Buffalo Bulls: No Excuse for Embarrassing Loss to Albany
By Paul Taylor
The Buffalo Bulls’ 2016 campaign gets off to a disastrous start, as the Albany Great Danes come away with the stunning upset win.
If you outgain an opponent 403-238 in yards and 23-12 in first downs, 99 times out of 100, you expect to win. Unfortunately for the Buffalo Bulls, this was that other one time, as Albany ruined their home opener with a 22-16 victory.
However, the Bulls have no one to blame but themselves, after a sloppy performance highlighted by nine penalties and, more importantly, four turnovers. The key turnover came with 4:01 remaining in the game, when Tyree Jackson converted a fourth-and-six play with a scramble, but fumbled at the goal line,
In truth, this should have never come down to the wire, no matter how inexperienced the Bulls roster is. They beat Albany 51-14 just last season, and entered Friday night as heavy favorites.
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Speaking to Mark Gaughan of The Buffalo News and the rest of the media after the game, a clearly stunned Lance Leipold said: “Obviously way too many mistakes tonight.
“The margin for error isn’t very big when you keep giving them chances. I don’t fault effort…you just have to execute better.”
A sign of how the evening was going to turn out came early, when Grant Rohach threw a pick on his first pass of the game. He would throw another interception before the end of the opening quarter and overall gained just 52 yards on nine pass attempts, before being benched.
In the process, Rohach may have played himself out of contention to be the starter behind center. The Bulls had entered the contest, intent on giving both quarterbacks plenty of opportunities to prove themselves against a supposedly inferior opponent.
In that respect, Jackson appears to be the answer despite his goal line fumble, combined with an interception of his own on the Bulls’ last drive of the game. With 125 yards through the air and another 60 on the ground, he should provide an intriguing dual threat for opponents to contend with.
Jackson had no problem owning up this mistake at the goal line, as he told WKBW‘s Catlin Bogard and the rest of the media: “That one’s on me.”
However, the North Shores, Michigan native remains positive about what lies ahead: “We play 12 games – this game isn’t going to define us.”
Assuming Jackson does become the main man, his running ability should offer an excellent compliment to the Bulls ground game. They finished with 226 yards against Albany, including 114 on 23 carries by Jordan Johnson.
In should be noted though, that Leipold is not yet prepared to name his starter: “We’re not ready to say how we’re moving forward yet.”
In fairness this makes sense, especially with emotions still raw after such a shocking result. At least the Bulls’ head coach will have plenty of time to contemplate his decision, with the team not playing again until September 17.
Next: Bulls will rely heavily on defensive line
What did you take away from the Bulls’ loss to Albany? Are you prepared to anoint Jackson as the starter, or do you want to see more from both quarterbacks, before a final decision is made? Let us know in the comments section below.