We have hit the final third of the regular season, as Buffalo (4-4, 3-1 MAC) travels to Bowling Green (3-5, 1-3 MAC) for a Saturday afternoon matchup before the start of November MACtion.
The last time
these two teams faced one another was back in 2023, when the Bulls hosted the Falcons on a wet day in mid-October. The Falcons were searching for their first MAC win, while the Bulls aimed for their third. After the Bulls went up 7-0 early, the Falcons used 218 rushing yards to score 24 unanswered points and win by a final score of 24-14. This was the start of a four-game win streak for the Falcons, and the Bulls would finish the slate 1-5, losing then head-coach Mo Linguist in the offseason.
This year’s edition sees both teams coming off bad losses. Buffalo coughed up five turnovers in a loss to the Akron Zips, while a battered BGSU unit met their match against a feisty Kent State team in a rivalry contest.
A win here would be vital to UB’s title chances, allowing them to keep pace in that second slot for a trip to Detroit. BGSU hopes to survive and keep their postseason hopes alive; they need to win three of their next four games to achieve that goal in Eddie George’s first campaign.
Game Notes
- Time and Date: Saturday, November 1st at 12:00 p.m. ET
- Location: Doyt Perry Stadium, Bowling Green, OH
- Gambling considerations: Bowling Green (-1.5), over/under 43.5 per FanDuel.
- Viewing options: ESPN+. A valid subscription is required for viewing. Shawn Kenney (play-by-play) and Marcus Ray (color) will provide commentary
- Radio options: For Bowling Green, Eagle FM 99 will broadcast with Todd Walker (play-by-play) and John Gibson (color) providing commentary. For Buffalo, Paul Peck (play-by-play) and Scott Wilson (color) provide the call on The Varsity Network App.
- All-time series: Bowling Green leads the all-time series by a margin of 13-8. The road team has won the last three matchups between the two teams.
About the Bowling Green Falcons
The Falcons are searching for answers after their brutal loss to Kent State.
The Falcons led 21-3 in the middle of the third quarter, but a combination of circumstances saw them lose 24-21 by game’s end. Being 1-3 in the MAC, the Falcons continue to search for answers in terms of playing consistently. The Falcons, who have one of the weakest conference slates remaining, proved last week that letting any team hang around long enough could be disastrous.
The quarterback room is hurt in more ways than one. Both Lucian Anderson III and Notre Dame transfer Drew Pyne are questionable, and Baron May was hurt late in the Kent State game on a non-contact injury. Fourt-stringer Hunter Najm saw action on the last drive, getting the Falcons to just about midfield— but no further. So who starts? It will most likely be Najm, unless Drew Pyne is healthy enough to go.
While limited in the receiving category, the Falcons quietly have a new favorite target, with Jacob Harris catching his fourth touchdown last week. Jyrin Johnson hauled in 53 yards, and RJ Garcia II had 48 yards. The passing game has been limited for a lot of this season, and it looks to be frustrating the receiving corps. Can the quarterbacks turn it around this week against the Bulls who allow just under 195 pass yards per game?
Chris McMillian still leads the Falcons with 317 rushing yards and three touchdowns, accounting for over 25 percent of the rushing yards for the team. Bowling Green had 207 rushing yards last week, and it felt like they moved away from that game plan since more runs would have likely iced the game. The Bulls defense plays the run decently, averaging 142.3 rush yards allowed per game, which once again sets up a challenge for the Falcons.
Defensively, the Falcons got off to a great start last week. Aside from that, something happened to them that allowed 21 points in the final 23:47 of the game. UB will be one of BG’s toughest assignments yet, for them, as Bulls rank third in the MAC in total offensive yards per game (367.1).
The Falcons will most likely need their defense to pick up the weight again, unless the offense has a stellar game to ease the pain of last week.
About the Buffalo Bulls
The Bulls have had a tendency to play down to their conference opponents so far. It finally hurt them losing 24-16 to Akron. Still, they are 3-1 in the MAC and look for a spot in Detroit, but their road is tough with Central Michigan, Miami and Ohio remaining after this week.
Ta’Quan Roberson has been the quarterback this season, replacing CJ Ogbonna. So far, Roberson has 1,678 passing yards (5th in MAC), 11 touchdowns and seven interceptions— with the majority of those picks coming last week. His best game was two weeks ago against UMass, going off for 36-of-55 for 403 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He’s got all the qualities to have a strong game against the Falcons this week.
Leading the rushing attack is Al-Jay Henderson, with 544 yards with four touchdowns. He’s also got 174 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown. He’s a dynamic back that can still cause problems for many teams despite pacing behind previous production.
Victor Snow leads the receivers with 578 yards and seven touchdowns. Following him is Nik McMillian with 485 yards and one touchdown. The dynamic duo makes up almost 60 percent of their receiving yards. Josaiah Gathings has also been a reliable third receiver for UB, with all three capable of stretching the field vertically.
Defensively, Red Murdock is the leader. He’s eight tackles shy of 100, has 3.5 sacks, and forced five fumbles. One more forced fumble and he’ll pass Khalil Mack— a former UB linebacker— as the NCAA’s all-time leader in the statistic. He’s one player the Falcons aren’t looking forward to dealing with.
Jalen McNair leads the team with two interceptions. Three other Bulls have more than two sacks. Kobe Stewart and Junior Poyser lead with four a piece, while Dion Crawford has two. With those totals, the Bulls have 27 sacks, good for second in the MAC. Buffalo’s defense has a chance to have a really great game this week.
What Each Team Needs
Bowling Green has to put the last couple of weeks behind them and find the guts and grit again. What their gameplan looks like with a fourth-string quarterback is yet to be seen, and on paper, this is a bad time to be trying to figure it out. However, if they can execute the fundamentals and lean on a few big plays to keep UB off balance, they could have a chance at a win.
Buffalo needs a dominant performance from start to finish, if only for their own morale. Since the start of the conference season, UB has been in nail-biter after nail-biter, which has surely done a number on team morale. Getting a head early and not letting the Falcons hang around will be vital if they hope to stay alive in the MAC title race. and must avoid letting the Falcons hang around for too long.
