???Dramatic finishes have become a fixture of the 2008 Buffalo Bulls football season. So it's no surprise that this year's final game at UB Stadium was decided on the game's last possession.
???Looking to add to a five-game winning streak, the Bulls had an opportunity to take the lead late in the fourth quarter against the Kent State Golden Flashes. However, a costly fumble on the goal line squandered those chances on Buffalo's final drive as the Bulls came up short against the Flashes, 24-21, on Friday.
???With just under two minutes to play in the fourth quarter, the Bulls (7-5, 5-3 Mid-American Conference) drove 78 yards in eight plays. Lined up in a five-receiver set, the offense sat on the Kent State 7-yard line, determined to take the lead.
???Senior quarterback Drew Willy found junior receiver Brett Hamlin, but the ball was knocked out by linebacker Derek Burrell as Hamlin tried to stretch the play over the goal line. The Flashes (4-8, 3-5 MAC) recovered the ball in the end zone with 1:46 left and ran out the clock on their final possession.
???"I was just trying to make something happen and it was a mistake," Hamlin said. "Mistakes are costly."
???The Bulls were put in a state of desperation in large part because they could not stop the Kent State running attack. Quarterback Julian Edelman and running back Eugene Jarvis combined for 317 yards on the ground. Jarvis, with 150 yards rushing, added two touchdowns in the winning effort.
???Edelman earned his seventh straight 100-yard rushing performance with 167 yards on 19 carries. Edelman's lone touchdown pass of the game also held up as the game-winner as he hit tight end Jonathan Simpson with a 25-yard strike with 5:57 left in the game.
???With the MAC East Division title locked up, the Bulls may not have been so focused on Kent State as they were looking ahead to Friday's conference championship game against No. 12 Ball State (12-0, 8-0 MAC).
???"[This loss] hurts a lot because you don't want to ever take a team lightly but I think we were looking past this game," Hamlin said. "We didn't make plays where we needed to make plays."
???Looking past one opponent and on to the next one is not something that the program has had to deal with before. Head coach Turner Gill realizes that learning to deal with success and being able to focus on the game at hand is part of the maturation process of a winning team.
???"I know, myself, I wasn't looking on to Ball State. We prepared for this ball game as we prepare for any other game," Gill said. "...We have not been through this process or journey so therefore [the players] are looking ahead."
???If anything Gill believes that the loss could actually help the team as they prepare for the undefeated Cardinals.
???"Maybe the good thing about this is we've got a more of a chip on our shoulder," Gill said.
???A pair of Buffalo juniors also posted record-breaking numbers in the game. Wide receiver Naaman Roosevelt broke the school record for single-season receiving yards (1,196) and receptions (86), passing Drew Haddad in both categories. He broke the reception mark on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Willy midway through the third quarter. Roosevelt's 124 yards against Kent State marked his fourth straight game with 100 yards receiving.
???Running back James Starks became the school's single-season leading rusher with 1,226 yards, breaking the record set by O.D. Underwood in 1986. Starks rushed for 136 yards on Friday including a 55-yard burst on the team's first possession. Starks also scored his 14th rushing touchdown of the season, the 32nd total touchdown of his career.
???Starks was still positive about the team's chances in the championship game despite the tough loss.
???"We're still a great football team. Nobody's going to hold their heads down. We just need to capitalize," Starks said. "From this game, we just need to capitalize on all the plays and we're still going to be successful"
???The team will face Ball State at Ford Field in Detroit, Mich. in the Marathon MAC Football Championship Game on Friday at 8 p.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
