Sheehan s the man for BG

9/1/2009

BOWLING GREEN Tyler Sheehan s resume reveals plenty about his work history as Bowling Green State University s starting quarterback.

He certainly has the experience.

The 6-foot-3, 225 pounder, has been a constant figure in the offense dating back to his sophomore season. He has started 25 straight games and ranks among the most experienced QBs to ever suit up in a Falcons uniform. In all, he s seen action in 29 contests during his career.

And Sheehan is the kind of player first-year coach Dave Clawson feels comfortable relying on to commence his Mid-American Conference coaching career.

It s very hard to be a good football team without a good quarterback, Clawson said. Our expectation for Tyler is he has his best year ever. He needs to have the best season he s ever had.

It s not a stretch to believe Sheehan will produce his best season to date. Each year he has shown progress and played better than the year before. He has elevated his stature as a MAC quarterback.

The Cincinnati native has passed for 6,066 yards, including 43 touchdowns, during his career. His 65 percent completion percentage stands as a school record. He s coming off a junior campaign in which he completed 66.8 percent of his attempts while throwing for 2,610 yards and 20 touchdowns.

Sheehan, recognized by many as one of college football s top passers heading into the 2009 campaign, enters the season as the Falcons most important player returning from a team that finished 6-6 a year ago.

Yet, the strong-armed senior understands his place and purpose when it comes to the Falcons finding success on offense. He realizes the offense embodies more than just him.

If I have to hand the ball off 50 times a game for us to win, that s what I will do, and I m not going to complain about it, Sheehan said. If I ve got to throw the ball 40 times a game for us to win, I m sure nobody will complain about that either.

The coaches know what we ve got to do to execute a game plan to win games, so we re going to try to do everything within our philosophy to get that done.

Yet, Sheehan s resume will not be complete without a strong finish to an otherwise stellar career. A strong finish would arguably mean contending for the MAC title and taking part in a postseason bowl game.

Considering Sheehan s track record, it seems plausible to think BG s longtime starter has a legitimate shot at meeting such expectations.

Ultimately, time will tell.

Donald Emmons