Machete don't tweet, so I don't remember this. Do tell

Not sure who these folks have been watching for five weeks, but expecting a cake walk over BUGS is pure nonsense. It's October, we're beat up and we are playing the Falcons. These are not the Falcons of 2012-15, but they are still a MAC rival and we have not been stellar against BUGS or many others during October. I do believe we will win, but given our offensive woes in Oxford, I'm not counting any chickens quite yet.

Our defense should keep us in the game and hopefully the offense bounces back. I think Akron is our chief competitor in the East, but, golly we have no right to be cocky.

Let's take care of BUGS and then look to the next week.

Our defense played very well last week and the DB's showed significant improvement. If I were BG, I would put 8 in the box to stop the run. The keys to winning this week will be whether our offensive line can dominate and whether we can effectively pass the ball. We need to come to play, I have limited faith in the play calling, we will need to be more aggressive and put them away early.

+1

allen, I agree 100 % with your two keys to Saturday's game....Can our offensive line control the line of scrimmage so we can run the football, and can we be effective in the passing game. With our situation at running back, there is no doubt that our play calling options are seriously limited by what personnel is available and able to play effectively. It makes perfect sense to me that ball possession and limiting turn-overs can help our defense keep us in this game until we can come up with enough plays to get a win. Cope has spent significant time in concussion protocol, and Sebastian Smith is still trying to play thru lingering "hammy" injury which certainly limits our options in the passing game, making your suggestion of being more "aggressive" offensively very difficult and possibly dangerous to a more conservative ball possession, defense dominated grind it out type of approach. That being said, I know we will still take our shots down the field with any of our available receivers, and hopefully we can come up with some big plays down the field that were missing last Saturday.
We have a relatively inexperienced QB, we are depleted at running back, our top receivers are not at 100%, but we do have a defense that might be able to keep us in the game until we can get enough points on the board to win the game! I can understand an offensive plan that might not meet your idea of being "more aggressive."

Just win the game. If you're supposed to be the better team....and are obviously playing better. Just win. No excuses with lack of running backs, etc. BG is playing terribly right now. No excuse in losing this game if this team wants to be a frontrunner for the East Division title. Don't care if it's 10-9 or 56-10. A win is mandatory here for this team to get where we hope (expect) and should get (i.e Detroit)

 

Sounds like you're making excuses for a potential slip-up. C'mon. BG has allowed 77 points in a game....TWICE. I don't care if they've switched QBs (to a true freshman BTW)

Ohio is better. Bottom line. They lost a flukey game to TxSt and were a couple possessions from winning at Tennessee.

BG's only win was a one-point squeaker over FCS North Dakota (NOT NDSU)....and three embarrassing losses to OSU, MTSU and Memphis.

This should be an Ohio win...bottom line. Quit trying to compare Ohio's struggle in a road win at rival Miami to BG losing at home to Eastern Michigan. EMU might be improved...but they are still EMU. You should not be losing at home to EMU if you are true division frontrunner.

If Ohio is as good as you have pumped them up (repeatedly) to be this is a game they should win.....zero excuses.

Um. Wouldn't that be the same thing. I'm not saying your falsely pumping up Ohio...but you defending them (no matter what)...I'd say you feel pretty highly of the Bobcats.

Therefore, I'd expect you would expect a win vs BG.

And what improvements has BG made.....a 77-3 loss to Memphis followed by a loss to EMU at home. Memphis >>>> EMU....so a loss to EMU, no matter how close doesn't exactly resonate as great improvement.

If you go with that train of thought, then your alluding that Ohio is getting worse because since that close loss at UT...they didn't dominate GWU and struggled in a win at Miami.

I never said Ohio never needed to dominate BG. Go back and read my initial post. I said they just needed to win...whether it's 10-9 or 56-10. This is a game Ohio should win.

I'm past the point of looking impressive. Bottom line, this team just isn't that good. But the East is absolutely dreadful....and Ohio can easily be the best of this dreadful division. Winning the East is absolutely a distinct possibility.....but only if they win these games vs. lesser competition like BG, EMU, Kent, UB & Miami. Akron is the only team in this division that should be competitive with Ohio.

For anyone who doesn't think BG can win this game, I simply point to 0-4 Arkansas State beating Georgia Southern last night and 0-4 NIU beating Ball State last Saturday.

Ohio is the better team, but they still have to act like it and prove it.

I don't expect a cake walk. I expect a hard fought game. I just think that when the dust settles, Ohio will come out on top, and the margin will be fairly wide. Ohio's defense continues to improve, and it isn't going to give up a lot of points to anyone again this year. Ohio's offense is struggling, but so is BG's defense. It's time for Ohio's young offensive line to start maturing, and show they are going to just keep getting better down the stretch.

If we will win the MAC, we will need to come alive now and build going into the MAC Championship game. The Defense needs to keep getting better and Windham has to start getting confident in the passing game, then the run game will open up. This is a pivotal week, if we play explosive football and start off 2-0 in the MAC East, this can help propel us into the rest of our MAC schedule. I am so impressed with Hagan and Mayne Williams, they have helped uplift our defense.

a reminder of last two seasons-

2015: L 62-24. Game decided Division winner.
1. BGSU(7-1)
2. OHIO(5-3)

2014: L 31-13. Game decided Division winner.
1. BGSU(5-3)
2. OHIO(4-4)