Buffalo (4-3, 2-1 MAC) vs. Bowling Green (2-4, 2-1 MAC)
October 24, 2026
Broadview Stadium – 3:30 pm
Bulls on the Air
Radio
Buffalo – ESPN 1520
Television
ESPN+
Storylines
• Buffalo is 6-2 over the last eight meetings with Bowling Green, but the two losses were at Broadview Stadium.
• Messiah Burch has rushed for over 100 yards in four straight games. He is looking to become the first UB running back to rush for 100 yards in five straight games since Jaret Patterson in 2019. Patterson rushed for over 100 yards in the final six games of that season.
• The Bulls have only allowed one passing touchdown in the last four games and none in MAC play.
• Through seven games, Buffalo has only allowed one 100-yard rusher. Penn State’s Quinton Martin rushed for exactly 100 yards against the Bulls on Sept. 19.
• After forcing only two turnovers over the first five games, the Bulls have forced five turnovers of the last two games with three at Toledo and two against UMass.
• UB kicker Oliver Hautanen is the reigning MAC Special Teams Player of the Week after making all three of his field goal attempts in the Bulls win over UMass.
• Buffalo’s next win will be the 19th for head coach Pete Lembo – tying him with Craig Cirbus (1995-00) for seventh in program history.
Bulls Host Bowling Green on Saturday for Senior Day
The University at Buffalo football team will host Bowling Green on Saturday afternoon in search of their third straight win.
Buffalo is 4-3 overall, 2-1 in the MAC and is coming off a 25-18 overtime win over UMass last Saturday. The Bulls were led by tight end Clint Walker who had two touchdown receptions in the game.
Bowling Green is 2-5 overall, 2-1 in the MAC and is coming off a 32-31 overtime loss to Ball State last Saturday. The Falcons are led by linebacker Dorian Pringle who has 67 tackles and five tackles for loss on the season.
Bowling Green leads the all-time series, 13-9. The Bulls won the last meeting, 28-3, at Bowling Green last season.
I Love the 70s
70 seems to be the magic number for the Buffalo offense this season. All four of UB’s wins have come when it runs 70 plays in a game. The Bulls are 4-0 when they run 70 plays and 0-3 when they run less than 70 plays.
Buffalo ran 80 plays against UAlbany, 91 plays against Robert Morris, 78 against Toledo and 79 against UMass.
Sweet Burch
Messiah Burch has come into his own as a running back in recent weeks. Over the last four games, the senior back is averaging 140 yards per game.
The 561 yards over the last four games is nearly double his rushing total from his first 22 career games combined (294).
He currently leads the MAC in rushing, averaging 94.4 yards per game.
Burch is the first UB running back since Jaret Patterson in 2019 to rush for 100 yards in four consecutive games.
After an injury-plagued season in 2025, Burch looks to have returned to his 2024 form when he averaged 5.3 yards per carry as a reserve running back.
High Five
Tight end Clint Walker is putting up numbers that haven’t been seen by a UB tight end in quite some time.
The fifth-year tight end has 20 receptions on the season, good for second on the team. His 20 receptions are the most by a UB tight end since Zac Lefebvre had 21 receptions in 2019.
Walker had his first two touchdown catches, including the game-winner in overtime, in UB’s win over UMass. He became the first UB tight end to catch a touchdown pass since Andrew Schnackenberg at Kent State in 2023. Walker was the first UB tight end to catch two touchdowns in a game since Lefebvre in 2019.
OH My!
First-year starting kicker Oliver Hautanen has been very reliable for the Bulls this season. The sophomore kicker has made 12 field goals through seven games – the most of any kicker in the Mid-American Conference.
He made three field goals in each of the last two games, becoming the first UB kicker to make three field goals in consecutive games since Alex McNulty made four at Coastal Carolina and three at Eastern Michigan in 2022.
Hautanen drilled a 52-yard field at FIU on his first career attempt. It tied for the sixth longest field goal in program history.
He was named the MAC Special Teams Player of the Week after his three field goal performance against UMass.
Wright on Target
Jason Wright continues to improve at quarterback for the Bulls.
He saw his first action in the second half at FIU when season starter Elijah Holmes exited the game with an injury.
Since MAC play has started, he has guided the Bulls to a 2-1 start, while averaging 158 passing yards and only throwing one interception.
He has also done damage with his legs. Against Robert Morris, Wright rushed for 95 yards – the most by a UB quarterback since Matt Myers ran for 110 yards against Kent State in 2022.
He had a rushing touchdown in Buffalo’s win at Toledo.
Not So Fast
The UB defense has been stout against the run this season, especially lately.
In their first two conference games, the Bulls held Western Michigan and Toledo, two of the league’s top offenses, to 115 and 110 yards, respectively.
Penn State’s Quinton Martin (100) is the only player to rush for 100 yards against the Bulls this season.
Take a Chance
Wide receiver Chance Morrow is off to a tremendous start to the season. The fifth-year transfer from Louisville, now in his fourth season with the Bulls, has 37 receptions for 441 yards and six touchdowns so far on the season.
It’s truly a breakout season for Morrow who had 16 receptions for 258 yards and two touchdowns over his first three seasons at Buffalo combined.
Against Albany, Morrow became the first Buffalo player to total three touchdown catches in a game since All-MAC receiver Anthony Johnson had three touchdown receptions against Miami (OH) in 2018.
His 11 receptions at FIU were the most by a UB player since Justin Marshall had 11 against Georgia Southern in the 2022 Camellia Bowl. His 173 receiving yards were the eighth most for a single game in Buffalo’s FBS era (since 1999).
Running Down a Dream
Buffalo rushed for 302 yards in its victory over Robert Morris. It was just the second time in the last five seasons the Bulls eclipsed 300 yards rushing in a game. They rushed for 370 yards against St. Francis in 2025.
All 302 yards were gained by just three players. Messiah Burch (146), Jason Wright (95) and Nino Hill (64) all rushed for career highs in the game.
Ethan Punt
Punter Ethan Stumpf is off to a record-breaking start to the season. The junior punter ranks second in the MAC in punting, averaging 45.5 yards per punt. Of his 44 punts, 12 have sailed over 50 yards, including a season-long 72-yard punt against Western Michigan.
The program record for single-season punt average is 44.7, set by Dylan Drennan in 2025.
Close Calls
Buffalo’s 25-18 win over UMass last week was another one-score game for the Bulls. 11 of UB’s last 17 games, dating back to last season, have been decided by one score. The Bulls are 6-5 in those ten one-score games.
New Faces
Buffalo has 54 new players on the roster from a season ago. Of the new faces, 23 are transfers and 31 are freshmen.
There were 22 newcomers on the week-one depth chart.
Elijah Holmes (QB), Clint Walker (TE), Logan Goodwin (Edge), Zach Bergmann (LB), Stevie Bracey (LB) and Joseph Stoever (LS) all started the season opener.
New Coordinators
Coach Lembo has new coordinators on offense, defense and special teams entering this season. Offensive coordinator Tony Tokarz and special teams coordinator Garrett McLaughlin are new to the staff while defensive coordinator Brian Dougherty was elevated from safeties and nickels coach.
Tokarz came to Buffalo from Florida State where he spent the past six seasons, including the previous four as quarterbacks coach. Prior to Florida State, Tokarz was tight ends coach at Memphis where he coached with Lembo.
A native of Orchard Park, McLaughlin returned to Western New York after spending the past two seasons as special teams coordinator and defensive line coach at Columbia.
Dougherty is in his third season on Lembo’s staff and first as defensive coordinator. He previously served as defensive coordinator at both the University of Indianapolis and Valparaiso.
Six Bulls Named to Phil Steele’s Preseason All-MAC Team
Six University at Buffalo football players have been named to Phil Steele’s Preseason All-MAC Team.
Wide Receiver Jasaiah Gathings was named to the first team. Safety Miles Greer was named to the second team. Defensive tackle Cornell Evans and nickel SaVeon Brown were named to the third team. Tight end Clint Walker and cornerback Kobi Blackwell were named to the fourth team.
Gathings is in his second year with the program after transferring from UConn. The graduate receiver had 36 catches for 410 yards and three touchdowns in 2025.
Greer is also in his second year with the program after transferring from Shepard University. In 2025, he ranked third on the team in tackles with 74 and added three tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.
Evans, who has started 16 games over the last two seasons, had 14 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss in 2025.
Brown had 52 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and two sacks in 2025.
Walker is a newcomer to the program after transferring from Davenport University. He spent four seasons with the Panthers and was an All-Conference selection in 2025.
Blackwell had a breakout season for the Bulls in 2025. The redshirt-sophomore had a team-high seven pass breakups in 2025 and added 20 tackles and an interception.
It’s Broadview Stadium Now
Thanks to a partnership with Buffalo Athletics and Broadview Federal Credit Union, Broadview Stadium is the new name of the former UB Stadium. The landmark agreement will have the Broadview name on both the stadium and arena for the next 15 years.
Bulls Picked Sixth in Preseason Poll
Buffalo was picked to finish sixth in the Mid-American Conference preseason poll according to the MAC head coaches.
Western Michigan was picked first with 138 points, followed by Miami (134), Toledo (115), Ohio (107), Central Michigan (101), Buffalo (81), Eastern Michigan (76), Kent State (64), Bowling Green (59), Akron (52), Ball State (34), Sacramento State (28) and Massachusetts (25).
Western Michigan was selected as the preseason favorite to win the MAC Championship.
On The Airwaves
Again this season, University at Buffalo football can be heard locally on ESPN 1520, a 50,000-watt station with one of the strongest signals in the nation. Calling all the play-by-play action of Bulls football for his 27th year, and 19th consecutive, will be Paul Peck. Scott Wilson is back for his 10th season as analyst. Brad Riter also returns as game host.
The UB Football postgame show will once again be hosted by Bob Gaughan.
