Former Eastern football head coach Dino Babers has accepted the same position at Bowling Green State University.

Babers, who won two straight Ohio Valley Conference titles and led the Panthers to their first postseason win since 1989 this season, was hired by Bowling Green with one year left on his three-year deal at Eastern.

The Panthers went 19-7 overall under Babers and 14-1 in the OVC. Babers also was at the helm this season, when Eastern won 11 regular-season games for the first time in school history. The Panthers finished 2013 with a 12-2 record.

Bowling Green lost its former head coach Dave Clawson, after he went to Wake Forest earlier this month. Clawson became the head coach at Bowling Green in 2009.

The Falcons finished their season at 10-3 and are coming off a 47-27 win over Northern Illinois in the Mid-American Conference championship game.

“I am honored and excited to join the Falcon family,” Babers said in a press release. “BGSU has great facilities and the fans are proving, most recently through ticket sales for this year’s bowl game, that their support of BGSU football is among the best in the MAC.”

Bowling Green will be playing in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl on Dec. 26 against Pittsburgh.

“I want to thank the Eastern Illinois players and fans for their support the last two years, especially President Perry and Barbara Burke,” Babers said.

 Eastern’s athletic director Barbara Burke thanked Babers in a press release.

 “Coach Babers and his staff brought an exciting brand of football to Charleston, winning consecutive Ohio Valley Conference Championships,” Burke said. “While we hate to lose him as our head coach, we do understand that this is part of the collegiate coaching business and coaches move on to other opportunities.”

Babers’ three-year contract at Eastern totaled $510,000 with a base salary of $170,000 per year plus incentives. The terms of Babers’ contract at Bowling Green have not yet been disclosed.

Clawson’s most recent contract at Bowling Green had a base salary of $375,000.

Burke said Eastern would begin its search for a new coach in the coming days.

Aldo Soto can be reached at 581-2812 or asoto2@eiu.edu