The Buffalo football team is ineligible for a bowl game following a 37-14 loss to Ohio last week Wednesday. The team is on a four-game losing streak – its longest since 2012 – and has already lost its head coach.
The Bulls know they will have to answer for their disappointing season when it comes to an end in three weeks.
“At the end of the year, when you go home to your friends and family and your high school coaches, you’re going to have to answer for UB,” said senior linebacker Jake Stockman. “You’re going to have to explain this. You want to be able to explain it with a smile on your face saying, ‘We just rattled off three in a row. I’m proud to put on this blue and white.’”
The Bulls (3-6, 1-4 Mid-American Conference) look to start a three-game winning streak to finish their season beginning Tuesday when they host Akron (4-5, 2-3 MAC) at UB Stadium.
Buffalo’s struggling offense will face the No. 1 defense in the MAC. Akron has allowed just 21 points and 363 total yards per game this season. Although the Bulls score an average of 28.8 points per game this season, they have scored just 28 points combined in their past two games.
Last Wednesday, the Bulls accumulated a season-low 134 total yards and junior quarterback Joe Licata threw for 74 passing yards – his career-low as a starter. Junior running back Anthone Taylor ran for 37 yards on 17 carries following a 25-yard rushing performance the week before.
“To get the running game going, we have to get the throwing game going,” Licata said. “They’ve got to be able to respect the pass. Once they’re keying on the pass then we can run the ball and vice versa.”
Licata has an opportunity to make Buffalo football history Tuesday night. Licata needs one more touchdown pass to break former quarterback Drew Willy’s all-time touchdown pass record.
Licata’s not concerned with breaking the record if it’s in a losing effort, however.
“I would trade every touchdown pass for a win,” Licata said. “It doesn’t mean much to me right now. Maybe when I’m done playing it will mean a little something for me to get my name in the record books but right now, it doesn’t really mean anything.”
Consistency has been a problem for the Buffalo ‘D’ all season long. This week, the Bulls must contain quarterback Kyle Pohl, who ranks sixth in the MAC with 227.6 passing yards per game and wide receiver Zack D’Orazio, who is ninth in the conference with an average of five receptions per game.
The defense was set up to fail last week, as Buffalo turned the ball over four times, three times setting Ohio up inside the Bulls’ 20-yard line.
“As a defense, we don’t care how we get on the football field,” Stockman said. “We don’t care if were on the 1-yard line with four downs to score.”
Every aspect of the team has struggled during the current four-game losing streak, including special teams. Senior kicker Patrick Clarke missed a 36-yard field goal attempt in his only opportunity against Ohio. He has converted less than half (6 of 13) of his field goal attempts this year.
“Absolutely he’s got to turn it around because those are points we count on,” Wood said. “He’s been working on it but we’ll see how we manage that through the course of the every ball game we’ve got remaining.”
The game is scheduled for 8 p.m. Tuesday and will be featured on ESPNU. Although the Bulls cannot win the conference or make a bowl game, they are ready to play.
“We have a lot of strong character, a lot of heart,” Stockman said. “I don’t think it’s a concern of our not showing up for the next three games. We’re going to show up [and] we’re going to play good football.”
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Photo: Paul Hokanson/UB Athletics
