In a highly-anticipated Satuday matchup between Pudge and the MACCOON Eastern Michigan (3-7, 2-4 MAC) and Bowling Green (3-7, 1-5 MAC), it would be the homestanding Eagles who would stop the bleeding and pick a up a win, sending their fans home happy with a 27-21 victory over the Falcons.
The game itself was a bit of a sloppy one, with a combined 16 penalties for 168 yards— including one touchdown called back for each team and a post-score penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Both teams traded rushing
touchdowns early on, with Tavierre Dunlap getting Eastern on the board first and Austyn Dendy answering on the next drive for the Falcons to put the tally at 7-7 midway through the first quarter. Eastern would add a field goal, making it 10-7.
The Eagles had a chance to add to their lead early in the second quarter after a roughing-the-passer penalty on Bowilng Green on a third-and-eight play helped extend the drive, but Rudy Kessinger’s attempt fell short and to the left from 42 yards out three plays later.
The Falcons pounced on the opportunity immediately, as Austyn Dendy would find paydirt once again, ending a six-play, 76-yard drive with a rushing score from 16 yards out to give the Falcons a 14-10 lead with three minutes remaining in the half.
Both teams stalemated in those final three minutes, combining for five drives collecting 19 yards. On the fourth drive of the sequence, BGSU QB Hunter Najm— in for the injred Drew Pyne— threw an interception into the mitts of EMU hybrid linbeacker Barry Manning. With a new chance to score to end the half, the Eagles collected five yards on a pass, then ran up the middle for no gain and spent the next 22 seconds setting up for a spike at midfield.
EMU QB Noah Kim would be met by several BGSU jerseys on the ensuing snap, rolling backwards in the pocket neary 20 yards before tossing an incomplete pass to effectively end the first half.
The game would eventually break open midway through the third quarter, when two defensive pass interference calls on BGSU defensive back Jalen McClendon— along with two 10-yard runs by Dontae McMillan— helped to set EMU up in the BG redzone. Noah Kim was eventually able to find Nick Deveraux for the 12-yard touchdown toss on third-and-goal to take the lead back at 17-14 with 5:57 left in the third quarter.
Eastern Michigan would tack on to their advantage with a physical drive to start the fourth quarter of play, rushing on six-straight plays to wear down the BGSU defense and get Dontae McMillan across the goal line to put the score at 24-14. McMillan (41 yards) and Tavierre Dunlap (26 yards) were instrumental on the drive, while Noah Kim contributed two yards on a scramble.
Bowling Green would burn off 5:35 of game clock in reply, with Hunter Najm eventually getting the ball to Jyrin Johnson in the end zone to cut the deficit to 24-21. The drive was Najm’s best of the afternoon, picking up 62 yards on 5-of-6 passing. All BGSU needed was a good defensive drive to get the ball back with two timeouts remaining.
EMU receiver Nick Deveraux had other plans.
The emerging passcatcher was called upon to catch passes on third-and-seven deep inside EMU territory and then again on third-and-12 at the BGSU 31-yard line, converting on both with receptions of 15 yards and 28 yards respectively to maintain EMU’s advantage.
Deveraux’s heroics aided the positioning of Rudy Bessinger’s ensuing field goal from 44 yards out to put the margin at 27-21 with 57 seconds left.
Bowling Green would get into Eastern’s half on some quick-witted scrambles and passes to the sideline by Najm, but a sack with no timeouts and six seconds left on third-and-one at the EMU 36-yard line would eliminate any hopes of a Falcon comeback.
Takeaways
Yet again, Austyn Dendy is proving to be a top option for Bowling Green running backs. He finished with 113 yards and two touchdowns. Unfortunately, outside of Dendy, the offense fell flat again. They managed to score more points than last week, but a much-maligned EMU defense managed to keep BG under their thumb all afternoon. The penalty bug hit the Falcons once again as well, finishing with nine penalties for 103 yards. The defense allowed the highest yardage since the Toledo game. You have to wonder what the next move is for the Falcons this year.
Eastern Michigan played a complete game. Noah Kim finished with 210 passing yards and one touchdown, while Dontae McMillan finished with 100 rushing yards and one touchdown. Their defense held Bowling Green to just 259 yards as well— a good mark considering some of the blowouts they’ve suffered. This was the kind of game that Eastern Michigan needed this year, even if they’re out of postseason contention. Yes they won some games earlier, but the team got the lead back early in the second half as opposed to trailing in the fourth quarter.
Play of the Game
The play of the game goes to Dontae McMillan. This touchdown put Eastern up by ten, and was a huge part in the win.
Up Next
The Falcons return home to face Akron on Tuesday, November 18th at 7:00 p.m. Eastern time, with the network to be determined.
The Eagles travel to Ball State on Saturday, November 15th, at 12:00 p.m. Eastern time. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
