For the first time since rejoining the ranks of Division I in 1998, the Bulls will finish their season with a winning record at home. Buffalo defeated Akron 26-10 on Saturday for its third consecutive home victory and fourth victory overall, the most since rejoining Division I.
The win improved the Bulls' home record to 3-1 with only one more game to be played at UB Stadium this year. The Bulls have not witnessed three victories at home since the 1998 season.
The game did not start off well for Buffalo as Akron drove right by the Bulls' defense on its opening drive to stake itself to a 7-0 lead. The drive was highlighted by a 25-yard reception by Jabari Arthur, which brought Akron into Buffalo territory.
Through seven games, Arthur had 55 receptions for 726 yards, yet the Buffalo defense held Arthur to only three catches for 39 yards. The Buffalo secondary also recorded at least two interceptions for the fourth time this season. Freshman Josh Copeland had the first interception of his career. Sophomore safety Mike Newton had an interception as well, his third in the last four games.
"That shows that we can go out there and cover every receiver in the MAC. If you can cover the best one, you can cover the number two and number three," Newton said about defending Arthur.
On the ensuing kickoff after Akron's touchdown, the wind played tricks with the ball, and caused it to land around the 40-yard line, where sophomore receiver Naaman Roosevelt alertly scooped it up before an Akron defender could dive on it.
"It was pretty crazy. I was looking at it, thinking it was coming to me and then it hit a wall, and it came down and I saw that no one's looking at it so I tried to hurry up and get to the ball and try to secure it," Roosevelt said.
Following Roosevelt's save, the Bulls answered Akron's opening blow with an eight-play, 55-yard drive which was capped off by the first of junior quarterback Drew Willy's three touchdowns on the game. Junior receiver Earnest Jackson was left open in the back of the end zone for his fourth touchdown reception of the season. However, the Bulls could not tie the game as freshman kicker A.J. Principe's extra point was blocked.
"I'm not sure if we had to score a touchdown, but we had to put some points on the board to keep our team in a positive manner," said head coach Turner Gill.
Buffalo's next drive showed why Roosevelt is such a dangerous weapon. Lining up at quarterback on a first and 10-play at Buffalo's 41-yard line, Roosevelt took the snap and scampered 34 yards down to Akron's 25-yard line. Four plays later, Roosevelt caught his second touchdown of the season to give the Bulls a 13-7 lead.
"Naaman's a great athlete, when the ball is in his arms, he can make plays for us," Gill said. "So every now and then we put him at the quarterback spot to put him in a position to make plays and we saw an example of that today making a big play for us."
The second half was more of the same for the Bulls, as they tacked on another 13 points while shutting out the Akron offense. While he did not score a touchdown for the second straight week, sophomore running back James Starks was effective in keeping the Akron offense off the field. Starks had 24 carries for 93 yards and as a team the Bulls had 51 rushes for 184 yards. In the second half, the Bulls held the ball for nearly 20 minutes while Akron's offense was on the field for less than 10 minutes.
Willy had a very effective game, completing 11-14 passes for 125 yards to go along with his three touchdown passes. The passing game was scaled back due to the wind and rain, which affected ball play.
"I think the only thing that was any different was not throwing more deep balls," Gill said. "That's the only thing that we didn't do as much that maybe we had in the game plan."
With the win, the Bulls remain in first place in the division and can win the MAC East outright with a victory over Miami (OH) and a Bowling Green loss to Akron.
Despite the success, Gill wants to make sure that the team does not start thinking too far ahead.
"No doubt when you win football games it gives you confidence, but I try to teach them how to keep it in the right perspective," Gill said. "You're not just being judged on one win or two wins, we have a goal to do and you have to continue to focus each and every day. You want to get better, and the more times you win the better you have to play the next week."
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
