Bears Homecoming Game Preview
Spirit week is almost over, and you know what that means; it’s time for the annual Homecoming football game here on the BSU campus. The matchup will be the BSU Bears against the Westfield State Owls. Kickoff will be at 4 p.m. on October 21 after the Women’s Soccer game against the Owls, which begins at noon.
Last Homecoming, BSU went on a record-breaking bash of the Fitchburg State Falcons, where they beat them 82-0. Quarterback James Cahoon went on to throw a record-breaking six touchdown passes in the blowout. Also, last season the Bears won convincingly against the Owls 42-7, where Cahoon had 283 passing yards and two touchdowns, while running back Adam Couch had rushed for 167 yards and two scores.
BSU is 31-9 against the Owls all-time, and has won the last ten matchups between the two teams. The last time the Owls won against the Bears was in 2011, and the BSU teams coached by Joe Verria are undefeated against the Owls. The last time the Bears lost Homecoming was in 2017, when they were defeated by Western Connecticut State 27-20.
The Bears are on a four-game winning streak after losing their two non-conference games against MIT and WPI. Coach Verria said, “We learned from mistakes the previous two weeks. And now we’re starting to get it going a little bit.”
For the student-athletes who are seniors and/or on their last year of NCAA eligibility, this will be their last Homecoming game, which includes Team Captain Adam Couch. Couch explained, “Homecoming this year means a lot more than any other year, especially for a lot of guys who are on their last year, whether on their last year of eligibility or lack of schooling left. Because some guys will be able to take a fifth year because of the COVID year, which is what I’m taking right now, and then some people are just finishing up school and not taking their fifth year. so it definitely means a lot of the guys because it is their last time here.”
After Homecoming, the Bears will be going into their toughest stretch of the schedule this season against UMass Dartmouth, Framingham State, and Mass Maritime for the Cranberry Bowl.
