Ohio
Bulls Host Ohio in Saturday Homecoming Matchup
10/1/2019 1:38:00 PM | Football
Buffalo (2-3, 0-1 MAC) vs. Ohio (1-3, 0-0 MAC)
October 5, 2019
UB Stadium - 3:30 pm
Radio
Buffalo - ESPN 1520
Rochester - Fox Sports 1280
Hornell - 1480 WLEA
Television
ESPN+
Storylines
• The home team has won each game of this series dating back to 2010.
• Since joining the MAC in 1999, the Bulls are 7-2 against Ohio in games played at UB Stadium.
• Ohio leads the all-time series, 14-11.
• Buffalo has rushed for 200+ yards in four of its five games on the season.
• The Bulls have rushed for 1,201 yards through the first five games. It is the highest rushing total over the first five games of the season in UB's modern era (since 1999).
• Buffalo leads the nation in rushing attempts with 256 through five games.
• Jaret Patterson and Kevin Marks are both in the top five in the MAC in rushing. Patterson is third, averaging 109.2 yards per game and Marks is fifth, averaging 84.0 yards per game.
• With 1,559 career rushing yards, Jaret Patterson is 12 yards shy of passing Lee Jones (1965-67) for eighth in school history in career rushing yards.
• The Bulls lead the MAC in rushing defense, allowing 96.6 yards per game and only 2.7 yards per attempt.
• Matt Myers has had either a rushing touchdown or a passing touchdown in all five games this season.
• The Bulls are 10-1 in their last 11 games played at UB Stadium.
Bulls Host Ohio in Homecoming Matchup
The University at Buffalo football team will host Ohio on Saturday afternoon in a homecoming matchup at UB Stadium.
The Bulls are 2-3 on the season and are coming off a 34-20 loss at Miami (OH) last Saturday. The Bulls were led by running back Jaret Patterson who rushed for a season-best 183 yards and a touchdown in the game.
Ohio is 1-3 on the season and is coming off a 45-25 loss to Louisiana on Sept. 21. The Bobcats are led by quarterback Nathan Rourke who has thrown for 857 yards and six touchdowns on the season.
Ohio leads the all-time series, 14-11. The Bobcats won the last meeting, 52-17, last season at Peden Stadium.
Ground and Pound
The UB running game is off to a great start to the season. The Bulls are averaging 240 yards through five games. They lead the nation in rushing attempts with 256. UB logged 58 carries against both Penn State and Temple. The 1,201 rushing yards through five games is the most to start a season in the Bulls' FBS era (since 1999).
Leading the way are running backs Jaret Patterson and Kevin Marks. Patterson is averaging 109.2 yards per game on the ground to rank third in the MAC. Marks is averaging 84.0 yards per game to rank fifth in the conference.
Time after Time
The Bulls rank 13th in the nation in time of possession, averaging 33:39 per game.
The Bulls controlled the ball for 42:32 against Penn State. It was the team's highest time of possession in their modern FBS era (since 1999). The previous high was 42:30 against Bowling Green last season. The Bulls ran 90 plays, compared to just 46 plays for Penn State and outgained the Nittany Lions, 429-357 in total offense.
Not Standing Patt
UB running back Jaret Patterson is coming off the finest freshman season in school history and is already building on it in his second year with the program. Patterson rushed for 1,013 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2018, becoming the first freshman running back in school history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. He broke the previous record of 917 set by Aaron Leeper in 2002. In addition, Patterson's 14 rushing touchdowns were the most ever by a UB freshman and was two shy of the single season record held by James Starks (2008).
Patterson, the 2018 MAC Freshman of the Year, is on the watchlist for the Maxwell Award and the Doak Walker Award.
Through five games, Patterson has rushed for 546 yards on 101 carries (5.4 ypc) and has scored four touchdown. At Miami (OH), he ripped off an 82-yard touchdown run - the longest by a UB player since James Starks had a 91-yard against Miami (OH) in 2007.
Run Stoppers
Buffalo leads the MAC in total defense, but they have been especially stout against the run. The Bulls lead the MAC and rank 21st in the nation in rushing defense, allowing only 95.6 yards per game. UB is the only team in the MAC to allow less that 100 yards per game on the ground. The Bulls have held three of their last four opponents to under 100 yards rushing. They held Penn State to 78, Liberty to 76 and Temple to 31 yards on the ground.
Locking in on Third Down
One of the strengths of the UB defense has been their ability to stop teams on third down. The Bulls lead the Mid-American Conference in third down defense, allowing teams to only convert 29.4 percent of the time. In Buffalo's win over Temple, UB held the Owls to just 2-of-16 on third down.
Otwinowski Named Campbell Trophy Semifinalist
Senior linebacker Matt Otwinowski is a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy. Given annually to college football's top student-athlete, the Campbell Trophy is also known as the Academic Heisman.
Otwinowski is an accounting major with a 3.89 cumulative grade point average. He is a two-time Academic All-MAC selection and has been honored as a MAC Distinguished Scholar Athlete.
A pillar of the community, Otwinowski helped save the life of a stranger by donating his stem cells through the Be The Match Program. For his work in the community, he has been placed on the watch list for the AFCA Allstate Good Works Team and the Weurffel Trophy.
Toe Jackson
Early in the second quarter against Temple, Jackson Baltar trotted out to attempt his first career field goal. All the true freshman did was step up and drill a 52-yarder. It was the second longest field goal in school history - Gerald Carlson holds the record with a 54-yarder in 1996. Baltar tied John Rahuna (2010) for the longest made field goal in UB's modern FBS era (since 1999). Baltar is 8-for-9 on extra points on the season.
Vantrease Stepping Up in New Role
After losing starting punter Evan Finegan to an injury in week two, the coaching staff turned to backup quarterback Kyle Vantrease to fill in. The redshirt-sophomore seems to be getting more comfortable each week. He had his best outing against Tempe, averaging 41.3 yards per punt, including a 51-yarder.
Kicker Jackson Baltar has also filled in at punter, when the team is on a shorter field and looking to pin an opponent deep in their own territory.
Banks Named MAC East Defensive Player of the Week for Second Time
For the second time in the first three weeks of the season, Joey Banks was named the Mid-American Conference East Division Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against Temple.
Banks had six solo tackles and an interception returned for a touchdown in a 38-22 win over Temple. Banks spearheaded a defensive effort that held the Owls to only 31 yards rushing. Banks sealed the win with a 46-yard pick six, the first by a Buffalo player since the 2015 season.
Experience on the Offensive Line
One of the strengths of the 2019 UB football team is the offensive line. The Bulls return four of their five starters from a season ago. Right guard Tomas Jack-Kurdyla has the most starts under his belt with 34. Left tackle Evin Ksiezarczyk is second with 31 starts. Right tackle Kayode Awosika has started 19 games for the Bulls and left guard Paul Nosworthy has 18 starts. In addition, Jacob Gall started the final five games at right guard last year.
Last season, UB's line blocked for an offense that ran for a school-record 2,648 yards and also allowed only 15 sacks, a program low since moving to the FBS level in 1999.
Nunn Better
Antonio Nunn had the best game of his career at Penn State, finishing with five catches for 113 yards - both career highs. The junior receiver had two catches of over 40+ yards, a 42-yarder in the first quarter and a 40-yarder in the second quarter. He continues to be dangerous deep threat for the Bulls. Over his career, Nunn has seven catches of 40 or more yards.
This season, Nunn leads the Bulls in receiving with 12 catches for 185 yards.
New Season, New Position
After serving as a reserve quarterback for the past three seasons, Dominic Johnson made the move to wide receiver shortly before the start of the 2019 campaign The move looks to be paying off. After not playing the position in his career, Johnson stepped up and had three catches for 27 yards at Penn State. At 6-5, 225, Johnson is a big target for the Bulls.
Welcome Matt
Redshirt-freshman Matt Myers earned the starting quarterback job out of camp. The local product was the first freshman or redshirt freshman quarterback to start the season opener in the Bulls FBS era (since 1999). Cliff Scott was the last freshman to start under center for the Bulls when he started the 1991 opener as a redshirt-freshman.
Through four games, Myers has thrown for 602 yards and six touchdowns. At Penn State he threw for 245 yards and a score.
As a senior at West Seneca West High School, he led the Indians to an undefeated season and its first ever state championship in 2017 and was named the game MVP. He was named the 2017 Buffalo News Western New York Player of the Year and was a two-time All-WNY First Team choice. He threw for 2,397 yards and rushed for 1,037 yards his senior year to become just the third quarterback in WNY history to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in the same season. He had 24 passing touchdowns, only two interceptions and 22 rushing touchdowns is senior season.
International Flavor
The Bulls have nine international players on this year's roster - by far the most in school history.
Buffalo has six players who hail from Canada, including Dominic Johnson (Ontario), Dev Lamour (Quebec), Cole Burniston (Ontario), Tomas Jack-Kurdyla (Quebec), Gabe Wallace (BC) and Julien Bourassa (Quebec). In addition, the Bulls have three players from Europe, Fabian Weitz (Germany), Alain Schaerer (Switzerland) and Jordan Avissey (France).
Pallotti Boys
The Bulls have five players from Maryland's Saint Vincent Pallotti High School on this year's team. Running back Jaret Patterson, linebackers James Patterson and Justin Mulbah, wide receiver Jelani Foster and cornerback Dylan Powell all played together for the Panthers.
Justin Winters, a former All-MAC linebacker for the Bulls, was a coach at Pallotti when the players were there.
Youth at Receiver
The Bulls have a number of new faces at wide receiver this season. In fact, of the UB receiving corps, only two players have registered a catch for the Bulls prior to this season. Antonio Nunn has the most experience, playing in 21 games and making 41 receptions for 662 yards and three touchdowns. Tito Overton is the only other receiver with game experience and he had one career catch prior to this season.
Recruiting wide receivers was a clear focus for the coaching staff in the offseason - especially adding receivers with experience. The Bulls have three new receivers from the junior college ranks on the squad in the fall, including Daniel Lee (Cisco College), Bernard Porter (Highland CC) and Carlton Todd (Iowa Central CC).
Murchie Family Fieldhouse Opens
Thanks to a record gift by the Murchie family, the Murchie Family Fieldhouse opened in April. The 92,000-square-foot indoor practice facility is situated just beyond the north end zone of UB Stadium on the university's North Campus.
The multi-use facility not only houses a full-size football field, but also features 6,000 feet of rubber track for sprint practice as well as long/triple jump and pole vault pits. It will also have motorized suspended softball hitting tunnels.
