UB football makes roaring comeback in 34-27 win against Toledo (2024)

This was the University at Buffalo football team’s opportunity to move one game closer to bowl eligibility.

It was a prime chance to maintain its lead in the Mid-American Conference’s East Division.

This was UB’s chance to gain even more legitimacy as a MAC contender after a 3-0 start in conference play.

The Bulls did all that. UB proved it belongs in conversation among the MAC’s top teams in a 34-27 comeback win against Toledo on Saturday at UB Stadium.

In a matter of less than seven minutes, UB (5-3, 4-0 MAC) rallied from a 27-10 deficit by scoring 24 unanswered points in the fourth quarter, as Ron Cook Jr.’s 30-yard touchdown run with 8:06 left in the game gave the Bulls their first lead, at 31-27.

Then, after Alex McNulty’s 42-yard field goal with 47 seconds left opened the Bulls’ lead to seven, Caleb Offord intercepted Rockets quarterback Dequan Finn ahead of the goal line in the final seconds, which ended the Rockets’ hopes of a comeback.

“That game was really a microcosm of our entire season,” UB coach Maurice Linguist said. “Starting off the season 0-3, a lot of people doubted us. A lot of people didn't believe in us. All we did was keep staying together and keep fighting. We’re not done yet. We’re not done yet. And I'm not surprised by the result of this game.”

The win against Toledo (5-3, 3-1) told the Bulls a lot about themselves. It reiterated to UB quarterback Cole Snyder the fortitude of his team.

“You’ve seen it before,” said Snyder, whose team has five straight wins. “This team, just to not give up in a game like that, it says a ton about our culture and our foundation.”

It showed Cook what he already knew: the strength of UB’s team culture, as well as the strength of his team’s humility.

“Everything that is going on between these walls, it’s working,” said Cook, who ran for 118 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. “It’s definitely seeping into our brains.”

UB safety Marcus Fuqua saw the value of finishing – again.

“We’re going to finish,” he said. “We’re going to fight to the end, and we’re going to finish. Each of the wins we’ve got this season, we finished. That’s why we won. We finished the game.”

On an unseasonable, 66-degree day in late October, Fuqua made a forecast for another meeting between the Rockets and the Bulls.

“It could end up being a matchup that we end up having down the road,” Fuqua said, likely referring to the MAC Championship game Dec. 3 at Ford Field in Detroit.

Snyder also made a declaration.

“We knew that this was going to be a big game for the purpose of seeding for the MAC,” Snyder said. “Our mindset going into this game was, let everyone know that the MAC runs through Buffalo.

“And that's what we did today.”

Seconds, thirds and fourths for the secondary: Fuqua had three of UB’s four interceptions, and tied a school record for three interceptions in a game, set by Cortney Lester in 2012 against Western Michigan.

Fuqua’s first interception came when he caught Finn’s Hail Mary pass attempt as time expired in the first half. His second came when he caught the ball after Shaun Dolac tipped Finn’s pass on second-and-10 from the 25 about six minutes into the fourth, and then his third came with about three minutes left, less than a minute after Snyder fumbled the ball on third-and-7 at the Toledo 43.

The return set up UB’s final scoring drive, which ended with McNulty’s field goal with 47 seconds left.

Even more impressive about the secondary’s performance was that it came on a day when the Bulls were missing some depth, as cornerbacks Elijah Blades (unspecified injury) and Jayden Oliver (right arm in a sling) did not play against Toledo.

Lack of offensive rhythm: For the first three quarters, UB couldn’t seem to find any sort of fluidity in its offense. Jahmin Muse scored UB’s only first-half touchdown in first half, a fumble recovery for a 72-yard touchdown return.

Toledo wielded a balanced offensive effort in the first half and outgained UB 252-99 by halftime; the Rockets had 130 rushing yards on 26 attempts, and Finn had 14 completions for 122 yards.

But late in the third quarter, the offense discovered its rhythm, with 122 yards in the third quarter, and then accrued 177 yards in the fourth quarter – 75 rushing yards and 102 passing yards. Four of UB’s five fourth-quarter drives finished with scoring plays, and the Bulls finished with 398 yards on 77 plays.

That productivity, the Bulls said, came from a few adjustments: getting the ball to players who can make plays. Focusing on executing plays. Taking one play at a time – not looking one or two or three plays ahead or not dwelling on previous plays.

“There were opportunities to make plays, and I think whoever it was, me included, just was a little bit off,” said Snyder, who was 22 for 39 passing for 245 yards and a touchdown. “We made some key adjustments when we came into halftime and really stuck with what was working. We just did a great job of just continuing to fight, continuing to pound the rock and we knew that things would turn our way.”

Linguist said there wasn’t a wake-up moment or a point where the lightbulb finally came on for the Bulls. Instead, Linguist saw it as a matter of the momentum turning in favor of UB – and UB grabbing that energy and running with it, literally and figuratively.

“There was never a disbelief,” Linguist said. “Obviously, you have to do it. You have to make the plays. You have to make the tackle, make the catch. … But I like to think that we play with a lot of energy, even when we’re down and I will tell you this, we don't come back in games like this if there isn’t a real foundation of substance in that locker room. It's so easy to point it to this one moment. But I think it's a collection of moments that just kind of overwhelmed that opposing sideline. Just like in heavyweight fights, you know, you may get knocked down, you may get bloodied a little bit, but how do you get back up and swing back? We were able to do that today.”

Early special-teams woes: In addition to the offense struggling to produce in the first half, UB’s special teams unit also had its own issues.

UB punter Anthony Venneri had four punts for an average of 35.3 yards, but three set up short fields for the Rockets. UT’s Adam Beal returned Venneri’s first punt 29 yards to the UB 49, and his second punt went only 16 yards.

The second punt, though, was washed out when Keyshawn Cobb forced wide receiver Devin Maddox to fumble the ball, which set up Muse’s recovery and his 72-yard touchdown. The third punt by Venneri went only 12 yards to the Rockets 46. Four plays into that drive, UB’s Clevester Hines was penalized for jumping over the center as Rockets punter Jonathan Batzke lined up on fourth-and-11 from the Toledo 45 in the second. The penalty revived Toledo’s drive, moved the Rockets to the UB 40 and set up Thomas Cluckey’s second field goal, a 23-yard kick that opened the Rockets’ lead to 20-7 with 1:38 left in the half.

Who went out: UB defensive tackle Daymond Williams left the game due to an unspecified injury that came during the course of Finn’s second touchdown, which gave UT a 27-10 lead with 6:09 left in the third.

Linguist did not have an immediate update on Williams’ status or any injury diagnosis after the win. Williams has been one of UB’s most effective nose tackles; he’s started eight games this season for the Bulls and started the week with 3.5 sacks, one quarterback hurry and 15 tackles, including 7.5 for a loss of 34 yards.

Williams added a pass breakup and three tackles Saturday against Toledo.

Who else was out: In addition to Blades and Oliver, players not in pads for UB during warmups included center Sidney Walker (right arm in sling), offensive lineman Dom Polizzi, wide receiver Jovany Ruiz, linebacker Fabian Weitz, wide receiver Khamran Laborn and defensive end Max Michel.

Honoring a UB great: UB unveiled sideline decals on the synthetic turf that commemorate former UB coach Bill Dando, who died in February. Dando coached at UB from 1977-89 and is the Bulls’ all-time winningest coach.

Dando’s initials are in blue, inside of a white circle, and the two circles are at the 20-yard line of each sideline at UB Stadium.

What’s next: UB plays its first MACtion game when it faces Ohio at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 1 at Peden Stadium in Athens, Ohio. With a win against the Bobcats, the Bulls can earn its sixth win and be bowl-eligible for the fifth time in the last six seasons. UB also was bowl-eligible in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.