Out of 136 FBS teams in 2025, Bowling Green ranked 126th in passing yards per game at 158. The Falcons’ 2025 quarterback room was defined by instability as injuries and other factors led to the team trotting out four different starters throughout the year.
As head coach Eddie George enters year two at the helm, he seeks more stability at the position. Landing a new starting quarterback in the transfer portal was a priority for Bowling Green, and the Falcons landed on Oregon transfer Austin Novosad.
Bowling Green is no stranger to taking on veteran transfer portal quarterbacks, bringing in journeymen Connor Bazelak and Drew Pyne within the last three seasons.
Novosad recently completed his redshirt sophomore campaign at Oregon and enters his new home across the country with two years of eligibility remaining. So who is the Falcons’ new potential starter for 2025? Here are three fast facts about Austin Novosad:
1. He backed up three different Oregon starters
Oregon started three different quarterbacks in each of the last three seasons, but the one constant in the room was Novosad. Bowling Green’s latest transfer addition backed up Bo Nix as a true freshman in 2023. When Nix entered the NFL Draft, Oregon restocked through the portal with Dillon Gabriel. Then when Gabriel also tested the NFL waters, the Ducks promoted backup Dante Moore Jr. to starter.
Novosad sat behind all three quarterbacks, working with former Oregon offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Will Stein — who accepted a head coaching position at Kentucky in December. He worked alongside considerable talent in those quarterback rooms, considering Nix and Gabriel were both drafted and finished top-3 in Heisman Trophy voting.
2. He was a highly-ranked 4-star recruit
Novosad attended Dripping Springs High School in Dripping Springs, TX — a town in the Austin metropolitan era. As a junior at Dripping Springs in 2021, Novosad won Texas District 12-5A-I Overall MVP honors, throwing for 3,399 yards and 40 touchdowns. He concluded a successful high school career with 8,983 passing yards and 114 touchdowns, connecting on 64.5 percent of passes.
Novosad originally committed in-state, signing with Baylor in December 2021. However, he decommitted in 2022 and instead onboarded at Oregon as an early enrollee, starting in January 2023. In addition to Baylor and Oregon, he held offers from Colorado, Houston, Kansas, Louisiana Tech, Rice, SMU, Texas State, Texas Tech, UNLV, and Vanderbilt. Novosad was rated the 13th-best quarterback by 247Sports in the class of 2023 and the 12th-best pocket passer quarterback by ESPN, earning a 4-star designation by the majority of outlets.
3. He has 15 collegiate passes
Novosad enters Bowling Green with experience, albeit not a full game’s worth. He still awaits his first collegiate start but boasts experience in the form of 15 passes. He completed 12 of them for 99 yards, having yet to notch a touchdown or interception.
Nearly half of Novosad’s college production transpired in Oregon’s 45-6 Fiesta Bowl rout of Liberty on Jan. 1, 2024. When Bo Nix checked out of the lopsided game in the fourth quarter, Novosad provided the finishing efforts by going 5-of-7 for 38 yards. He has made seven appearances to date and all seven were Oregon victories by 21+ points. His lone action in 2025 occurred in Week 1 vs. eventual FCS champion Montana State where he completed one 40-yard pass to Kyler Kasper.
