Bulls Look to Bounce Back Against UCF

UB defense hopes to build on second half of Pitt game

Brett Hamlin

Buffalo, NY - The Buffalo Bulls are taking their second long road trip of the year as they travel to Orlando to take on the UCF Knights on Saturday night.

“We are excited about playing Central Florida,” said head coach Turner Gill. “It’s a good opportunity for our football team and we’re looking forward to a very good opponent.”

The Bulls are coming off a disappointing 54-27 loss to Big East favorite Pittsburgh. The Bulls were down 14-0 early in the first quarter, but fought back and pulled to within striking distance.

“We came back and made it competitive and had a chance to possibly win the football game,” said Gill. “Our players showed they had heart, they showed that they can play together. The loss hurts, but the biggest thing now is how we are going to respond.”

The Bulls defense looks to use the momentum they gained in the second half against the Panthers to carry over against UCF. The Bulls allowed only 119 yards in the second half, 85 of them coming on one run.

“I’m very happy about how the defense played the second half, in terms of the amount of yards given up,” said Gill. “It gave us a chance to be competitive and a chance to win the game.”

The Bulls will have their hands full with UCF, as they bring back a wealth of starters from the 2008 squad.

Senior quarterback Brett Hodges will make his first start for the Knights. Hodges, a transfer from Wake Forest has been nothing but stellar coming off the bench for the Knights the past two games. He is 25-of 43 for 287 yards with three touchdowns and one interception for a 132.58 efficiency rating. The Knights are coming off a 26-19 loss to Southern Mississippi where Hodges was 15-for-26 with a career high 158 yards passing and two touchdowns.

The Knights will look to their defense to try to stop the Bulls offense, which tallied over 500 yards of total offense last week against the Panthers.

“Their defense is quick, fast, and strong. They are very active and play with an extreme amount of energy,” said Gill. “They have a lot of very good personnel on the defensive side of the ball.”

UCF is 5-1 all time against Buffalo. The most recent meeting was in 2004 when the Bulls routed the Knights, 48-20, at UB Stadium.

The Bulls are looking for their first ever win in the state of Florida.

Saturday’s will be televised live locally in Western New York on Time Warner Cable SportsNet (Channel 13) at 7:30 pm.

The game can also be heard on the Bulls Radio Network, 1230 AM in Buffalo as well as 1280 AM and 107.3 FM in Rochester.

Written by Zach Ruske