YPSILANTI, MICH. – Mediocre. Lackluster. Abysmal.
These are just a few of the words that appropriately describe the football team's play on the road this season. The team hasn't shown up to play in a single game away from UB Stadium, going winless on the road.
Buffalo (2-8, 1-5 Mid-American Conference) was coming off a bye week and looked significantly better against Eastern Michigan (6-4, 4-2 MAC) on Saturday. But the Bulls still didn't have enough to win at Rynearson Stadium, falling 30-17. Buffalo extended its road losing streak to nine.
The Bulls knew full well that Eastern Michigan's attack revolved around its run game. The Eagles ran all over Buffalo in their last meeting, and finished with 267 rushing yards in the victory.
Eastern Michigan attempted to do the same at first, but the Bulls held the 15th ranked run offense in the country to just 179 yards.
However, the Eagles own the MAC's worst-ranked pass offense, and their aerial attack dominated the Bulls.
Quarterback Alex Gillett threw for four touchdowns and 234 yards to take down Buffalo.
Gillett connected with wide receiver Demarius Reed for two touchdowns in the second half – including a 67 yarder that came two plays after the Bulls scored their first touchdown of the game. His 34-yard touchdown pass to tight end Garrett Hoskins in the fourth was the straw that broke the Bulls' back.
Head coach Jeff Quinn was disappointed that his team allowed Eastern Michigan to take advantage in the passing game.
"It's all mental and that's one thing we need to understand as players and coaches," Quinn said. "There's [liability] on both sides, coaches and players, and I'm not happy with the way our secondary played today."
While the Eagles relied off their passing game, the Bulls struggled to find their own. Senior quarterback Chazz Anderson was constantly on the run against the Eagles pass rush and was sacked five times for 48 yards – a season-high.
Quinn was irate over the lack of pass protection.
"If Chazz needs eight seconds, he should have eight seconds," Quinn said. "There is no excuse for that to take place and we broke down. That wasn't whether we knew how to get to our assignment, it's the fight and determination that upsets me more than anything."
Buffalo's offense was non-existent for a majority of the game. The Bulls weren't able to make it into Eagles territory until the closing minutes of the first half. In addition, Buffalo was poor on third downs, as the squad converted just 1-of-13.
The Bulls had their opportunities in the game, though they weren't abundant. However, the team regressed when it was time to step up. The Bulls started the second half with a successful onside kick, but they were flagged for being offside. Buffalo converted on fourth-and-one off a fake punt, but went three-and-out on the very next series.
Anderson, who finished the game 18-of-31 with 137 yards, said the loss falls on the entire team.
"I think we all have to work on making football a priority – not just showing up to wear the jersey, but showing up to win football games," Anderson said. "That's why we play the game: to win."
Buffalo was down 9-3 at halftime after a stagnant offensive performance, but the Bulls came out rejuvenated in the second half, and a majority of that resurgence can be credited to sophomore running back Branden Oliver.
Oliver, who ran for only 22 yards in the first half, put up two touchdowns in the second half. After a 3-yard touchdown run, Oliver took advantage of superb blocking to bust out a career-high 68-yard touchdown run to put the Bulls ahead, 17-16.
The momentum-shifting run put Oliver over the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season. He is the fifth athlete in UB history to reach the milestone.
The comeback was short-lived, as Buffalo's lead gave way to 14 unanswered points by the Eagles.
Oliver was proud of his achievement, but was disappointed that the offense became dormant again after his second touchdown.
"I thought we had the game in our hands easily," Oliver said. "But when we got back on the field we just weren't executing every play 100 percent, and sometimes we probably felt that the game was just going to come to us. But you have to go out there and get it. Losing is the easy way out."
Buffalo will have a chance to end its four-game losing streak when it hosts a lowly Akron (1-9, 0-6 MAC) team next Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled for noon.
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