2006 Buffalo Bulls

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.

2006 Schedule CFN Prediction: 2-10 2005 Results: 2-10 Preview 2005 predicted wins
8/31	Temple W 9-3 OT
9/9	at B Green L 48-40 3 OT
9/16	at No Illinois L 31-13
9/23	at Auburn L 38-7
10/7	Ball State L 55-25
10/14	Miami Univ. L 38-31
10/21	at Ohio L 42-7
10/28	at Boston College L 41-0
11/4	Kent State W 41-14
11/9	at Akron L 31-16
11/18	at Wisconsin L 35-3
11/24	Central Michigan L 55-28

2005 Schedule CFN Prediction: 3-8 2005 Results: 1-10 Preview 2005 predicted wins
9/1	at Connecticut L 38-0
9/10	at Syracuse L 31-0
9/17	Rutgers L 17-3
10/1	at Western Mich L 31-21
10/8	Akron L 13-7
10/15	Bowling Green L 27-7
10/22	at Toledo L 38-15
10/29	Ohio L 34-20
11/5	at Miami Univ. L 54-13
11/12	at Kent State W 10-6
11/19	Eastern Mich L 38-14

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.

2006 Buffalo Preview

Buffalo Preview | Offense | Defense | Depth Chart | Further Analysis

Ten wins since 1999 with 69 losses. Ten points per game last year. Seven points scored in the first quarter ... all year.

Good luck, Turner Gill.

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