Sports
Ohio Picks Up Homecoming Win Over Bowling Green
By: Blake Baker, Russ Heltman
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Ohio Football celebrated Homecoming Weekend with a 30-24 victory over the Bowling Green Falcons. The Bobcat defense had their eye on the football all day, as the unit turned three Falcon turnovers in the first half into 17 points and never looked back.
Ohio was out for revenge in this contest as they were walloped by the Falcons in Bowling Green 62-24 last November. Safety Toran Davis touched on the significance of the win, “it felt really good being able to get a win in front of the alumni after four years of those guys consistently beating us.”
The Bowling Green offense was ineffective from the first snap, gaining just 135 total yards in the first half. On top of that, the Falcons turned the ball over on three of their six first-half drives. They then failed to punch it into the end zone after Greg Windham threw a rare interception on the Ohio 10-yard line. Bowling Green quarterback James Morgan struggled with his command of the offense throughout the game and finished with three interceptions.
Conversely, The Bobcat offense got rolling early and often in the first half, due in large part to the Falcons inability to hold onto the football. A steady mix of power runs from Maleek Irons and Bo Hardy, paired with an efficient 13 of 16 half of passing from Windham, afforded the Bobcats plenty of opportunities to score and gave them a comfortable 23-7 lead going into the locker room.
The Ohio scoring onslaught slowed after halftime, as the Falcons took better care of the football, and were able to shrink the deficit to six points. The Falcons tried to muster a comeback, but they couldn’t get the offense clicking until the final drive. It proved too little too late and the Bobcats rode the power running game of Bo Hardy to victory.
Javon Hagan has made his presence felt all season long and this one was no different, Hagan led the team with nine tackles, recovered a fumble and picked off an errant James Morgan pass.
Hagan made plays all over the field and has really impressed Coach Solich in his freshman season.“He’s worked his way into being a really good football player for us, he makes the flashy plays, but he makes more plays that don’t show up in the stats and it’s made him a key player on our defense,” Solich said postgame.
Mid-American Conference play is in full swing, and Ohio now prepares for a bout with Eastern Michigan at home, while Bowling Green will try to end their four game losing streak when they travel to Toledo.