opportunity is the Falcon defense. The Falcons have been putting up a lot of points, but they have also been allowing a lot of points on defense. Will this be the week that the UB offense hits their stride and takes advantage of a weak defense?

Passing COMP ATT ATT/G COMP% YDS
BGSU 136 210 52.5 64.8% 1769
BGSU Opps 90 136 34 66.2% 1125
Bulls 84 129 32.3 64.6% 903
YDS/G TD INT
BGSU 442.3 13 2
BGSU Opps 281.3 9 4
Bulls 225.8 6 4

The strength in the BGSU offense is their passing prowess. What is also impressive is having 210 passing attempts, but only allowing 2 interceptions. UB is averaging over 200 yards less passing than the Falcons per gam. With the passing game finding some success against Nevada last week, I don't foresee the margin between the two teams being that high.

Through four games, UB opponents have only completed 65 passes on 129 attempts with a completion percentage of 50% for 182.8 yards a game. The Bulls have proven that their secondary is a strong asset to their team, but they have not been tested with an offense like Bowling Green's. Boise Ross leads the nation in passes defended, Marcus Baker, Cam Lewis, and Andrews Dadeboe have all played very well and not allowed many deep passes. It will be a true test, but if they can handle the Bowing Green offense, it bodes well for the rest of the season.

Rushing ATT ATT/G YDS AVG
BGSU 146 36.5 598 4.1
BGSU Opps 178 44.5 787 4.4
Bulls 156 39 615 3.9
YDS/G TD FUMBLE LOST
BGSU 149.5 8 2
BGSU Opps 196.8 10 1
Bulls 153.8 5 1

The BGSU run offense takes a back seat to the passing game, but they are still able to move the ball on the ground when necessary. Travis Greene is their primary back and has rushed for 232 yards on the season so far. Fred Coppet also makes up a significant part of the ground yardage totaling 224 yards. The Bulls run defense has been pretty solid outside of some big plays against Nevada. I like the defensive front and linebackers chances to be able to effectively stop the run.

The Falcon defense is giving up nearly 200 yards a game in rushing yards. There is a huge opportunity for Anthone Taylor and Jordan Johnson this weekend. I don't think that we will see a huge, 2014 Umass type game from Anth1 this season due to the increased use of Johnson, but this may one of his biggest statistical games of the year. Taylor ran for 216 yards last season against the Falcon defense.

NCAA Top 50 Rankings

Bowling Green Rank
Passing OFF 1
1st Down Off 2
Total Offense 6
Passes Had INT 22
Scoring OFF 29
Turnovers Lost 30
3rd Down Conv % 35
Team TFL 37
Completion % 38

Buffalo Rank
Defensive TDs 1
Fumbles Lost 14
4th Down Conv % DEF 15
Fumbles Recovered 15
4th Down Conv % 18
Team Passing Efficiency DEF 19
TFL Allowed 19
Red Zone OFF 22
Time of Possession 28
Passing Yards Allowed 37
Turnover Margin 37
Completion % 39
Passes Intercepted 40
Scoring DEF 43