BOWLING GREEN, Ohio — It's the beginning of a new era for men's basketball at Bowling Green State University.
The team is led by a new head coach Todd Simon. He spent the last seven seasons at Southern Utah and said he's excited for the opportunity to coach the Falcons.
"It's been a fun ride," Simon said. "We're putting all the pieces together. That's our challenge with 10 new bodies, new system across the board. The team-building aspect has been a lot of fun. This group has really bonded."
Players said the last few months under Simon have been encouraging.
"He lets you be the best version of yourself," returning senior Sam Towns said. "He'll get on you, but he wants to win. That's the biggest part. He's a winner, and that's exactly what we need at Bowling Green to lead us in this charge, is a winner."
And there are tons of new faces to get used to. 10 out of 14 players on the roster are new to the program, but Simon and the players said they're gelling quickly.
"It starts with the recruiting process," Simon said. "Getting the right people in that locker room. It's part of what we do. I think a strength of ours is getting people to play hard and play for each other. The X's and O's fall where they may after that."
Rashaun Agee is one of the four faces returning from last year and said the players' personalities work well together.
"We all have our individual ways of learning to click with each other," said Agee. "It's the emotional connection and the goofiness that helps us get together."
The team is ready to prove to the rest of their conference that they're better than the sixth-place finish the coaches voted them.
"At the end of the day, there's 40 on the clock and you got to beat your opponent," Simon said. "And we've got to do that 31 times."
Agee said he's excited to show what the Falcons are capable of doing on the court.
"Totally different team," Agee said. "Totally different BGSU. We're going to let y'all see it."
BGSU's season tipped off their season on Monday with a win over Chicago State at the Stroh Center.
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