Bowling Green prepares for year two of the Eddie George era, and it will involve a complete overhaul from a coordinator perspective.
The Falcons already promoted offensive line coach/co-offensive coordinator Greg Nosal to a full-time gig as the offensive coordinator in December. In February, the team determined their defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator for the 2026 season.
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Similar to the offensive coordinator role, Bowling Green also handled its defensive coordinator vacancy by means of an internal hire. Linebackers coach Joe Bowden will serve in that role now, replacing Brandon Fisher who recently departed from the program. Bowden followed Coach George from Tennessee State to Bowling Green last offseason and assisted with a Bowling Green defense which held nine of 12 opponents to 28 or fewer and featured a First Team All-MAC linebacker in Gideon ESPN Lampron. A longtime coach with several stops in the NFL (special teams assistant for St. Louis Rams from 2012-15, inside linebackers coach for San Francisco 49ers from 2016-17), Bowden will operate in an FBS defensive coordinator position for the first time. Prior to his coaching career which launched in 2002, he spent nine years as an NFL linebacker primarily for the Tennessee Titans franchise.
Bowling Green encountered a special teams coordinator when Alex Bayer left for the same position at Syracuse. Replacing Bayer is Greg Froelich, who spent the 2025 season as the special teams quality control coach at Washington. Froelich previously served as a special teams coordinator on Biff Poggi’s staff at Charlotte from 2023-24, and prior to that, he held special teams analyst roles at Illinois and Michigan. He also played offensive line at Michigan from 2013-17.
The Falcons also announced five additional updates to the 2026 coaching staff, assigning secondary coach Richard McNutt another role as the passing game coordinator, bringing back Jack McCarthy as an assistant offensive line coach, promoting special teams quality control coach Zac Garvin to special teams analyst, and hiring assistant strength and conditioning coach Shane Aylward. Lastly, Bowling Green added former quarterback Baron May as an offensive analyst. May started one game vs. Kent State in 2025 and most notably threw a 43-yard touchdown pass in the 2024 68 Ventures Bowl, while disguised as a punter on a trick play.
Bowling Green is fresh off a 4-8 campaign in Eddie George’s first year at the helm, looking for marked improvement in 2026. The Falcons are less than seven months away from their 2026 opener where they host rising FCS power Tarleton State at Doyt Perry Stadium.
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