Bowling Green Falcons
Encyclopedia
The Bowling Green Falcons are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green State University, often referred to as Bowling Green or BGSU, is a public, coeducational research university located in Bowling Green, Ohio, United States. The institution was granted a charter in 1910 by the State of Ohio as part of the Lowry Bill, which also established Kent State...

, located in Bowling Green
Bowling Green, Ohio
Bowling Green is the county seat of Wood County in the U.S. state of Ohio. At the time of the 2010 census, the population of Bowling Green was 30,028. It is part of the Toledo, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area. Bowling Green is the home of Bowling Green State University...

, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

. The Falcons participate in NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...

 Division I (FBS for football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

) in the Mid-American Conference
Mid-American Conference
The Mid-American Conference is a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I college athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Nine of the twelve full member schools are in Ohio and Michigan, with single members...

 and the Central Collegiate Hockey Association
Central Collegiate Hockey Association
The Central Collegiate Hockey Association is a NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey college athletic conference that operates mostly in Michigan and Ohio, although it also has members in Alaska and Indiana. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. It holds its championship...

. BGSU is one of only 13 universities in the nation that plays Division I FBS football and Division I ice hockey. The Falcons have won three consecutive conference championships in women's basketball in 2005, 2006, and 2007. The women's soccer team captured the conference crown. The Falcons' main rivals are the Toledo
University of Toledo
The University of Toledo is a public university in Toledo, Ohio, United States. The Carnegie Foundation classified the university as "Doctoral/Research Extensive."-National recognition:...

 Rockets
Toledo Rockets
The Toledo Rockets are the athletic teams that represent the University of Toledo. The Rockets are a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision team in the National Collegiate Athletic Association and play in the Mid-American Conference . The school's colors are midnight blue and gold.Toledo's...

; separated by just 20 miles (32 km) of Interstate 75
Interstate 75
Interstate 75 is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. It travels from State Road 826 and State Road 924 in Hialeah, Florida to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, at the Ontario, Canada, border...

 in northwestern Ohio, the two schools celebrate a heated rivalry in several sports. The best known of these games is the annual football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

 game, known as the Battle of I-75. The winner now takes home a bronzed I-75 road sign. The winner used to take home the Peace Pipe
Peace Pipe (college football)
In college football, the Peace Pipe is a trophy awarded annually to the winner of the game between the University of Toledo and Bowling Green State University...

, a Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...

 peace pipe placed upon a wood tablet.

The 1984 Falcons hockey team defeated Minnesota-Duluth in the longest college hockey championship game in history, to win the NCAA National Championship, Bowling Green's first and only Division I national championship.

Sports

The Falcons currently compete in seventeen sports at the NCAA Division I level:
Men's intercollegiate athletic teams
  • Baseball
    Baseball
    Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

  • Basketball
    Basketball
    Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

  • Cross Country
    Cross country running
    Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...

  • Football
    American football
    American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

  • Golf
    Golf
    Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

  • Ice Hockey
    Ice hockey
    Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

  • Soccer


Women's intercollegiate athletic teams
  • Basketball
    Basketball
    Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

  • Cross Country
    Cross country running
    Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...

  • Golf
    Golf
    Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

  • Gymnastics
    Gymnastics
    Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...

  • Soccer
  • Softball
    Softball
    Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...

  • Swimming
    Swimming (sport)
    Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...

  • Tennis
    Tennis
    Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

  • Track & Field
  • Volleyball
    Volleyball
    Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...



Football

The Bowling Green Falcons football team plays at Doyt Perry Stadium
Doyt Perry Stadium
Doyt L. Perry Stadium is a stadium in Bowling Green, Ohio, United States. It is primarily used for American football, and is the home field of the Bowling Green State University Falcons. It opened in 1966 and originally held 23,232 people. Recent renovations and new NCAA seating regulations have...

 on the east end of the BGSU campus. The Falcons are a historical MAC powerhouse winning ten conference championships, second only to rival Miami (Ohio)
Miami RedHawks football
The Miami University RedHawks, known as the Miami Redskins before 1996, are a NCAA Division I FBS college football program that competes in the Mid-American Conference...

 (13). Bowling Green has three prominent rivals including Miami (Ohio) and Kent State
Kent State Golden Flashes football
The Kent State Golden Flashes football team is a varsity intercollegiate athletic team of Kent State University in Kent, Ohio, USA. The team is a member of the Mid-American Conference East division, which is part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Football Bowl Subdivision...

, but their fiercest rival is Toledo
Toledo Rockets football
The Toledo Rockets football team is a college football program in Division I FBS, representing the University of Toledo. The Rockets compete in the Mid-American Conference. Toledo began playing football in 1917, although it did not field teams in 1931, and 1943-1945. Since the inception of the AP...

, with the two competing in the Battle of I-75 with the game's winner taking home the Peace Pipe trophy
Peace Pipe (college football)
In college football, the Peace Pipe is a trophy awarded annually to the winner of the game between the University of Toledo and Bowling Green State University...

. The Falcons and Kent State also compete for the Anniversary Award
Battle for the Anniversary Award
The Battle for the Anniversary Award is an annual college football rivalry between Bowling Green State University and Kent State University. The winner of each game is awarded the Anniversary Award. The Anniversary Award was created by each of the schools' alumni departments and commemorates the...

 which commemorates the two institutions' founding in 1910 with the passing of the Lowry bill
Lowry bill
The Lowry Bill, also known as the Lowry Act and the Lowry Normal School Bill, was a bill introduced in 1910 in the Ohio state legislature which called for the establishment of two state normal schools in northern Ohio, one in the northeast and one in the northwest. It was named after its main...

. Famous Falcon football players include Kory Lichtensteiger
Kory Lichtensteiger
Kory Adam Lichtensteiger is an American football center currently playing for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the fourth round of the 2008 NFL Draft...

, Shaun Suisham
Shaun Suisham
Shaun Christopher Suisham is a Canadian placekicker of American football for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League . He was signed by the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2005...

 and Don Nehlen
Don Nehlen
Don Nehlen is a former American football player and coach. He was head football coach at Bowling Green State University and at West Virginia University . Nehlen retired from coaching college football in 2001 with a career record of 202–128–8 and as the 17th winningest coach in...

 (who would also become head football coach at Bowling Green). Notable Bowling Green coaches include College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...

 members Doyt Perry
Doyt Perry
-External links:* , WBGU-PBS documentary...

 and Don Nehlen
Don Nehlen
Don Nehlen is a former American football player and coach. He was head football coach at Bowling Green State University and at West Virginia University . Nehlen retired from coaching college football in 2001 with a career record of 202–128–8 and as the 17th winningest coach in...

, as well as notable Florida
Florida Gators football
The Florida Gators football team represents the University of Florida in the sport of American football. The Florida Gators compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletics Association and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference...

 coach Urban Meyer
Urban Meyer
Urban Frank Meyer, III is an American football coach and former player. He is head football coach at Ohio State University, having been hired for the position in November 2011...

.
  • MAC titles: 1956, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1982, 1985, 1991, 1992
  • MAC East division titles: 2007
  • MAC West division titles: 2003
  • NWOIAA titles: 1921, 1922, 1925, 1928, 1929
  • National titles: 1959
  • Undefeated seasons: 1928, 1956, 1959
  • Bowl appearances: 1982, 1985, 1991, 1992, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2009

Men's basketball

  • MAC titles: 1959, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1981, 1983, 1997, 2000, 2009
  • MAC East division titles: 2000, 2009
  • NCAA Tournament appearances: 1959, 1962, 1963, 1968
  • NIT
    National Invitation Tournament
    The National Invitation Tournament is a men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. There are two NIT events each season. The first, played in November and known as the Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off , was founded in 1985...

     appearances
    : 1944, 1945, 1946, 1948, 1949, 1954, 1980, 1983, 1990, 1991, 1997, 2000, 2002, 2009
  • NIT Runner-up: 1945
  • NIT 3rd place: 1949

Women's basketball

The Bowling Green Falcons women's basketball team has had a long standing tradition of success, rivaling only the school's football team as the most prominent athletic team at the university. The women's basketball team has won ten conference tournaments
Mid-American Conference Women's Basketball Tournament
The Mid-American Conference Women's Basketball Tournament is the postseason single-elimination tournament for the NCAA Division I Mid-American Conference . The winner of the tournament receives the MAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship...

, eleven regular season championships and five division championships. The women's basketball team has made the NCAA tournament nine times and the AIAW tournament
Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women
The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women was founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics in the United States and to administer national championships. It evolved out of the Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics for Women . The association was one of the biggest...

 (the predecessor to the NCAA tournament) twice, posting an overall tournament record of 6-12. The 2006-07 team became the first women's basketball team from the MAC to reach the Sweet Sixteen after defeating 10th-seeded Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Oklahoma State Cowboys are the athletic teams that represent Oklahoma State University. Their mascot is a cowboy named Pistol Pete. Oklahoma State participates in the NCAA's Division I-A and in the Big 12 Conference's South Division. The university's current athletic director is Mike Holder...

 70–60 and upset 2nd-seeded Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt Commodores
The Vanderbilt Commodores are the NCAA athletic teams of Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee. The university fields 16 varsity teams , 14 of which compete in the Southeastern Conference...

 60–59.

The current head coach of the Falcons is Curt Miller, who has over 200 wins record in 10 season as head coach. Miller has also lead the Falcons to five conference tournament championships and six consecutive regular season championships (2005–10).
  • MAC titles: 1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
  • MAC Tournament titles: 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2011
  • NCAA Tournament
    NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship
    The NCAA Women's Division I Championship is an annual college basketball tournament for women. Held each April, the Women's Championship was inaugurated in the 1981–82 season...

     appearances
    : 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2011
  • NCAA Sweet Sixteen: 2007
  • WNIT
    WNIT
    WNIT is the PBS member television station for South Bend, Indiana. Its studios are located in South Bend. WNIT broadcasts on digital channel 35 ....

     appearances
    : 1998, 2008, 2009
  • AIAW Tournament
    Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women
    The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women was founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics in the United States and to administer national championships. It evolved out of the Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics for Women . The association was one of the biggest...

     appearances
    : 1974, 1975

Ice hockey

The Bowling Green Falcons men's ice hockey team is the only athletic program at Bowling Green State University to win a national title, coming during the 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament in Lake Placid, New York
Lake Placid, New York
Lake Placid is a village in the Adirondack Mountains in Essex County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a population of 2,638....

. The Falcons defeated Minnesota-Duluth 5–4 in the fourth overtime. The game is the longest NCAA ice hockey game ever played. The game was broadcasted on WBGU, called by John Bowers. John is now with the Cleveland Indians. Prominent coaches Ron Mason
Ron Mason
Ron Mason is a Canadian former ice hockey player, head coach and university executive. As head coach of various universities, notably including Michigan State University , he became the winningest ice hockey coach in NCAA history with 924 career wins...

 and Jerry York
Jerry York
Jerry York is the Men's Hockey Coach at Boston College. He graduated from Boston College High School in 1963 and BC in 1967. York is currently the winningest active coach in NCAA hockey, and is 2nd on the all-time list with 889 wins behind retired Coach Ron Mason...

 spent time as head coaches at Bowling Green before leaving for very successful stints at Michigan State
Michigan State Spartans men's ice hockey
The Michigan State Spartans men's ice hockey team is the college ice hockey team that represents Michigan State University . The team plays at the Munn Ice Arena in East Lansing, Michigan, on the MSU campus. The current head coach is Tom Anastos, who took over coaching duties on March 23, 2011,...

 and Boston College
Boston College Eagles ice hockey
The Boston College Eagles are a Division I college hockey program that represent Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The team has competed in Hockey East since 1984, having previously played in the ECAC. The Eagles have won four national championships and the most current coming in 2010...

 respectively.

The Falcons are currently coached by first year head coach and former Miami RedHawks
Miami RedHawks men's ice hockey
The Miami RedHawks men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I college ice hockey program that represents Miami University. The RedHawks are a member of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association...

 assistant coach and player, Chris Bergeron
Chris Bergeron
Chris Bergeron is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey center who played for various minor league teams for 7 seasons between 1993 and 2000, with the most stints with the Toledo Storm and Cincinnati Cyclones...

. He replaced interim head coach Denis Williams who took over for Scott Paluch for the 2009-10 season. Paluch had been the Falcons head coach from the 2002-03 season through the 2008-09 season, replacing Buddy Powers
Buddy Powers
Francis "Buddy" Powers is the current assistant coach for the Boston University men's ice hockey team. He is the former Ice Arena Director for the BGSU Ice Arena and play by play commentator for the Bowling Green Ice Hockey on The Buckeye Cable Sports Network....

. Over seven seasons, Paluch posted a record of 84-156-23 (.363), with his best season coming during the 2004-05 season in which the Falcons finished in 5th place in the CCHA with a 16-16-4 record. Under Paluch, the Falcons only got past the CCHA Tournament First Round once, defeating Lake Superior
Lake Superior State University
Lake Superior State University is a small public university in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. It is Michigan's smallest public university with an enrollment around 3,000 students. Due to its proximity to the border, notably the twin city of Sault Ste...

 2 games to 1, before falling to Miami (Ohio)
Miami RedHawks
Miami University, in Oxford, Ohio, features 18 different varsity level sports teams for men and women, all of which are known as the Miami RedHawks...

 2 games to 0 in the CCHA Quarterfinals.
  • CCHA titles: 1976, 1978, 1979, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1987
  • CCHA tournament titles: 1973, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1988
  • NCAA Tournament
    NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship
    The annual NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship tournament determines the top men's ice hockey team in NCAA Division I and Division III. The semi-finals and finals of the Division I Championship are branded as the Frozen Four, a passing nod to the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship - known...

     appearances
    : 1977, 1978, 1979, 1982, 1984, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990
  • National titles: 1984
  • Frozen Four appearances: 1978, 1984

Doyt Perry Stadium

Doyt Perry Stadium is home to Bowling Green's football team. Named in honor of former football coach Doyt Perry
Doyt Perry
-External links:* , WBGU-PBS documentary...

, the stadium was opened in 1966 replacing University Stadium. Through 37 seasons, the Bowling Green Falcons enjoyed an impressive 126-58-6 record at Doyt Perry Stadium. The stadium underwent a renovation in 1982 to expand its seating capacity from 23,272 to 30,599. The stadium and MAC attendance record was set in 1983 when 33,527 fans saw Toledo defeat Bowling Green 6–3 in the annual Battle of I-75. The Doyt hosted its first Big Ten
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...

 opponent on September 6, 2008 as the Falcons were defeated by Minnesota
2008 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team
The 2008 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team was the second under head coach Tim Brewster. They began play on August 30, 2008 at home against Northern Illinois from the Mid-American Conference, and finished the regular season against Iowa, on November 22. It was the Golden Gophers' final...

 42–17. The Sebo Athletic Center opened in 2007 and is located at the north end of Doyt Perry Stadium. The 33,500 sq. ft. center was named after J. Robert and Karen Sebo who donated $4.4 million to the project. Sebo Athletic Center is home to sports medicine and rehabilitation centers, strength and training facilities, coaches offices, teaching space for coaches and players, video equipment and viewing room and team meeting rooms.

Stroh Center

The Bowling Green basketball teams and volleyball team will move into a new, state-of-the art convocation center in 2011, replacing the aging Anderson Arena
Anderson Arena
Anderson Arena is a 4,700-seat indoor arena that sits in Memorial Hall on the campus of Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio and is currently home to the Bowling Green Falcons women's gymnastics team. The arena, which opened in 1960, served as the home arena for Bowling Green's...

. The new 5,000-seat facility will be named the Stroh Center, after Kermit and Mary Lu Stroh who donated $7.7 million to the project. The Stroh Center will also be home to the largest falcon statue in the world, a gift from North Carolina philanthropist Irwin Belk. The university broke ground on the Stroh Center on September 3, 2009, a few hours prior to the football team's season opener at nearby Doyt Perry Stadium.

BGSU Ice Arena

BGSU Ice Arena is home to Bowling Green's men's hockey team. Opened in 1967, the arena is located on the east end of campus across from the Student Recreation Center. The University had planned to renovate the arena in 2009, but has since postponed the upgrades due to the current economic situation.

Steller Field

Warren E. Steller Field has been home to the Falcons baseball team since 1964. The field is named in honor of Warren E. Steller, a former instructor at the school who coached the school's football (1924–34) and baseball (1925, 1928–59) teams. The stadium is located on the Bowling Green campus, next to BGSU Ice Arena
BGSU Ice Arena
The Bowling Green State University Ice Arena is a 5,000-seat hockey arena in Bowling Green, Ohio. It is home to the BGSU Falcons ice hockey team of the CCHA. It was built from 1965 to 1967 for a cost of $1.8 million and opened in February 1967...

 and across the street from Perry Field House.

Other Facilities

Mickey Cochrane Stadium is home to the Bowling Green's men's and women's soccer teams. Opened in 1966, the stadium was renamed on October 11, 1980 in honor of Bowling Green's first men's soccer coach. The stadium was renovated in 1993 and 1994, which included the installation of a permanent grandstand that seats 1,500. Cochrane Stadium is also home to the United States Youth Soccer Association's Olympic Development Program Region II camps. The stadium, which is located behind BGSU Ice Arena, has been listed as one of the finest pitches in the Midwestern United States.

Cooper Pool is home to Bowling Green's women's swimming and diving team. Cooper Pool is located in the Student Recreation Center on the east end of campus.

Whittaker Track is home to Bowling Green's women's track and field team. Located northeast of Doyt Perry Stadium, Whittaker Track underwent a renovation in 2007 and was reopened in 2008 in time to host the MAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

College Park Rugby Field is home to the Bowling Green State University Rugby Football Club. Located on the northwest corner of campus at the corners of North College and Poe Road. It is one of the few dedicated collegiate rugby pitches in the United States. It has grandstand seating for 150, an electronic scoreboard, an onsite changing room and parking for 100 cars

National Championships

  • Figure Skating
    Figure skating
    Figure skating is an Olympic sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform spins, jumps, footwork and other intricate and challenging moves on ice skates. Figure skaters compete at various levels from beginner up to the Olympic level , and at local, national, and international competitions...

    -
    • USCFS Championship
      United States Collegiate Figure Skating Championships
      The United States Collegiate Figure Skating Championships are a collegiate figure skating competition sanctioned by U.S. Figure Skating. It is the highest level at which figure skating takes place at the college level in the United States. The event has been held since 1986...

       Alissa Czisny
      Alissa Czisny
      Alissa Czisny is an American figure skater. She is the 2010–2011 Grand Prix Final champion, two-time U.S. national champion, the 2007 U.S...

       2004, 2008
  • Football
    College football
    College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

    -
    • National titles: 1959
  • Ice hockey
    Ice hockey
    Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

     -
    • 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament

Notable Falcon Athletes

Several notable athletes have played collegiately for Bowling Green, among the most memorable is NBA legend Nate Thurmond
Nate Thurmond
Nathaniel "Nate" Thurmond is a retired American basketball player. Dominant at both center and power forward, he was a seven-time All-Star and the first player in NBA history to record a quadruple-double....

. Thurmond, whose number 42 is the only basketball number retired by the university, graduated in 1963 before eventually being named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. Bowling Green also was the collegiate home to one of the NBA's first ever draft picks, Chuck Share
Chuck Share
Chuck Share is a retired American basketball player. He was the first draft pick in NBA history, being selected by the Boston Celtics as the number one pick in 1950. Share never played for the Celtics, and started his career with the Fort Wayne Pistons and played nine years, playing for the...

, who was selected by the Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...

 in the 1950 NBA Draft. Current NBA players Antonio Daniels
Antonio Daniels
Antonio Robert Daniels is an American professional basketball player. He most recently played for the Philadelphia 76ers.-Career:...

 and Keith McLeod
Keith McLeod
Keith McLeod is an American professional basketball player, who plays point guard for the Canton Charge of the NBA Development League. He is 6' 2" tall...

 also played at BGSU.

BGSU's hockey team perhaps has provided the school with the greatest number of notable athletes. Two of its players were on the "Miracle on Ice
Miracle on Ice
The "Miracle on Ice" is the name in American popular culture for a medal-round men's ice hockey game during the 1980 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid, New York, on Friday, February 22...

" U.S. hockey team that captured the 1980 Winter Olympics
1980 Winter Olympics
The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIII Olympic Winter Games, was a multi-sport event which was celebrated from 13 February through 24 February 1980 in Lake Placid, New York, United States of America. This was the second time the Upstate New York village hosted the Games, after 1932...

 gold medal: Ken Morrow
Ken Morrow
Kenneth Arlington Morrow is a retired American professional ice hockey defenseman and currently serves as the New York Islanders' director of pro scouting...

 and Mark Wells
Mark Wells
Mark Ronald Wells is a retired American ice hockey forward. He is best known for being a member of the Miracle on Ice 1980 U.S...

. Rob Blake
Rob Blake
Robert Bowlby Blake is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player. He was originally drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in 1988, appearing in the 1993 Stanley Cup Finals, winning the James Norris Memorial Trophy and serving as team captain for five seasons in his initial 11 season-stint with...

 also captured a gold medal for his country as Canada took up the top prize during the 2002 Winter Olympics
2002 Winter Olympics
The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...

. Two Falcons have also won the Hobey Baker award, given to the top collegiate hockey player each season: George McPhee
George McPhee
George McPhee is the general manager of the National Hockey League's Washington Capitals as well as the team's alternate governor and vice president...

 (1982) and Brian Holzinger
Brian Holzinger
Brian Alan Holzinger is a retired American professional ice hockey center. He played in the National Hockey League with the Buffalo Sabres, Tampa Bay Lightning, Pittsburgh Penguins and the Columbus Blue Jackets.-Playing career:...

 (1995). In 1984 the Bowling Green Hockey Team won the National Championship in one of the longest games in college hockey history. Geno Cavillini scored at 7:11 in the 4th overtime to give the Falcons their first college hockey national championship. Also advancing to the NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

 was current Atlanta Thrashers
Atlanta Thrashers
The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League on June 25, 1997, and became the league's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 NHL season...

 defenseman Ken Klee
Ken Klee
Kenneth Robert Klee is a retired American professional ice hockey defenseman who played most notably with the Washington Capitals in the National Hockey League.-Playing career:...

.

Omar Jacobs
Omar Jacobs
Omar T. Jacobs is an American football quarterback, who is currently a member of the Jacksonville Sharks of the Arena Football League. He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the fifth round of the 2006 NFL Draft...

 became a household name to college football fans during his two years of starting for the Falcons. As the starting quarterback in 2004, he passed for 4,002 yards and set the NCAA record for TD to INT rate, at 41 touchdowns to 4 interceptions. He entered the 2005 season on the Heisman radar nationwide, but he didn't have as good of a season as 2004, and he missed two starts due to injury.

Don Nehlen
Don Nehlen
Don Nehlen is a former American football player and coach. He was head football coach at Bowling Green State University and at West Virginia University . Nehlen retired from coaching college football in 2001 with a career record of 202–128–8 and as the 17th winningest coach in...

 is perhaps one of the more memorable Falcon football players and coaches. He played quarterback for BG during his playing days before coaching the Falcons for nine seasons from 1968-1976. Nehlen went on to coach West Virginia University
West Virginia University
West Virginia University is a public research university in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Other campuses include: West Virginia University at Parkersburg in Parkersburg; West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery; Potomac State College of West Virginia University in Keyser;...

 where he would receive national attention. The legendary coach joined the College Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move...

 in 2005. Doyt Perry
Doyt Perry
-External links:* , WBGU-PBS documentary...

 is another Hall of Fame coach who led the Falcons from 1955 through 1964. The university's football stadium
Doyt Perry Stadium
Doyt L. Perry Stadium is a stadium in Bowling Green, Ohio, United States. It is primarily used for American football, and is the home field of the Bowling Green State University Falcons. It opened in 1966 and originally held 23,232 people. Recent renovations and new NCAA seating regulations have...

 is now named in his honor. More recently, Urban Meyer
Urban Meyer
Urban Frank Meyer, III is an American football coach and former player. He is head football coach at Ohio State University, having been hired for the position in November 2011...

 coached the Falcons for two seasons in 2001 and 2002 before leaving for the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...

. Meyer is the former head coach at the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...

, which he led to victory in the BCS National Championship in 2007 and 2009.

Club Sports

Students at Bowling Green also have the opportunity to participating and compete in various sports at the club level. Club sports do not offer scholarships that varsity sports offer and are operated by the Department of Student Life.

  • Baseball
    Baseball
    Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

  • Bowling
    Bowling
    Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...

  • Curling
    Curling
    Curling is a sport in which players slide stones across a sheet of ice towards a target area. It is related to bowls, boule and shuffleboard. Two teams, each of four players, take turns sliding heavy, polished granite stones, also called "rocks", across the ice curling sheet towards the house, a...

  • Cycling
    Cycling
    Cycling, also called bicycling or biking, is the use of bicycles for transport, recreation, or for sport. Persons engaged in cycling are cyclists or bicyclists...

  • Dodgeball
    Dodgeball
    Dodgeball is any of a variety of games in which players try to hit other players on the opposing team with balls while avoiding being hit themselves. This article is about a well-known form of team sport with modified rules that is often played in physical education classes and has been featured...

  • Equestrian
    Equestrianism
    Equestrianism more often known as riding, horseback riding or horse riding refers to the skill of riding, driving, or vaulting with horses...

  • Gymnastics
    Gymnastics
    Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...

     M/W
  • Ice hockey
    Ice hockey
    Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

  • Synchronized Ice Skating
    Ice skating
    Ice skating is moving on ice by using ice skates. It can be done for a variety of reasons, including leisure, traveling, and various sports. Ice skating occurs both on specially prepared indoor and outdoor tracks, as well as on naturally occurring bodies of frozen water, such as lakes and...

  • Lacrosse
    Lacrosse
    Lacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...

  • Rugby
    Rugby football
    Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...

     M/W


  • Sailing
    Sailing
    Sailing is the propulsion of a vehicle and the control of its movement with large foils called sails. By changing the rigging, rudder, and sometimes the keel or centre board, a sailor manages the force of the wind on the sails in order to move the boat relative to its surrounding medium and...

  • Soccer M/W
  • Softball
    Softball
    Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...

  • Tennis
    Tennis
    Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

     M/W
  • Track & Field M/W
  • Ultimate Frisbee M/W
  • Volleyball
    Volleyball
    Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...

     M/W
  • Water Polo
    Water polo
    Water polo is a team water sport. The playing team consists of six field players and one goalkeeper. The winner of the game is the team that scores more goals. Game play involves swimming, treading water , players passing the ball while being defended by opponents, and scoring by throwing into a...

  • Water Skiing
    Water skiing
    thumb|right|A slalom skier making a turn on a slalom waterski.Waterskiing is a sport where an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation on a body of water, skimming the surface.-History:...

  • Wrestling
    Wrestling
    Wrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...



Rugby

The Bowling Green State University Rugby Football Club is known as one of the top ten most prominent collegiate RFCs in the United States. Established in 1968, the club has five clubs of over 80 members and averages nine wins for every loss. BGSU RFC became the first athletic program (varsity or club) to compete outside of North America, touring England (1987, 1995), Wales (2000), South Africa (2002, 2007) and Ireland (2005). The club is scheduled to tour England again in 2012.

BGSU RFC has won 28 consecutive Mid American Conference titles, eleven Ohio Collegiate titles, eleven Michigan Collegiate titles and has received nine National Collegiate Championship bids. BGSU RFC plays their home matches on the College Park Rugby Field on the corner of North College Ave. and Poe Road. Bowling Green has an all-time record of 1771-369-83. Six Falcons have received All-American honors including: Chuck Tunnacliffe (1986), Tony Konczak (1988), Wes Harmon (1991), Scott Hogg (2003) and Rich Hines and Nick Viviani (2008). Two Falcons have seen call ups to United States national rugby union team
United States national rugby union team
USA Rugby's men's national rugby union team, nicknamed the Eagles, represents the United States in the sport of rugby union. The Eagles are currently ranked 17th by the IRB World Rankings. Their highest ranking was from November 2, 2006 – September 10, 2007 at the 14th position...

 the Eagles by Tunnacliffe in 1991 and Vince Staropoli in 1999.

The Falcons

Before 1927, BG teams were called the Normals or Teachers. Ivan Lake (’23) suggested the nickname after reading an article on falconry
Falconry
Falconry is "the taking of wild quarry in its natural state and habitat by means of a trained raptor". There are two traditional terms used to describe a person involved in falconry: a falconer flies a falcon; an austringer flies a hawk or an eagle...

. Lake, managing editor and sports editor of the Sentinel-Tribune in Bowling Green at the time, proposed the name change because it fit headline space and because falcons were “the most powerful bird for their size and often attacked birds two or three times their size.”

Bowling Green's athletic teams have been known as the "Falcons" ever since.

School colors

The historical story behind how BGSU began using Brown and Orange as its school colors dates back to 1914.

Dr. Homer B. Williams, the university's first President, gathered a group of people which included a Dr. L.L. Winslow from Industrial Arts as a selection committee for the school's new colors. While on an a trolley to Toledo, Dr. Winslow sat behind a woman wearing a large hat adorned with beautiful brown and orange feathers. Dr. Winslow was so interested in the color scheme of the pair that he convinced the committee to approve the combination of Brown and Orange.

School songs

Bowling Green State University has three common songs that can be heard being played by the Falcon Marching Band
Falcon Marching Band
The Falcon Marching Band is the marching band of Bowling Green State University. It features a symphonic sound and chair step marching that rivals bands of larger conferences. Under the direction of Dr. Carol Hayward, the 275 member marching band is the largest student organization on campus...

 at various athletic and academic events. These three songs are the Alma Mater, "Forward Falcons" which is the school's fight song, and "Ay Ziggy Zoomba" which is played to hype up the crowd at events, which is more familiar to most students, alumni, and fans.

Forward Falcons

Forward Falcons,

Forward Falcons,

Fight for victory.



Show our spirit,

make them fear it,

Fight for dear Bee Gee.



Forward Falcons,

Forward Falcons,

Make the contest keen.

Hold up the fame

of our mighty name,

and win for Bowling Green

Ay Ziggy Zoomba

Ay Ziggy Zoomba Zoomba Zoomba

Ay Ziggy Zoomba Zoomba Ze

Ay Ziggy Zoomba Zoomba Zoomba

Ay Ziggy Zoomba Zoomba Ze

Roll along you BG warriors

Roll along and win for BGSU!

Freddie and Frieda Falcon

Freddie and Frieda Falcon are the mascots for Falcons athletics. The pair are anthropomorphized
Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...

 Peregrine Falcon
Peregrine Falcon
The Peregrine Falcon , also known as the Peregrine, and historically as the Duck Hawk in North America, is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-gray back, barred white underparts, and a black head and "moustache"...

s. They are somewhat of a rarity among collegiate mascots, being one of the few male-female mascot pairs in existence. In 2006 they were both named “Best Collegiate Mascot” at the 2006 NCA Cheer Camp in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

 at Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...

. Freddie first appeared at Bowling Green sporting events in 1950. Frieda made her first appearance in 1966, but did not become an official mascot until 1980.

SICSIC

SICSIC are a six member, anonymous pep squad and the official spirit crew for BGSU, which began in 1946. SICSIC members adorn Halloween masks throughout their time with the organization and remain anonymous until the final home basketball game of the member's senior year, where they are unmasked in front of the student body.

BGSU Athletic Hall of Fame

Any former BG student-athlete out of school for at least 10 years, a coach, or a contributor to BGSU athletics is eligible for induction into the BGSU Athletic Hall of Fame. Athletes who leave school early are not eligible to be placed on the ballot until 10 years after what would have been their senior year.
Portraits of each of the over nearly 200 inductees are on display in the lobby of the BGSU Ice Arena.
BG’s 1984 NCAA championship squad was inducted in 1993 as the first “team” ever named to the Hall of Fame.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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