The Go Daddy Bowl in Mobile, Alabama will showcase one of the premier pitch-and-catch tandems in FBS football. Bowling Green, MAC champions, will be facing the Georgia Southern Eagles, who will be making their first bowl appearance. In their second year at the FBS level, the Eagles were unable to compete in the post-season last year since NCAA rules prohibit first year teams in FBS to compete in bowls.
The Eagles, though, are no strangers to the bright lights, as they collected six national FCS championships in two decades. It’s a clash of ground meets air when these two collide Wednesday evening at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
Bowl: GoDaddy Bowl
Teams: Bowling Green Falcons vs Georgia Southern Eagles
Date/Time: December 23, 2015 – 8 PM EST on ESPN
Location: Ladd-Peebles Stadium – Mobile, AL
Vegas Line/Total: Bowling Green -7.5 / O/U 66
Written by: Erik the Hun
10 – 3 Record – 10 – 3 Vs Spread Over – Under: 6 – 7Season Results 12/04/15 vs Northern Illinois W 34-14 W -14 U 69 |
8 – 4 Record – 8 – 4 Vs Spread Over – Under: 5 – 7Season Results 12/05/15 Georgia State L 7-34 L -20.5 U 57 |
January 6, 2008 – GMAC Bowl – Bowling Green 7 – 63 Tulsa December 30, 2009 – Humanitarian Bowl – Bowling Green 42 – 43 Idaho December 27, 2012 – Military Bowl – Bowling Green 20 – 29 San Jose State December 26, 2013 – Little Caesars Bowl – Bolwing Green 27 – 30 Pittsburgh December 20, 2014 – Camellia Bowl – Bowling Green 33 – 28 South Alabama |
Bowling Green Outlook:
Bowling Green’s Dino Babers is off to the Carrier Dome and the Syracuse Orange, but is sticking around for one last hoorah, hoping to lead his young men to victory. The Falcons will bring their air bombardment in full swing to Wednesday’s night match-up. With top five’s in scoring (43.4), passing (376 yards a game) and total yards (561 yards a game), look for the Falcons to be flying high.
This constant air bombardment is brought to you by none other than Matt Johnson. Johnson has been stellar in distributing the ball to all kinds of receiving talent throughout the 2015 year. The stats prove it, throwing for 4700 yards and 43 touchdowns with only eight interceptions in 535 attempts. The Falcons’ gunslinger threw for over 400 yards six times.
Do not be fooled, this offensive line can do more than pass block. They led the way for running backs Travis Greene and Fred Coppet. Together, the two rushed for over 2000 yards and totaled 19 touchdowns, balancing the offense, especially in the latter half of the season.
Of course, with passing numbers that are out of this world, you would expect to see some huge numbers at the wide receiver position. Well, here you go. Four receivers nabbed over 50 catches, and the big dog on that block would be Roger Lewis. Lewis caught 82 passes for 1476 yards and 15 touchdowns. If you thought that wasn’t enough, in comes Gehrig Deiter who only grabbed 89 balls for 957 and 9 trips to the end zone. The third and fourth receivers on this high-flying attack managed to catch a combined 123 passes from Johnson and turned that into almost 1500 more yards and nine touchdowns.
The defense is giving up over 26 points a contest and are the epitome of average against the run this year, ranking 57th good for 162.3 yards a contest. Bowling Green will get their points, but will an average defense, especially against the run, slow down the NCAA’s number one ground attack?
Georgia Southern Outlook:
I fully expect a hungry group to hit the field for the Go Daddy Bowl in Alabama. Georgia Southern felt snubbed last year, as they went undefeated in the Sun Belt and were denied a chance to play in a bowl due to eligibility. Interim Head Coach Dell McGee will man the sidelines as Coach Willie Fritz will take his show to The Green Waves of Tulane. The Eagles played the powerhouse Georgia Bulldogs to a six-point loss, but losing the finale against their rivals Georgia State is the game they’ll need to forget going forward.
If there ever was a one-trick pony, well, you’re looking at it. Georgia Southern once again led the nation with its vaunted rushing attack. Given the fact this team only attempted 129 passes all year, I think its safe to say that you and I, and Bowling Green, know exactly what’s coming.
Matt Breida (189-1540 yards and 16 TDs) is who’s coming, and he’s bringing a few friends to the party with him. L.A. Ramsby will bring his 152 carries for 772 yards and 12 trips to the end zone. Kevin Ellison will also bring his 642 yards and 6.4 yards a carry with 8 touchdowns, and if that’s not enough, welcome in Wesley Fields 607 yards, 6.7 yards a carry and 6 touchdowns. That should be enough to keep the Falcons grounded on the defensive side of things.
Georgia Southern did rank in the top 45 in the four major defensive categories, which is pretty impressive, but the true test should be in the secondary, where the Eagles are 39th in the nation, giving way to 203.9 yards a game. Not bad considering they are in the Sun Belt.
Match-up Analysis & Prediction
Analysis:
It’s a tale of two completely different approaches to moving the football and putting points on the board. Both teams have no problems doing it in bunches. Bowling Green will face a offense with the likes it has not encountered all year, testing their front seven on every snap of the ball. Georgia Southern will need to try to slow down Air Johnson and company if they hope to even stay close. They say styles make fights, so here’s the most contrasting styles on the bowl slate. Sit back, have a cold one, and see which style will come out the belle of this bowl.
Prediction:
To get further analysis from Ej the Rainmaker and Erik the Hun, check out our audio preview of the GoDaddy Bowl Prediction using the audio file below…
