Bowling Green State University’s men’s soccer program is entering the 2026 season with a markedly different outlook after a 2025 campaign that ended with a 5‑8‑4 record and a second‑to‑last finish in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Rebuilding the Roster
The Falcons lost 12 players, including star forwards Trace Terry and Bennett Painter, who have each moved on to professional and collegiate programs elsewhere. Their combined 15 goals from the previous season accounted for more than 90 percent of the team’s scoring, leaving a sizable void in the attack.
Coach Eric Nichols, now in his 18th year at Bowling Green, has assembled a roster heavy with freshmen and a single sophomore, while relying on experienced returnees such as goalkeeper Jason Ball, Enzo Gil and senior midfielder Mads Christensen. Assistant coach Ryan James has departed, making way for Jonathon “Finny” Sayer to join the staff.
Key Players and Emerging Threats
Sophomore forward Tyson McCoy is expected to shoulder the goal‑scoring burden after netting two goals in a spring match against Ohio State, while redshirt freshman defender Diego Ramirez is slated to anchor a revamped backline. Senior defender Saul Rios remains the only returning scorer from last season, having found the net once against Belmont.
The non‑conference schedule features home fixtures against Wright State, Wake Forest and DePaul, as well as road trips to Duquesne, IU Indy, Xavier, Milwaukee and Mercyhurst between August 23 and September 19. Exhibition games will take the team to Indiana to face Bennett Painter’s Hoosiers on August 10, and to Detroit Mercy, Purdue Fort Wayne and the University of Detroit Mercy before the regular season begins.
Bowling Green will open MVC play on September 25 against Western Michigan and will face a slate of opponents that includes Drake, Belmont, Bradley, Evansville and UIC. The team’s only back‑to‑back conference stretch involves matches against Bradley, Drake and Evansville, a sequence that could test the squad’s depth early in the league campaign.
Despite ranking 137th nationally in strength of schedule — the second‑easiest in the MVC — the Falcons are poised to prove that a youthful roster can compete. With a mix of seasoned leaders and promising newcomers, the program hopes to turn the page from the Terry‑Painter era and build a sustainable foundation for future success.