In Scot Loeffler’s first three seasons as the head coach of Bowling Green, the Falcons were underwhelming, going 7-22.
But after that, Bowling Green has been a solid MAC program, appearing in three consecutive bowl games. But that success has led to new opportunities for Loeffler. He is leaving Bowling Green to become the quarterbacks coach for the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles.
Loeffler is a great addition for the Eagles. He’s been an incredibly successful offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, having worked with the likes of Tom Brady, Tim Tebow, and other eventual NFL passers.
He was an offensive coordinator and QBs coach at Boston College (2016-18), Virginia Tech (2013-15), Auburn (2012), and Temple (2011). Before that, he worked with QBs at Florida (2009-10), Michigan (2002-07), and Central Michigan (2000-01) as well as with the Detroit Lions in 2008.
But where does this leave BGSU? The Falcons were 7-6 and were close to reaching the MAC Championship last season. They undoubtedly want to continue to be competitive in the conference.
Here’s a look at a few coaches who might be considered as potential next leaders of Bowling Green.
Mercer Head Coach Mike Jacobs
Jacobs knows the area well, has been a head coach, and has been an assistant at the FBS level.
Last season was Jacobs’ first as the head coach of Mercer, which made it to the FCS quarterfinals before losing to eventual national champion North Dakota State. Previously, he was the head coach at Lenoir-Rhyne, which won the SAC and made the Division II playoffs multiple times during his four-year tenure.
Before that, he was the head coach at Notre Dame (Ohio) for four years and helped the program win two MEC Championships as the team reached the Division II semifinals and quarterfinals in his last two years there. He was a defensive line coach (2014) and defensive coordinator (2015) there as well.
He also was an assistant who focused on the defensive line at California (Pennsylvania) from 2008-13 and worked with the offensive line at Wilmington (Ohio). He was also a graduate assistant at Purdue (2005-07) and at Eastern Michigan (2002-03) after his playing career at Ohio State.
Jacobs is reportedly already in the mix to earn the Bowling Green job – and deservingly so.
Bowling Green Co-Defensive Coordinators Sammy Lawanson & Steve Morrison
Among coaches already on BGSU’s staff, Sammy Lawanson and Steve Morrison stand out. Both of them helped BGSU rank in the top four in the MAC in terms of scoring defense (21.6 points per game allowed) and total defense (333.3 yards per game allowed) in 2024.
Lawanson has coached on both sides of the ball and has been at many teams at the pro, FBS, FCS, and high school levels. He’s been a co-defensive coordinator and outside linebackers coach at BGSU since 2023 and focused just on outside linebackers the season prior.
Before that, he worked with linebackers for the DC Defenders (2020), Tulsa (2001-02), and Northern Arizona (2020-21), where he also coached nickelbacks. He was a defensive quality control assistant at Fresno State in 2019 and was at Sacramento State before that as a defensive coordinator, linebackers coach, and safeties coach (2016-18) and a running backs coach (2014-15). He was also an assistant at Arizona State, Cal Poly, and at three high schools in Texas.
Morrison was originally hired by the Falcons as an associate head coach and linebackers coach from 2019-22 and has been a co-defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach since then. He was previously a linebackers coach at Syracuse in 2012 before coaching at a couple MAC schools. He was a linebackers coach at Eastern Michigan from 2010-11 and coached the defensive line (2005) and linebackers (2006-07) and was a defensive coordinator (2008-09) at Western Michigan. He was also an assistant at Michigan (2002-04) and at the high school level before that.
Lawanson or Morrison would be good coaches to consider here.
Western Michigan Assistant HC Darren Paige
Darren Paige is among the assistants currently in the MAC who stand out.
Paige has been WMU’s assistant head coach and running backs coach for one year. He helped the Broncos rank third in the conference with 183 rushing yards per game in 2024.
He’s also coached running backs at Army, where he worked with standout players like Kanye Udoh, and at Cincinnati, where he coached NFL draft pick Jerome Ford. He’s also been an assistant at Eastern Michigan and Kent State, so he certainly knows the MAC, as well as at Stony Brook, Holy Cross, and Midwestern State.
Considering Paige would be worthwhile for Bowling Green.
Navy Defensive Pass Game Coordinator Eric Lewis
Eric Lewis, who is currently the defensive passing game coordinator and safeties coach at Navy, would be a great fit.
While at Navy, he’s coached standout players like Rayuan Lane III, who received an invite to this year’s NFL Combine after an outstanding career. And Lewis also has experience at Bowling Green, having been a defensive coordinator and secondary coach there.
In 2022, BGSU set a school record with 38 sacks as star Karl Brooks led the team with 10. The year before, BGSU allowed a MAC-best 373.7 yards per game on defense. Lewis has also been a secondary coach at Buffalo (2014), a DC at Eastern Michigan (2009), and a safeties coach at Ball State (2003-05) so he has plenty of familiarity with not only Bowling Green but the MAC in general.
Lewis, a former player at San Diego State, has also been an assistant at Boston College, Colorado State, Tennessee, Georgia State, Weber State, Louisville, Bucknell, Michigan State, and the Green Bay Packers. He has plenty of experience across the country in a variety of roles and would likely be ready to lead BGSU as its head coach.
Notre Dame Offensive Coordinator Mike Denbrock
Denbrock would make a ton of sense for Bowling Green if he were interested.
Denbrock has coached in the area for years. He’s worked with offensive linemen, tight ends, and wide receivers over the years at Notre Dame, but he’s also coached at a variety of other schools as well. He was LSU’s OC and tight ends coach before this from 2022-23, and was an offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Cincinnati from 2017-21.
Denbrock hasn’t been a head coach at the collegiate level, but he has been an associate head coach, including at Notre Dame from 2015-16 and at Indiana State in 2009. This past season, he helped the Fighting Irish reach the College Football Playoff National Championship.
Denbrock’s name has come up plenty of times when it comes to college football hot seats and potential head coaching hires. If he were open to taking a G5 head coaching job, Bowling Green would make sense.
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Incarnate Word Head Coach Clint Killough
Incarnate Word apparently keeps attracting FBS-level coaches. Eric Morris led Incarnate Word for four years, and now is the head coach at North Texas. Then GJ Kinne took over before becoming Texas State’s head coach.
And now Killough might start to see some consideration for FBS head coaching vacancies. He’s continued the success of Incarnate Word, which is where he played from 2013-15. UIW went 9-2 overall in 2023, with one of its losses being a 28-14 game at UTEP. The team was ranked as highly as No. 4 in the FCS poll. The Cardinals ranked first in the Southland in terms of scoring offense, total offense, scoring defense, and total defense. This past season, UIW was 11-3 overall, reached the FCS quarterfinals, and won the Southland again.
Killough was an associate head coach and wide receivers coach previously at UIW. He began coaching at his alma mater in 2018 as a quality control coach with an emphasis on inside receivers. Killough does have some FBS experience, having been a defensive backs and special teams graduate assistant as well as a WRs GA at Bowling Green.
Killough is an up-and-coming coach who might see some consideration for FBS openings, and with his experience at Bowling Green, he could be a name to watch.
Indiana Defensive Coordinator Bryant Haines
Haines followed Curt Cignetti from James Madison to Indiana, and he has been stellar as the Hoosiers’ DC thus far. In 2024, Indiana allowed the second-fewest yards in the FBS (256.3 per game) and the sixth-fewest points (15.6 per game).
Before his current job, he was instrumental in JMU’s transition to the Sun Belt. He was promoted to DC and linebackers coach after three years as a co-defensive coordinator. In 2023, JMU was in the top 20 in the FBS with 19.5 points per game allowed and the top 30 in the country with 333.8 yards per game allowed.
Before JMU, Haines worked with linebackers under Cignetti at Elon and was a linebackers coach at UC Davis before that in 2016. Haines knows defense and the region, so Bowling Green might want to consider hiring him.
