Chris McDuffie

RENO, NV - The University at Buffalo football team dropped a non-conference affair to Nevada, 38-13, at Mackay Stadium on Saturday night. Despite the lopsided final score, the outcome of the contest was in doubt until late in the fourth quarter. In fact, UB trailed by only eight points with less than four minutes remaining in the game. Nevada, a member of the Western Athletic Conference, known for its highly-potent offensive teams, rolled up 441 yards of total offense on the Bulls. UB managed 288 yards of total offense, with 183 yards gained on the ground.

Things were going Buffalo's way early as it took a 7-0 lead on an 8-yard touchdown run by Jared Patterson (Belvidere, NJ/Belvidere) with 3:57 left in the first quarter. The Bulls' score was set up by a botched snap on a Nevada punt attempt that resulted in Buffalo gaining possession on the Nevada 38 yard line. UB then used five straight running plays to pound the ball into the endzone.

Nevada tied the game with 7:07 remaining in the second quarter on an impressive 11-play, 95-yard scoring drive that was capped by a 41-yard touchdown pass from Jeff Rowe to a streaking Nichiren Flowers.

The Rowe-to-Flowers connection struck again with 3:03 left in the first half as the Rowe found Flowers for a 51-yard touchdown strike to give the Wolf Pack a 14-7 lead. Nevada held the seven-point advantage at halftime.

On its first drive of the second half, Buffalo cut the Nevada lead to 14-10 on a 28-yard field goal by Michael Baker (Jamestown, NY/Jamestown). The field goal was set up by a 74-yard run by Chris McDuffie (Amherst, NY/Williamsville North) - the second-longest run in UB's Division I-A era and the longest of McDuffie's career. The sophomore running back finished the game with a career-best 122 yards on 14 carries.

Baker connected on the longest field goal of his career, 47 yards, with 6:56 left in the third quarter to cut the Nevada lead to 14-13.

The Wolf Pack took a 21-13 lead with 2:23 left in the third quarter on a 1-yard plunge by Chance Kretschmer. The four-play drive, which covered 65 yards, consisted entirely of running plays by Kretschmer. The key play was a 52-yard dash by the senior running back.

Nevada iced the game in the fourth quarter with a 13-play, 64-yard drive that resulted in a 19-yard field goal by Damon Fine to put the Wolf Pack ahead, 24-13. But more importantly, the drive consumed 6:45 of the game clock. On the ensuing drive, Randall Secky (Bemus Point, NY/Maple Grove), looking to make something happen for the Bulls, threw an interception and Nevada capitalized with a 6-yard touchdown run by Rowe to take a 31-13 lead. Secky was picked again on the very next drive, giving the Wolf Pack the ball on the UB 22 yard line. Nevada hit paydirt again just two plays later on an 18-yard touchdown run by Drew Robinson.

Ryan Sherwood-Ericsson

Defensively for UB, Ryan Sherwood-Ericsson (Erie, PA/McDowell) (12), Jeff Bublavi (Norwood, PA/Interboro) (10) and James Evans (Irvington, NJ/Irvington) (7) all set career highs in tackles. A second quarter interception by Rich Sanders (Miami, FL/Coral Reef), marked the third straight game the Bulls have forced a turnover.

"Nevada proved to be a very good football team tonight," head coach Jim Hofher said. "They were very tough and very physical and when plays needed to be made, they made them more than we made them. So that was a disappointment for our football team tonight. When it counted, we didn't make enough plays to be able to win."

Nevada (2-1) was led by Flowers who had nine catches for 161 yards and two touchdowns and Kretschmer who rushed for 154 yards and a score.

The Bulls (0-3) will remain on the road to face conference-foe Ohio next Saturday at Peden Stadium with kickoff slated for 7:00 pm.