Michigan Football Opponent Preview: Bowling Green Falcons

Michigan is the heavy favorite entering a Week 3 showdown with Bowling Green. Here's everything you need to know about BGSU before Saturday.

Michigan (2-0) wraps up its non-conference slate on Saturday night against Bowling Green (1-1). This will be the third meeting between the two teams and the Wolverines hold a 2-0 lead in the short series. 

There is some familiarity between the two teams. Falcons' head coach Scot Loeffler was a Michigan quarterback from 1993-1996, then was a graduate assistant for a couple of seasons. Loeffler, now into his fifth season at BGSU, was the quarterbacks coach in Ann Arbor from 2002-2007. Former Michigan defensive back, Erik Campbell, is also on the staff at Bowling Green. 

The Falcons lost their opener to Liberty before defeating Eastern Illinois last weekend. Bowling Green, a lot like Michigan, wants to be as balanced as it can on offense. The Falcons have run the ball 65 times compared to throwing it 61 times, so you can expect to see a balanced offense on Saturday evening. 

Bowling Green's defense has had an issue stopping both teams. Statistically, the Falcons have a below-average pass defense, but Bowling Green has one of the worst run defenses in the nation. The strongest part about the Falcons' defense is the fact they have sacked the opposing quarterback seven times, and PFF ranks their pass rush in the top 10 in the country. 

Here are some important stats to know and some important comparisons:

2023 stat comparison:

Scoring offense: Michigan (58th) 32.5 PPG -- BGSU (74th) 28 PPG

Scoring defense: Michigan (2nd) 5 PPG --  BGSU (75th) 24.5 PPG

Passing offense: Michigan (31st) 296.5 YPG) -- BGSU (56th) 252.5 YPG

Passing defense: Michigan (23rd) 150 YPG -- BGSU (53rd) 196.5 YPG

Rushing offense: Michigan (75th) 150.5 YPG -- BGSU (63rd) 166 YPG

Rushing defense: Michigan (26th) 82 YPG -- BGSU (102nd) 160.5 YPG

Total offense: Michigan (42nd) 447 YPG -- BGSU (55th) 418.5 YPG

Total defense: Michigan (13th) 232 YPG -- BGSU (76th) 357 YPG

Turnovers Lost: Michigan 1 -- BGSU 5

Sacks Allowed: Michigan 0 -- BGSU 2

Sacks: Michigan 5 -- BGSU 7

2023 PFF comparison:

Overall grade: Michigan (16th) 90.8 -- BGSU (88th) 75.7

Offense: Michigan (9th) 85.3 -- BGSU (93rd) 66.7

Passing: Michigan (2nd) 93.5 -- BGSU (119th) 54.6

Pass block: Michigan (15th) 82.1 -- BGSU (101st) 55.6

Running: Michigan (102nd) 67.1 -- BGSU (61st) 72.7

Run block: Michigan (63rd) 62.6 -- BGSU (88th) 58.1

Defense: Michigan (28th) 82.8 -- BGSU (80th) 71.9

Run defense: Michigan (5th) 91.5 -- BGSU (74th) 73.0

Pass rush: Michigan (101st) 63.2 -- BGSU (8th) 80.8

Coverage: Michigan (39th) 78.9 -- BGSU (114th) 60.7

Top Bowling Green players:

QB Connor Bazelak: The former starting quarterback at both Missouri and Indiana is now the guy for Bowling Green. Bazelak has had a shaky start to the season throwing three touchdowns and three interceptions, but he has played in some big-time games with playing in the SEC and Big Ten. 

RB Terion Stewart: The sophomore back is the 1A in the Bowling Green backfield Stewart leads the team in carries (17) and yards (106). He also has two touchdowns on the ground for the Falcons. 

TE Harold Fannin Jr.: Another sophomore on the team, Fannin Jr. leads the pass-catchers in receptions with nine. He has 138 yards and a score on the season. The 6-foot-4 big body, is a reliable playmaker for Bazelak.

WR: Odieu Hiliare: Hiliare is most certainly the top wide receiver target on the team. He led the team in yards in 2022 with 747. He currently has 97 yards in two weeks, but leads the team with two touchdowns. 

LB Joseph Sipp Jr: Sipp is one of BG's inside linebackers it uses. Just a sophomore, he leads the team in tackles through two weeks with 20. Sipp Jr. has been effective in getting to the ball carrier with 1.5 tackles for loss. 

DL Anthony Hawkins, Dierre Kelly, and LB Cashius Howell: Bowling Green has been good with its pass rush through two games and is one of the top-tier teams in terms of sacks per game. All three of these players are tied with 1.5 sacks on the year. 

Michigan and Bowling Green will air on Big Ten Network on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET.