Bowling Green is your 2015 MAC champion, deservedly bringing home the conference title after soundly beating NIU 34-14 in the conference title game on Friday night. The Falcons won their second MAC title in three years by playing how they did the whole season, by just blasting people with points and getting some defensive stops when they needed them.
All hail Bowling Green, the MACTION king once again
The Falcons won the MAC title by playing the way they have all season long.
Sage Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Falcons quarterback Matt Johnson claimed the conference single season records for passing yardage and touchdown passes. He didn't have a great game by his standards (25-37 for 235 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions), but he got enough help from the running game and defense to guide the Falcons to another conference title.
We should start with the defense, really. The defense held Northern Illinois scoreless in the first half, and only allowed one offensive touchdown to the Huskies, the other coming from the NIU defense on a pick-six. The Falcons were 10th in the nation in turnover margin this year at just under plus-one per game, and they forced five on Friday night. They also forced six NIU three-and-outs.
Offensively for Bowling Green, the raw numbers were pretty great, as usual. They put up 502 total yards, with a fairly even split between rushing and passing. As stated above, Matt Johnson didn't have a great game, but Travis Greene (28 carries for 183 yards and two touchdowns) led the way for a rushing attack that racked up 267 yards combined. This year, Bowling Green averaged 6.91 yards per play, which was 10th in the nation.
Dino Babers is now 18-9 in two seasons with the Falcons, including two wins over Big Ten teams this year, and will surely have power conference opportunities this year if he wants one. He was expected to take the UCF job earlier this week, but that didn’t work out and the Knights hired Scott Frost. Babers is currently being linked to the Syracuse job, but as we saw with Bronco Mendenhall’s surprise departure from BYU to Virginia, you never know what new job will open up tomorrow.
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