After dropping their first two conference games, the UB football(2-4, 0-2) team finds their backs against the walls as the Ohio Bobcats(1-5, 1-1) come to town. The Bulls had a slow start at Kent State, but rebounded after halftime before blowing a late lead. Will they be able to bounce back after two tough MAC losses?
The Bulls will look to get their season back on track as low-scoring Ohio comes to Amherst. Although they dropped their first two conference games, UB is not completely out of the MAC East race, but they cannot tolerate a third-straight loss.
Hands-On Defense
“We’re going to play aggressive back there (defensive backfield). We’re going to play man coverage. We’re going to have a pass interference from time to time. You just can’t have four of them like we did versus Duquesne.”
Ohio football head coach Tim Albin to media this week
Last Time Out
The UB Bulls football team ran a program-high 99 offensive plays against Kent State, but fell short in the points column with a 48-38 loss. Offensively, it was a great performance coming out from halftime as UB scored on four consecutive drive while putting up 402 of their 549 total yards. The Bulls took a lead late, but the defense could not wrangle in Kent’s offense.
The Bobcats dropped to 1-1 in MAC play as they were bested by Central Michigan 30-27 in Athens. Quarterback Armani Rogers made his first start of the season after bringing Ohio to a win in the second half of their MAC opener. Rogers was efficient completing 72% of his passes, but was quite pedestrian with just 190 yards. The rushing attack of Ohio wasn’t much better averaging just 3.9 yards per rush. However, all three of Ohio’s touchdowns came on the ground.
Last Meeting with Ohio Football
UB and Ohio never met in 2020 as their game was cancelled due to COVID issues with the Ohio team. In 2019, Ohio pulled off a one-point victory after a missed extra point in overtime by UB. Ohio running back O’Shaan Allison scored the first two rushing touchdowns of his career in that contest.
The Bobcats lead the all-time series 16-10. Ohio is 6-4 against the Bulls since 2010, but only won once at UB Stadium during that span and that was in 2019. In fact, the home team has won nine of the last ten contests between the two schools.
Feed Quian
The UB Bulls football team hasn’t been known for their throwing prowess over the past couple seasons, however graduate transfer Quian Williams currently leads the MAC with 551 receiving yards and is second in receptions with 38. Williams became the fastest UB receiver to reach 30 receptions since Ron Willoughby who did so in the first five games in 2015.
Williams is doing a great job of high-pointing the ball and making a play before the defender has a chance to. Not every ball is thrown perfectly, but Williams gives it a chance to be caught. In back-to-back weeks, Williams put up impressive 100-yard performances against Old Dominion and Western Michigan. When Williams is hot, the offense needs to keep feeding him. The Bulls should use the run as a complimentary weapon when Williams and quarterback Kyle Vantrease are in the zone together.
Rankings
| Team Statistics | UB | Ohio |
| Points per game | 30.2 (58th) | 19.3 (116th) |
| Points allowed per game | 28.17 (89th) | 31.33 (t-103rd) |
| Rushing yards per game | 209.7 (28th) | 190.2 (39th) |
| Passing yards per game | 201.0 (95th) | 155.8 (119th) |
| Total offense | 410.7 (61st) | 346.3 (104th) |
| 3rd down pct | 46.3% (22nd) | 31.3% (118th) |
| Rushing yards allowed per game | 177.3 (96th) | 241.7 (127th) |
| Passing yards allowed per game | 252.8 (99th) | 185.3 (23rd) |
| Total defense | 430.2 (101st) | 427.0 (96th) |
| Opposing 3rd down pct | 38.8% (75th) | 46.9% (t-121st) |
Bundt’s Preview
Degenerate Danger Zone
UB -9
Over/Under 57
Tune In
When:
Saturday at 12 P.M.
UB Stadium
Amherst, NY
TV:
ESPN+
Radio:
Buffalo: ESPN 1520 (1520 AM)
Rochester: 1280 AM
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