The Yellowjackets lost to Buffalo State 21 to 35 at Fauver Field Saturday on Senior Day, Nov. 2.
UR won the coin toss and elected to play defense in the first half. Buffalo State struck first by scoring a touchdown on a 95-yard drive. They then rushed in for a two-point conversion.
Both teams were unable to score for the rest of the quarter, with UR having two opportunities and Buffalo State one. On UR’s second drive at the beginning of the second quarter, they threw an interception to sophomore Basiaka Butcher (#2) at the Buffalo State 20 yard line. Buffalo State then scored another touchdown, completing a pass that sophomore wide receiver Tyler Mills (#13) ran down the field from the 25 yard line.
UR was forced to punt on their next drive, but on the next forced a turnover on downs when Buffalo State lost 38 yards on their attempt to convert a fourth down. With the ball on Buffalo State’s two yard line, UR senior quarterback Ryan Rose (#9) ran the ball up the middle for a touchdown, and Senior kicker Jordan Laudani (#97) converted the extra point.
The rest of the half went without a score from either side. Buffalo State punted after five plays from their 50 yard line to UR’s zero for a touchback. Starting from their own 20 yard line, UR punted after six plays, giving Buffalo State possession on their 18 yard line. With just 1:30 to go in the half, Buffalo State was stopped on three downs, leading to a punt. On the final drive of the half, UR fumbled on fourth and nine, but they recovered the ball as time expired.
After receiving the ball in the second half and advancing it to their own 41 yard line, UR threw an interception on third down, which Buffalo State ran back to UR’s 33. Despite giving up good field position, UR stifled Buffalo State and forced them to punt. UR junior Mason Heath-Alford (#92) sacked Buffalo State’s quarterback for a loss of 11 yards.
On UR’s subsequent drive, they were forced to punt after failing to achieve a first down. Buffalo State was also forced to punt, which led to UR receiving the ball on their 21 yard line. UR drove the ball up to their 45 yard line before fumbling the ball, which Buffalo State returned for a touchdown. Buffalo State then converted the extra point to increase their lead to 22-7.
UR punted again on their next drive after they were unable to get a first down. Receiving the ball on their 39 yard line, Buffalo State drove the ball back up the field. After scoring another touchdown, UR blocked the extra point attempt.
Neither team scored on their next drive, but UR received the ball on their own 21 yard line and used a combined passing and running approach to advance the ball up to the Buffalo State four yard line. From there, Rose completed a pass to sophomore wide receiver Samuel Nuamah (#8) for a touchdown to make the score 28-14.
UR successfully stopped Buffalo State’s next drive when graduate student Joe DeBonis (#0) sacked Buffalo State’s quarterback on fourth down. With the ball on their own 39 yard line, UR began to advance the ball up the field. After entering Buffalo State’s territory, Rose found Nuamah again for a 40 yard reception to put UR on their opponent’s four yard line. Junior tight end Jackson Kane (#83) caught a pass from Rose to score another touchdown. This time, sophomore Kyle Brainard (#60) converted an extra point for UR.
Buffalo State recovered an attempted onside kick from UR and returned the ball to UR’s 14 yard line. Shortly thereafter, they ran the ball in for a touchdown and converted an extra point to make the score 35-21. UR received the ball on their own 32 yard line and were unable to score before time expired.
This Senior Day, UR football honored seniors Anthony Pucciarell (#2), Trey Johnson (#3), Micah Butler (#5), Keyden Snow (#5), Jack Yensel (#6), Simon Weeren (#7), Ryan Rose (#9), Jared Lauri (#10), Happy Chane (#11), J.B. Mills (#14), Nyme Hussain (#15), Alex Wing (#38), Muk Suleman (#44), Jack Todd (#46), Youssef Awad (#49), J.T. Monahan (#55), Mason Frank (#74), and Jordan Laudani (#97) for their contributions to the team.
With this loss, UR is now 6-2 on the season. They will next travel to play Union College on Nov. 9 in Schenectady, NY.
