After taking its lumps against Rutgers, the football team is ready to take on a competitor in its own conference. On Saturday, the Bulls are scheduled to travel to Philadelphia to take on Mid-American Conference foe the Temple Owls, in a matchchup that can best be described as the cupcake bowl.
"As a player, it's a whole different mindset for us right now because it is a MAC game and we'd love to go 1-0. That would build a lot of momentum in us going into our next game and the rest of the MAC season," said senior defensive end Trevor Scott. "It was very disappointing, what happened at Rutgers."
Last year, the two teams combined for three wins, with the Bulls defeating the Eagles 9-3 in overtime in the first week of the season. While head coach Turner Gill will draw on this experience to prepare the Bulls to face the Owls this year, he is quick to remind everyone that both teams have changed since their last meeting.
"We're looking forward to playing Temple. It's going to be an outstanding game for us," Gill said. "Obviously we beat them last year, but it's a new year. We feel like we're better, they feel like they're better. We're going into this football game to play a great game."
Scott, a team captain who led the team last year with nine sacks, agreed with Gill - that the team could not sit back on their victory last season.
"It definitely is a good feeling, but that was last year," Scott said. "They've got a new quarterback, they have a few good players, we just have to go out and play Buffalo football."
This will be the conference opener for both the Bulls and the Owls, who officially joined the MAC prior to this season. The Bulls are coming off of a 38-3 loss to nationally ranked Rutgers, while the Owls lost last week to Navy 30-19.
"Every week I'm evaluating myself, I'm evaluating the football team," Gill said. "It really doesn't matter who the opponent is. This is our first MAC game so this is something that definitely gives us an opportunity to move towards those goals."
The goals that Gill speaks of include making a run at the MAC championship. With the season still in its early stages, one loss to a nationally ranked squad will not lead Gill to any irrational or panicked decisions when it comes to game plan and strategy.
"We're going to keep things the way they are at this point in time," Gill said. "It's all about execution. Every play is designed to be a touchdown, but it's about execution and having the guys who are able to make those plays for you. We're going to mix things up here and there, but were not going to make any drastic changes."
One thing that will not change is starting wide receiver. Sophomore wide receiver Naaman Roosevelt missed the entire second half against Rutgers with an injury. However, Roosevelt practiced Wednesday and is listed as probable to be in the lineup come Saturday.
The hope is that Roosevelt will be able to help an offense that managed only three points against the Scarlet Knights.
"I think the biggest thing that we're focused on is trying to get inside the thirty yard line - as we call it, the Green Zone," Gill said. "Working on that at least two to three times this week - really working on our plays in that area, so we capitalize when we have the ball."
After a strong week of practice following Rutgers, the Bulls hope that they have worked hard enough to record a winning streak of two against the Temple Owls.
"They were ready to go to work," Gill said. "They were ready to do what was needed to get done as far as the coaching staff putting together a plan, putting them in a better situation to come out and play better against Temple."
E-mail: spectrum-sports@buffalo.edu
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
