Saturday featured a battle of two desperate teams.
The Bulls and their opponent were both trying to salvage what was left of their disappointing seasons. However, one sophomore came into the match with a little more desperation: Branden Oliver.
Buffalo (3-8, 2-5 Mid-American Conference) hosted a subpar Akron (1-10, 0-7 MAC) team on the clear weekend afternoon. The Zips, who haven't beaten a Division-1 opponent since beating the Bulls last year, left UB Stadium on Saturday as victims. The Bulls were merciless against Akron and won 51-10 thanks to a dominant effort by Oliver.
The Zips had absolutely no answer for the 5-foot-8-inch beast. Oliver's 235-yard performance broke the record for most rushing yards in a single game in Buffalo's Division-1 history.
Head coach Jeff Quinn was overflowing with praise for Oliver.
"Bo inspires us," Quinn said. "Every time you call Bo's number and he's got the ball in his hand, you just don't know what's going to happen."
Oliver has been the Bulls' offensive backbone all season long, but never before has he devastated a defense to this extent. His cutbacks left Akron's front seven frozen and his speed left confused defenders in his wake. The sophomore's performance puts him at 1,268 yards this season – 65 yards shy of James Starks' all-time season record.
The running back also added two touchdowns and 38 receiving yards to finish with 273 all-purpose yards – the second-most in school history.
Oliver credited his success to outstanding blocking and strategy.
"We did a great job game planning this week," Oliver said. "Coach Quinn and [offensive coordinator Alex Wood] put a lot of faith in my hands."
The Miami, Fla. native contributed even when he didn't have the ball. Akron called a blitz on a Buffalo third down in the second quarter, and linebacker Brian Wagner almost had an open shot at senior quarterback Chazz Anderson. Oliver blocked Wagner, who is second in the nation in total tackles, at the last second.
"I'm more proud of that protection pickup than all those yards," Quinn said.
This gave Anderson enough time to connect with sophomore wide receiver Fred Lee for a 13-yard touchdown in the right corner of the end zone.
Oliver was benched late in the third quarter after Buffalo had already put the game out of reach, but he requested to be put back in the game after being just 10 yards short of the single-game record.
"He said: ‘Hey coach, I want to do something not only for myself, but for my program and the guys up front,'" Quinn said. "The [offensive line] said ‘Bo, we're here for you.'"
The Bulls were relentless against Akron. The Zips fumbled snaps and dropped multiple passes as Buffalo continued on its romp. The Bulls' 30 points at the end of the first half was their highest output since Oct. 2007 against Toledo. Buffalo's final 51 points were the team's highest since 1992.
Lee replaced injured sophomore wide receiver Alex Neutz. He did a solid job of taking over for the talented wide out and finished the game with 52 yards and two touchdowns – both career highs.
The Bulls defense was all over the MAC's lowest-scoring offense. Buffalo only allowed 239 yards and 10 points – both season bests against MAC opponents this year.
Sophomore linebacker Khalil Mack played a large role in the defensive effort, and finished the game with three tackles for loss, two sacks, and a forced fumble. The forced fumble marked the seventh of his career, tying the all-time UB record.
Buffalo will play its final game of the season at home against Bowling Green (4-7, 2-5 MAC) next Friday. Kickoff is scheduled for noon.
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