Jaguars and Falcons collide in Camellia Bowl

Dec 20, 2014 - 3:26 PM Montgomery, AL (SportsNetwork.com) - The Bowling Green Falcons will look to get some distance from a lopsided loss in the Mid-American Conference championship game as they prepare to take on the South Alabama Jaguars in the inaugural Raycom Media Camellia Bowl.

Bowling Green finished the season with a 7-6 record after a turbulent start to the campaign. But the Falcons also ended it with a 51-17 loss to Northern Illinois in the MAC championship bout. The Falcons are 4-7 all-time in bowl games, and will be looking for a win in coach Dino Babers' first bowl appearance.

The Camellia, which is designed to pit a member of the MAC and Sun Belt Conference together, is in its first year of existence. It seems fitting then that South Alabama make its first-ever bowl appearance in this event. The Jaguars ended the season at 6-6 with two consecutive losses to South Carolina (37-12) and Navy (42-40) to end the regular season.

It's the inaugural Camellia Bowl and the first-ever bowl appearance for South Alabama, but it's also a first for the meeting of Bowling Green and USA as well.

South Alabama's offense wasn't exceptionally strong this season, but the team managed to get to .500 by averaging 22.1 ppg and 372.8 total offensive ypg. Quarterback Brandon Bridge was the standout for the Jaguars on the offensive side, passing for 1,648 yards and 14 touchdowns against just six interceptions. He also missed multiple games earlier in the year, but still averaged 164.8 passing ypg.

The rushing attack for the Jaguars was spread between a number of different ball carriers. Kendall Houston gained a team-high 659 yards on the ground this season on 133 carries, but it was Jay Jones and Terrance Timmons who each notched a team-best three rushing scores, tied with Bridge for the team lead. As a unit, USA gained 182.6 rushing ypg in 12 contests.

While Jereme Jones (two receiving touchdowns) and Danny Woodson (four receiving touchdowns) were solid targets for Bridge this season, it was Shavarez Smith who stood out in the receiving game for the Jags. Smith tallied 50 receptions for 714 yards and eight scores to lead the team in all three categories.

The defensive effort was a strong one for South Alabama, which allowed 25.8 ppg to opponents in 12 games played. But toward the end of the season when USA lost four of its final five games, the team allowed 45 points, 37 points and 42 points in its final three losses, respectively.

Terrell Brigham notched 101 tackles to lead the team this season, and played well in pass coverage with seven pass breakups and two fumble recoveries. Lineman Theo Rich (12 tackles for loss, eight sacks) will need to be on point up front against a strong Bowling Green run attack. And Montell Garner (two interceptions, eight pass breakups) will be keying in on Knapke and his leading receivers.

"I know it will be a great event for both teams - we're looking forward to participating in it," South Alabama coach Joey Jones said. "Last year we became bowl eligible but didn't quite get in. This year we became bowl eligible and got in. I'm so proud of our players and the sacrifices they've made to have this moment."

Bowling Green's offense suffered some serious injuries to key players this season, and some occurred very early on. Starting quarterback Matt Johnson was forced from the very first game of the season with a hip injury that sidelined him for the year, so James Knapke was thrust under center. And he performed admirably, leading his team with 2,805 passing yards with 13 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Knapke was the field general of an offense that averaged 29.8 ppg this season and 427.8 total offensive ypg. The signal caller also added two rushing scores to his resume.

But it was the run game for the Falcons that generally set the tone offensively. Travis Greene, a preseason all-conference favorite, finished the regular season with 908 rushing yards and a team-best 10 touchdowns on 160 carries in just 11 games played (missed time due to injury). Andre Givens stepped up in Greene's absence, and ended the campaign with 474 yards and eight rushing scores. The Falcons gained 176.2 rushing ypg as a unit.

Bowling Green had to deal with the loss of receiver Chris Gallon (knee injury) for the entire season, but Roger Lewis (956 yards, five touchdowns) and Ronnie Moore (629 yards, five touchdowns) filled in nicely as outlets for Knapke. Ryan Burbrink (719 yards, three touchdowns) stepped up for the Falcons as well.

The defense struggled at times for Bowling Green this year, especially in the final three games of the regular-season schedule, which all resulted in losses for the Falcons. Entering the Camellia Bowl, BGSU allows opponents to score 33.9 ppg and gain 499.6 offensive ypg against the team. Neither of those statistics were helped when the team was run over by Northern Illinois in the MAC championship. The Huskies gained 552 yards, including 334 on the ground, against the Falcons.

Linebacker Gabe Martin led the defensive effort with 110 tackles this season, adding in a team-best 16 tackles for loss with 2.5 sacks, two interceptions and four pass breakups. Brian Sutton is the only other player with more than 100 tackles for the Falcons, stopping 102 total ball carriers with 7.5 tackles for loss and three forced fumbles. Freshmen Nick Johnson (five interceptions) and Clint Stephens (four interceptions) will need to anchor the secondary once again.

"We are honored to be selected to play in the Camellia Bowl," Babers said. "I am excited that our seniors have one more opportunity to take the field and represent Bowling Green State University football on a national stage."