The last time the UB football team squared off against the Ohio University Bobcats was the last time the Bulls found themselves ahead on the scoreboard when time expired in the game.
Last October, Ohio (1-2, 0-1 MAC) came into UB Stadium and the Bulls handed the Bobcats a 26-17 trouncing for Buffalo's lone victory of the 2003 season. The Bulls hope history repeats itself when they take to the field at Peden Stadium in Athens, Ohio.
Buffalo (0-3, 0-1 MAC) has had its share of success against Ohio under the reins of Jim Hofher. Two of the five wins the Bulls have recorded under Hofher have come against the Bobcats.
However, Hofher and the Bulls know that this Saturday's game won't be a walk in the park. A revamped offense has taken the Bobcats away from their option-style of running to a more NFL-like single back formation.
"This Ohio team is going to be a different Ohio team then we have seen in the past," said Hofher. "Defensively they are pretty much the same, but the offense has changed dramatically."
Offense
Ohio's move to a more conventional style of offense has much to do with senior quarterback Ryan Hawk. So far on the year, Hawk has thrown for 645 yards and five touchdowns while getting picked off just twice.
Most of Hawk's pass attempts will be thrown in the direction of wide-out Chris Jackson. Jackson tied an Ohio record with twelve receptions against Miami of Ohio last weekend, giving him twenty catches on the season for 207 yards.
On the ground, the Bobcats rely on the legs of freshman Kalvin McRae. McRae has seen the majority of the touches this season carrying the ball 51 times for 218 yards and one touchdown.
The Bulls' defense must keep these weapons in check in order to give Buffalo a shot at a win. The rest is up to the anemic UB offensive unit.
"Our offense has been slow to develop," says Hofher. "We are running the ball solidly, but we need the pass game to catch up so we can get more balance in our offense and keep our defense off the field."
The Bulls rely heavily on the output of their four-headed running back by committee, comprised of Chris McDuffie, Dave Dawson, Steven King, and Jared Patterson. "The Four Horsemen" have averaged 172.3 yards on the ground per game, which is good for third in the Mid-American Conference. They have also scored four times this season.
On the other hand, the air attack of the Bulls has only been able to produce at a rate of 133.7 yards per game, while throwing six interceptions and only one touchdown.
Randall Secky has been behind center for most of the downs this season, but the time for a quarterback change may be near. As of Wednesday, Coach Hofher was unsure as to who would be the starting quarterback in this Saturday's game.
Hofher has given Secky every chance, but Secky is only connecting on 41.5 percent of his passes. P.J. Piskorik may continue seeing more and more action if Secky doesn't get the UB offense rolling.
Defense
The Bulls have strong defensive players on every level of their defense. J.J. Gibson leads the defensive backs, with Bill Meholif anchoring the defensive line, and Bryan Cummings holding down the fort for the linebackers.
UB will need a strong effort from the defensive squad to stop the Bobcats' fluid passing offense led by Hawk and Jackson.
The Bulls have had troubles in the past three weeks in dealing with strong running backs, giving up 646 yards and six touchdowns on the ground so far this year.
Buffalo's passing defense has been the exact opposite, with the exception of last week's game against Nevada. Before the loss to the Wolf Pack, the Bulls had yet to give up over 100 passing yards to any offense. However, the passing yardage given up to Nevada was over 200 yards. The Bulls will need strong pressure from their defensive line to force Hawk to make bad decisions.
Overall
It's too early in the season to label a game as a "must win," but if there was ever a game to help turn the season around, this is the one. Especially after a poor showing in their first home game against Syracuse, the Bulls need to show their fans that they can still provide the effort and the play that warranted a sell-out crowd just two weeks ago.
If the Bulls can keep the pressure strong and the pass-coverage respectable, they will be able to compete in this game and perhaps even bring home a victory.
After the contest in Ohio, the Bulls will return to UB Stadium to play Central Florida.
