Saturday could be a historic day for the Buffalo football program. The team has the opportunity to clinch the Mid-American Conference East Division with a win and a Bowling Green loss. They will travel to Oxford, Ohio to take on the Miami (OH) RedHawks.
Head coach Turner Gill has emphasized this entire season not to think ahead of the upcoming game. He tells his players to take it one step at a time.
"We have thought very little about winning the division," said junior wide receiver Ernest Jackson. "Right now, we are just thinking about Miami. We need to take it one game at a time."
The Bulls (4-5, 4-1 MAC) are coming off a strong 26-10 victory last week against Akron. Miami (4-5, 3-1 MAC) has lost two games in a row. The RedHawks were downed by Vanderbilt 24-13 two Saturdays ago.
"Miami is a very tough and talented team," Gill said. "We have to focus on the things that we can control. We are going to have to play the best game that we have played this year."
Miami leads the conference in scoring defense, allowing 25.8 points per game. However, in MAC games, the RedHawks have yielded only 16.8 points a game. Miami has given up less than 14 points in all of their victories.
To attack this Miami defense, Buffalo will need to continue to excel in the red zone. The Bulls are one of the top teams in red zone offense, converting 27 out of 30 times, or 90 percent, when they get within the opponent's 20-yard line. Buffalo has scored 19 touchdowns in the red zone.
The Bulls will look to get ahead in the game early. Buffalo has scored 75 first quarter points this season and recorded their first win last week against Akron when failing to score first in the game.
Junior quarterback Drew Willy is coming off an efficient game, where he was 11-14 for 125 and three touchdowns. He leads the MAC in completion percentage with 67.2 and his 134.8 quarterback efficiency rating is second in the conference.
The Buffalo defense has been very consistent over the past four games. They have garnered two interceptions in all these games and have only given up an average of five second-half points over this span.
"Our defense plays better as the game goes along," Gill said. "The guys have more confidence at halftime because they have seen what the opponent has after the first half. They see what they can do and what their strengths are and figure out how to stop them and execute the game-plan in the second half."
The young secondary has brought energy to the team. Also, the defense's ability to stop the other team has helped the offense get going and gain confidence.
"We feed off the energy of the younger guys on the team and the defense," Jackson said. "When the defense stops the other team, it helps the offense out. We get more opportunities to score and put points on the board."
Miami's offense is led by quarterback Daniel Raudabaugh, he has thrown for 1,506 yard and eight touchdowns this season. The RedHawks average 236 yards per game through the air.
Going into the game, the rushing stats look even. Buffalo averages 139 yards per game, while Miami gains 130 per game on the ground.
Special teams might dictate the final outcome of the contest. Two of the top punters in the nation will be seen in this game.
Senior punter Ben Woods has been spectacular this season. He has 18 punts that were downed inside the 20-yard line and is the nation's active leader in punts and punting yards.
Miami also has their own special weapon at the position. Jake Richardson ranks fifth in the nation with an average of 45.82 yards per punt.
Buffalo will look to win its first game ever against Miami and take one step closer to their first MAC East title on Saturday, Nov. 3. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
