2006 Buffalo Bills Season, Game Recaps, Scores and Reviews
Nov. 24
Central Michigan 55 ... Buffalo 28
Central Michigan exploded for 48 first half points starting
off with Tim Brazzel returning the opening kickoff for a score. Marcel
Archer ran for two short scores, Dan LeFevour threw three touchdown
passes and ran for a score. Bryan Anderson caught tow touchdown passes
and Justin Gardner caught a 66-yard score. Buffalo cranked out 21 second
half points, but it wasn't nearly enough with CMU pouring it on a bit
with backup QB Brian Brunner connecting with Jean Pitts for a 50-yard
score.
Player of the game ... Central Michigan QB Dan LeFevour completed 14
of 16 passes for 294 yards and three touchdowns and ran five times for
18 yards and a score all in the first half Stat Leaders: Central Michigan- Passing:
Dan LeFevour, 14-16, 294 yds, 3 TD Rushing: Marcel Archer, 9-23, 2 TD. Receiving:
Justin Gardner, 3-95, 1 TD Buffalo - Passing: Stewart Sampsel,
15-28, 161 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Jared Patterson, 10-55, 1 TD. Receiving:
Chad Upshaw, 6-83, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... After a
decent performance in a 35-3 loss to Wisconsin, the last thing Buffalo
and head coach Turner Gill wanted was to finish up the season by getting
obliterated at home. The Bulls were never in the game against a focused
and sharp Central Michigan with the secondary getting torched over and
over right off the bat, while the offense did nothing in the second
quarter to slow down the momentum once the floodgates started opening
up. This game goes to show just how far the program has to go before
it's consistently competitive in the MAC.
Nov. 18
Wisconsin 35 ... Buffalo 3
Wisconsin overcame a sluggish start with several missed
opportunities to blow past the Bulls with 28 unanswered points after a
34-yard Adam Tanalski field goal to pull UB within four in the first
quarter. Tyler Donovan threw touchdown passes to Paul Hubbard and Luke
Swan, and P.J. Hill, Lance Smith and Dywon Rowan each ran for short
scores. The defense forced four turnovers and held the Bulls to just 16
first downs and 159 yards of total offense. Player of the game
...
Wisconsin QB Tyler Donovan was 16-of-26 for 308 yards, two touchdowns
and an interception. Stat Leaders: Buffalo- Passing: Tony Paoli,
6-of-23, 107 yds, 1 INT Rushing: James Starks, 15-31 Receiving: Naaman Roosevelt,
2-90 Wisconsin- Passing: Tyler Donovan, 16-26, 308 yds,
2 TDs, 1 INT
Rushing: P.J. Hill, 19-86, 1 TD Receiving: Travis Beckum,
5-135 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Buffalo
had no hope of playing with Wisconsin, but the defense held tough
throughout the first half and there were a few sparks of life, mostly
from Naaman Roosevelt. His 51-yard kickoff return was a thing of beauty,
while he showed he needs to get the ball in his hands some more and will
be the offensive weapon to revolve the attack around. With Central
Michigan already in the MAC championship, will it give its best effort
next week? UB has to take advantage and come up with a nice performance
going into the off-season.
Nov. 9
Kent State 31 ... Buffalo 16
Akron got up early with a three of Luke Getsy's four touchdown
passes putting the Zips up 21-3 on scoring passes to Jermaine
Lindsay from nine yards out, Merce Poindexter from 20 yards out, and
David Harvey from 30 yards out. The Bulls made it a little
interesting converting off a turnover to get a one-yard Steven King
touchdown run, but that would be as close as it would get. Harvey
put it away in the fourth with a 77-yard catch for a touchdown. Player of the
game ... Akron QB Luke Getsy
complete 13 of 20 passes for 272 yards and four touchdowns Stat Leaders: Buffalo - Passing: Tony Paoli,
15-24, 150 yds, 1 INT Rushing: James Starks, 23-77 Receiving: Haam
Roosevelt. 7-53 Akron - Passing: Luke Getsy, 13-20, 272 yds, 4 TD
Rushing: Dennis Kennedy, 27-103 Receiving: David
Harvey, 6-143, 2 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
Buffalo didn't get the turnovers against Akron that it did against
Kent State, and the offense couldn't pick up the slack. This isn't
an effective attack when it has a long field to deal with; the
passing game simply isn't consistent enough and doesn't have any
downfield pop. In the final few games, the Bulls have to try to take
some more shots down the field and needs to take more chances. This
is a young team that has to use the final two dates to be better for
next year.
Nov. 4
Buffalo 41 ... Kent State 14
Buffalo took advantage of five Kent State turnovers and tough
defense in the second half to score 41 unanswered points in the
shocking win, Julian Edelman ran for two touchdowns in the second
quarter to give the Golden Flashes the early lead, but Buffalo came
roaring back with three touchdown runs from James Starks, a 21-yard
touchdown catch from Terrance Breaux and a four-yard Steven King
scoring run as part of a 38-point second half. Mike Newton picked
off two passes for the Bulls Player of the
game ... Buffalo RB James
Starks ran 24 times for 162 yards and three touchdowns Stat Leaders: Buffalo - Passing: Tony Paoli,
14-20, 193 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT Rushing: James Starks, 24-163, 3 TD Receiving: Haam
Roosevelt. 3-90 Kent State: Julian Edelman, 16-29, 190 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Eugene Jarvis, 12-64 Receiving: Phil
Garner, 4-48 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
Talk about making some adjustments, Buffalo went in at halftime
against Kent State getting pushed around a little bit, and then came
back roaring. The defense was flying all over the place against the
Golden Flashes in the second half making play after play, while the
offensive line dominated opening up big holes for James Starks. Is
this the type of win that can turn the program around? That's asking
a lot, but it did show that the team could play with one of the best
teams in the MAC.
Oct. 28
Boston College 41 ... Buffalo 0
In a combination of win, snow and rain, Boston College got two
touchdown runs and a touchdown throw from QB Chris Crane. With
starter Matt Ryan getting the week off to rest up for the ACC's
stretch run, Crane carried the offense with his scrambling ability
as the Eagles outgained UM 349 yards to 92 and took advantage of
five UB turnovers. Steve Aponavicius hit two field goals and L.V.
Whitworth rumbled for a 43-yard touchdown run. The Bulls were held
to -12 rushing yards. Player of the
game ... In his first
career start, Boston College QB Chris Crane was 17-of-26 for 142
yards, one touchdown and one interception and ran for two more
scores and 12 yards on 10 carries. Stat Leaders: Buffalo- Passing: Drew Willy,
13-25, 80 yds, 2 INTs Rushing: James Starks, 9-1 Receiving: James Starks,
6-28 Boston College: Chris Crane, 17-26, 142 yds, 1
TD, 1 INT
Rushing: L.V. Whitworth, 10-84, 1 TD Receiving: Kevin
Challenger, 4-21 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
You'd think Buffalo would be great at handling itself in lousy
weather, but it couldn't deal with Boston College QB Chris Crane and
had no shot at getting the offense moving on the ground getting
stuffed for -12 yards. With Drew Willy unable to get the passing
game going for a third straight week, the attack wasn't going
anywhere. Now it's time to try to find something positive to build
on over the final month to take into next year.
Oct. 21
Ohio 42 ... Buffalo 7
Ohio had no problems with Buffalo getting out to a 28-0
halftime lead on two Kalvin McRae touchdown runs, the first of two
William Norwood scoring grabs, and a one-yard run from Voncarie
Owens. Buffalo finally got on the board in the third quarter on ta
four-yard James Starks run, but couldn't get anything else going
offensively. The Bobcats outgained UB 223 rushing yards to 39.
Player of the game
... Ohio RB Kalvin McRae ran 17 times for 109 yards and two
touchdowns and caught one pass for 25 yards Stat Leaders: Buffalo - Passing: Drew Willy, 14-25,
129 yds Rushing: Drew Willy, 8-15 Receiving: James Starks,
6-55 Ohio - Passing: Austen Everson, 11-17, 112 yds,
1 TD
Rushing: Kalvin McRae, 17-109, 2 TD Receiving: Chido
Nwokcha, 4-23 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... It's back
to the drawing board for Buffalo after the loss to Ohio. The Bull
running game was stuffed, Drew Willy wasn't able to get the passing
game going thanks to a fierce Bobcat pass rush, and the run defense
wasn't even close to coming up with a stop. To make matters worse,
the Bulls committed 13 penalties for 102 yards. The won't be a win
the rest of the way, but the team has to take positive steps towards
next year. There weren't any this week.
Oct. 15
Miami University 38 ... Buffalo 31
Played a day late thanks to the snowstorm that socked in the
Buffalo area, Miami held on in a wild fourth quarter getting up
38-21 thanks to two Andre Bratton touchdowns and two short scoring
runs from Andre Sykes, but Buffalo made it interesting with a
45-yard Naam Roosevelt touchdown catch with 1:50 to play. After
recovering the onside kick, UB got a 32-yard field goal but couldn't
get the second onside kick. The two teams combined for 23 penalties
for 217 yards. Player of the game
... Miami QB
Mike Kokal completed 17 of 28 passes for 167 yards and a touchdown
with an interception and ran 11 times for 23 yards Stat Leaders: Buffalo - Passing: Drew Willy, 13-23,
174 yds, 2 TD, 3 INT Rushing: James Starks, 19-113, 1 TD Receiving: James
Starks, 5-68 Miami Univ. - Passing: Mike Kokal, 17-28, 167
yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Andre Bratton, 15-54, 2 TD Receiving: Ryne Robinson, 6-55 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Buffalo
won't be happy with the loss to Miami University, but the offense
got going and showed a bit of spark throughout the game. Down late,
Drew Willy did a good job of trying to rally the team back only to
come up short. It might not seem like it, but this was a positive
step for the program showing it can battle in offensive shootouts.
The penalties, 13 of them and the four interceptions were way too
much to overcome. UB has to be sharper than it was this week to
compete over the next few weeks at Ohio and Boston College.
Oct. 7
Northern Illinois 55 ... Buffalo 25
Ball State came out roaring with a 38-3 halftime lead helped
by two short touchdown runs from B.J. Hill, a blocked punt for a
score, and a Nate Davis ten-yard touchdown pass to Darius Hill.
Buffalo needed its defense to get on the board with a 43-yard
interception return for a touchdown from Kareem Byrom, and then Drew
Willy bombed away in the fourth with two scoring passes when the
game was well out of reach. Player of the game
...
Ball State RB B.J. Hill ran 28 times for 116 yards and two
touchdowns Stat Leaders: Ball State- Passing: Nate Davis,
11-14, 247 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT Rushing: B.J. Hill, 28-116, 2 TD Receiving: Darius
Hill, 4-98, 2 TD Buffalo - Passing: Drew Willy, 27-40, 321 yds,
2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: James Starks, 19-65 Receiving: Naam Roosevelt,
7-72, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
The Bulls simply don't have the talent
yet to handle a focused, fired up team like Ball State was. Even in
the bad blowout, there were a few positives. Drew Willy threw the
ball well, the defense, despite getting rolled over, got decent
pressure in the backfield, and RB James Starks once again showed
signs of potentially being the type of back to work the offense
around. However, UB can't get behind like it did this week; it's not
a team built for big comebacks. The D has to play better in the
first quarter.
Sept. 23
Auburn 38 ... Buffalo 7
Auburn went through the motions, but still had few problems
with an overmatched Buffalo squad as Brad Lester ran for two short
scores and Ben Tate tore off two fourth quarter touchdown runs.
Buffalo only gained 198 yards of total offense and scored ones on a
five-yard Evan Wallace catch in the third quarter. Kenny Irons sat
out for the Tigers. Player of the game ... Auburn RB Brad Lester ran 18
times for 83 yards and two touchdowns Stat Leaders: Buffalo- Passing: Drew
Willy, 12-21, 111 yds, 1 TD Rushing:
James Starks, 20-66 Receiving:
Chad Upshaw, 4-63 Auburn - Passing: Brandon Cox, 6-10, 134
yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Ben Tate, 7-114, 2 TD Receiving:
Courtney Taylor, 3-48 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
Buffalo never had a prayer of coming away from Auburn with a win,
and there wasn't much to take away from this blowout loss. James
Starks ran reasonably well and the team hung tough in the first half
when the Tigers weren't paying attention. There weren't any
turnovers and only three penalties, so the team didn't shoot itself
in the foot. On the plus side, Ball State will look like it's going
half-speed next week.
Sept. 16
Northern Illinois 31 ... Buffalo 13
Northern Illinois jumped out to a 17-0 lead and put the game
away early in the fourth quarter thanks to two huge runs from
Garrett Wolfe. The Huskie star ran for a 49-yard touchdown and a
68-yard score, and Montel Clanton rolled for a 58-yard scoring dash.
Buffalo got a one-yard touchdown run from Steven King in the third
quarter, but it didn't score again until there were :42 to play on a
28-yard catch from Terrance Breaux. Player of the game ... Northern Illinois RB Garrett
Wolfe ran 24 times for 263 yards and two touchdowns Stat Leaders: Buffalo- Passing: Drew
Willy, 25-41, 250 yds, 1 TD Rushing: James Starks, 15-69. Receiving:
Terrance Breaux, 8-104, 1 TD Northern Illinois - Passing: Phil
Horvath, 12-19, 156 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Garrett Wolfe, 24-263, 2 TD. Receiving:
Marcus Perez, 6-91, 1 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Outside
of giving up three huge scoring runs, the Buffalo defense wasn't all
that horrible against Northern Illinois. Fine, so it's tough to get
excited after allowing 500 yards, but the Huskie offense was due to
explode after a tough start to the season. Drew Willy was decent at
limiting mistakes, but he didn't push the ball down the field well
enough to give the Bulls any hope of coming back.
Sept. 9
Bowling Green 48 ... Buffalo 40 3OT
Bowling Green took the lead in the third overtime on a
seven-yard touchdown pass to Ruben Ruiz, and then the D held as
Jacob Hardwick forced a fumble to seal the win. The Falcons
outgained the Bulls 570 yards to 243 and 356 to 105 on the ground,
but UB stayed alive every way possible with a kickoff return for a
score from Naam Roosevelt, a blocked punt return for touchdown, and
a 13-yard Drew Willy touchdown run. Bowling Green forced overtime
with 1:30 to play on a 17-yard touchdown catch from Ruiz, and then
scored first on a 13-yard run from Freddie Barnes. Steven King
answered with a one-yard touchdown run, and then UB took the lead in
the second overtime on a one-yard Jared Patterson score. The Falcons
needed one play to tie it on a 25-yard touchdown pass to Brandon
Jones. Player of the game ... Bowling Green QB Anthony Turner
completed 16 of 23 passes fro 204 yards and three touchdowns with an
interception and ran 23 times for 127 yards and a score. Stat Leaders: Buffalo- Passing: Drew
Willy, 21-32, 138 yds Rushing: Steven King, 21-55, 1 TD. Receiving:
Brett Hamlin, 6-40 Bowling Green - Passing: Anthony Turner,
16-23, 204 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Anthony Turner, 23-127 1 TD. Receiving:
Ruben Ruiz, 4-62, 2 TD Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The
offense might not be smooth and the defense wasn't even close to
slowing down Bowling Green, but the team found a way to hang in
there and almost pull out the stunning road win. The Bulls didn't
get nearly enough offensive production, but Drew Willy and the
attack capitalized on every Falcon mistake. Now the trick will be to
keep being competitive on the road; something that was a major
problem in past seasons. Eventually, the wins will start coming as
long as the team stays in games late.
Aug. 31
Buffalo 9 ... Temple 3 OT
Buffalo won its first game in the Turner Gill era when RB
James Starks scored on an 18-yard run in overtime. Temple got the
ball first in the extra session and gave it over to the Bulls with a
Jesse Imes interception of Owl QB Adam DiMichele. Buffalo broke the
defensive battle on a 27-yard Taylor Packwood field goal midway
through the fourth quarter, but Temple managed its best drive of the
night late in the game culminating in a 20-yard Danny Murphy field
goal with 1:44 to play. Neither offense did much of anything with
Temple only cranking out 183 total yards and UB coming up with 356. Player of the game ... Buffalo LB Ramon Guzman made 14
tackles, 1 interception and three tackles for loss. Stat Leaders: Temple- Passing: Adam
DiMichele, 19-24, 103 yds, 1 INT Rushing: Tim Brown, 20-82. Receiving:
Tim Brown, 6-23 Buffalo - Passing: Drew Willy, 13-24, 188
yds
Rushing: James Starks, 14-86, 1 TD. Receiving:
Terrance Breaux, 3-68 Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... A win is
a win is a win is a win is a win. Yeah, it might have only come
against Temple, but Buffalo actually moved the ball a little bit
while holding the Temple offense to no steady production. The
biggest stat might have been the attendance figure: 29.795. For UB
to start to be more competitive, it needs more overall support. This
crowd showed that there's interest with the new coaching staff and
the possibilities, but the fans will only keep coming out with more
wins.
The Nebraska quarterback legend and new head coach brings
fire and enthusiasm to a program that never caught a break under
former head man Jim Hofher. Like all new coaching staffs, there are
plenty of new ideas, lots of talk about turning things around, and
lots of energy knowing that the team is starting from the bottom up.
What the program really needs are players, and lots of them. That's
where Gill will earn his money. One of the most tireless and influential recruiters in the game,
it'll be up to Gill to sell those shunned by the bigger schools on
the merits of Buffalo, like Ted's hot dogs, a big school, a
good-sized city, and the chance to make an impact right away.
Buffalo plays in the MAC, so it's not like it has to deal with
playing Ohio State, Florida or Texas, but it doesn't have become
competitive in conference play for the first time since, well, ever.
Built to be a good defensive program under Hofher, the Bulls have never
been able to do much offensively averaging a mere 15.3 points per game
over the last seven seasons. There are plenty of young prospects to
build around with a decent group of quarterbacks led by big sophomore
Drew Willy, a good backfield with four nice options, and tight end Chad
Upshaw leading a promising receiving corps. The offensive line is big
and bigger, and now it needs to use its bulk to shove someone around.
The bar will be set low by everyone but Gill and his coaching staff, so
even the most modest of successes will be hailed as a big step. The
program is due for some good fortune.
The
Schedule: The Bulls play Temple right off the bat in a battle of two
of last year's worst teams (New Mexico State should be included in a
round-robin tournament). A win is a must with three straight road games
getting progressively harder starting at Bowling Green, then to Northern
Illinois, and finally to Auburn. Forget about the rest of the
non-conference schedule going to Boston College and Wisconsin, but there
are chances for a few wins playing Ball State and Kent State at home and
going on the road to face Ohio.
Best
Offensive Player:
Senior TE Chad Upshaw. While a little light at 246 pounds to attract a
lot of big interest from the NFL types, Upshaw has room to grow on his
6-4 frame and add another ten to become a possible second day pick. He
has the hands and the moves to go along with his good blocking ability.
Best
Defensive Player: Junior SS Kareem Byrom. Byrom will combine with
Jesse Imes to form a decent safety tandem that needs to be the rock of
the defense until everything else comes together. Byrom led the team in
both tackles and interceptions and should once again be the tone setting
playmaker.
Key player
to a successful season: The entire offensive line. It's a huge line
averaging well over 300 pounds per man and must be far more productive.
It was awful in the ground game and did nothing to keep the quarterbacks
upright. If the front five doesn't have a better year, neither will one
of the nation's worst offenses.
The season
will be a success if
... Buffalo wins four games. Considering the Bulls haven't won
more than three since moving to D-I, a four victory season would be
reason for a parade. The chances will be there with five winnable games,
but there will need to be at least one good upset to make it happen.
Key game:
August 31 vs. Temple. Two new coaching staffs will play up the
season opener like it's the BCS Championship game. For these two woeful
programs, it might be. A win by the Bulls would match last year's
victory total and get the Gill era off to a huge start before dealing
with the brutal part of the slate.
2005 Fun
Stats:
- Sacks: Opponents 43 for 303 yards - Buffalo 18 for 142 yards
- First quarter scoring: Opponents 81 - Buffalo 7
- Field goals: Opponents 14 of 19 - Buffalo 4 of 13
The Last Time Buffalo…
…played in a bowl game…never
…missed a bowl game…2005
…pitched a shutout…2001 (Ohio)
…was shutout…2005 (Syracuse)
…went undefeated…1899
…won a conference title…never
…had a 3,000-yard passer…never
…had a 1,000-yard rusher…1996 (Anthony Swan)
…had a 1,000-yard receiver…1997 (Drew Haddad)
…had a first-round draft choice…never
