Tag Archives: Buffalo football

09.24.19
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Fizz: Buffalo was a team loss

Editor’s Note: Made only slight changes to include two first names on the first reference that were left out.

                                        By Dave (Fizzy) Weinraub

Wow!  Anthony Russo was over, under, in front and in back all day.  Then, when there were good passes in key situations, a lot were dropped.  Russo continues to look directly at his primary receiver as soon as he gets the ball.

All the while, both the offensive and defensive lines were outplayed to say the least, and we couldn’t stop the outstanding Buffalo running backs. (Number 5, Kevin Marks, reminds me of Brian Westbrook.)   The “targeting” calls didn’t help, and they were both questionable.  I guess it all depends if it was your quarterback or not.

There was no way we should have won the game, and we didn’t.  It’s a shame because we could have faced Georgia Tech undefeated, and a win would have us definitely ranked.

So let’s look at the coaching decisions that affected the game to some, but not a major degree.

  • There was a poorly executed screen pass where it didn’t seem to be a middle screen or an outside screen, and Russo threw right into the crowd.  Coaching?
  • Whoever has outside responsibility on our left defensive side, continued to penetrate and allow key yardage and a touchdown to go outside.  The defense should have been adjusted.
  • As it became apparent in the second quarter we had trouble stopping their running game, we should have started to run-blitz then. We did in the fourth quarter.
  • The long snapper was finally changed after another miscue which gave the momentum to Buffalo, but the punting is still only satisfactory with another shanked kick in the second half. Perhaps our punter, who could also be changed, should get practice fielding ground balls.
  • Down two scores at the end of the first half, why take a knee with 22 seconds left?
  • Someone on the coaching staff must have had a very low score on his math SAT’s.  I overlooked us going for two against Maryland when we shouldn’t have, and then we did it again against Buffalo.  In the fourth quarter, if we had kicked the extra point after a score, we would have been down 21 points.  The best we could have hoped for at that time, was a tie and overtime, so why risk being down by 22?
  • After Buffalo didn’t get a first down in our territory in the fourth quarter, we refused to take a 15-yard penalty before they punted.  Why?

So, cracks are starting to appear.  If we come back and beat the “Ramblin Wrecks from Georgia Tech,” there still won’t be enough seats on the bandwagon.

Thursday: Just What the doctor ordered

Saturday: Game Day

Sunday: Game Analysis

09.21.19
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Game Day: How Important is beating Buffalo?

When the time comes to say something meaningful at one of those post-game press conferences, Rod Carey seized the moment last week.

“It was a great win, but it wasn’t one-and-a-half wins,” Carey said.

That right there was the best quote of not only this season but the best quote of the last three seasons from a Temple head coach. Geoff Collins made a practice of saying words in those press conferences that really meant nothing.

Screenshot 2019-09-19 at 11.02.51 PM

Early games today …

Carey hit the nail on the head.

You have 12 regular-season football games and every single one means just as much as the last one or the next one.

The next one is this afternoon at Buffalo (3:30, ESPNU) and, as satisfying as the last one was over Maryland, it means the same as that one or next week’s one against visiting Georgia Tech.

In college football, they like to talk about “trap games” but, in a 12-game season, there should be none of those. The players work too hard the other 353 days of the year to throw one of a dozen away and Carey’s no-nonsense approach should serve Temple well.

Screenshot 2019-09-19 at 11.04.19 PM

Nighttime TV lineup

Temple received seven points in the latest Top 25 poll and, if it beats Buffalo, it should receive more next week. That’s the way this thing should work although it didn’t work that way in the preseason poll. In that one, the Owls received two coaches votes and then beat Bucknell, 56-12. In the next one, they received zero coaches votes.

Huh?

A 56-12 win dropped them in the eyes of pollsters? Should they have beaten Bucknell 79-0?

That’s what it seems like.

Beating Maryland got people’s attention, especially after the Terps beat Syracuse, 63-20, the week prior. No one knows what the score will be but how impressive from a national standpoint would it be if Temple was able to beat Buffalo by the same 45-13 score Penn State beat it by three weeks ago? Then, how far does Temple rise in the national polls with that victory piggybacked on a weekend where Maryland beats Penn State and Temple beats Georgia Tech?

Those dominoes have to start falling this afternoon, though.

Today, Buffalo is all about keeping people’s attention and that’s why the Owls have to play with the same fierceness and tenacity on the road that they did a week ago at home.

Survive and advance. A win today is as important as a win last week, not half as good or twice as good.

This Carey guy seems to say some pretty astute things. Hopefully, the kids are listening.

Picks: Iowa State laying the 19 against visiting Louisiana Monroe, Indiana laying the 27 against visiting UConn, Old Dominion getting 30 at Virginia, Wisconsin laying the 3.5 at Michigan, SMU getting the 9.5 against visiting TCU. Record last week: 3-3 overall, 1-5 against the spread (also the season record).

Tomorrow: Game Analysis

 

09.19.19
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Behind Enemy Lines: A conversation with Bull Run

Stadium

A good panorama look at 29,016-seat Buffalo Stadium. Even though the North Campus is located in the residential suburb of Amherst, the neighbors supported building it in 1992.

This is a real Throwback Thursday post, back to the days when the Temple Owls were a member of the Mid-American Conference

My favorite of the competing MAC blogs back when Temple Football Forever was a member of that conference was Buffalo’s Bull Run.

It still is and its platform is SB Nation.

Screenshot 2019-09-18 at 11.16.06 PM

We had a running and friendly exchange with Bull Run back then and we’re resuming it now in advance of Saturday’s 3:30 game (ESPNU) in Amherst, N.Y. Buffalo’s home stadium is located on the North Campus, which is a little like Temple putting its home stadium on the Owls’ North Campus (Ambler).

The driving engine behind that blog Tim Riordan, which is the same name of a former great Temple (and Philadelphia Stars of the USFL) quarterback. They are not related other than they were and are very good at what they do.

Bull Run mixes in coverage of the Bulls with some occasional humor that always makes it a fun read.

We threw these five questions out to Tim and he was kind enough to answer them:

How was the fan atmosphere at Liberty and was there any audible cursing in the stands at the right-wing religious institution?

 I was not at the game, sadly, but for a team which had been beaten as thoroughly through two games as the flames were the atmosphere seemed rather impressive. I”m going to guess that the honor code there probably kept the cursing to a minimum.

Temple’s attempts to build an on-campus stadium have been seemingly blocked by no more than 20 neighbors. With the Buffalo Stadium located in a residential area, did the neighbors try to stop it when it was built many years ago?

 

Well, UB’s stadium is on Campus and was built originally to help host the 1992 World University Games. It’s one of the reasons that the layout is so bad in the stadium, it was built for track and field. 
Other than the QB and TE, who were the key losses for the Bulls last season?

 

 Where to start? UB only returned seven or eight starters this season. In addition to Tyree and Mabry, we lost three receivers, two linebackers, three defensive backs, and an all-MAC center. Basically, offensive guards and tackles are the returning units.
It will be almost a completely new team you’re seeing this year.
Thoughts from a conference foe on Rod Carey, who is 5-0 against Buffalo?

 

The guy went 38-10 in the MAC, won four division titles and two conference championships. That’s more a statement of his competence than the fact he owned Buffalo. Though I will say last year he really out-coached Leipold at the half. 
Would Buffalo be interested in taking UConn’s place in the AAC since it brings a better current hoop and football program and a bigger TV market?

 

While it might not be the best financial move in terms of the non-revenue sports I would love the move for Buffalo. The New York to DC corridor is a huge location for our Alumni base, and Buffalo is getting more students from that Area than they do from Buffalo itself.
That along with the better depth you have in hoops would make a move to the AAC a no brainier for Buffalo. So if you have any pull with the folks at the American office, pass along a note for us.
Saturday: Game Day and Polls

 

06.25.19
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UConn: Bye, Felicia!

bye

My reaction over the weekend when it was leaked that the University of Connecticut would be leaving the AAC for the Big East was not unlike that Ice Cube gif (left).

Bye, Felicia!

Because no matter how much UConn huffed and puffed and tried to resuscitate its failing football program, the patient died as a result of some pretty bad administrative decisions. (Hiring a hot assistant doesn’t always work as Bob Diaco the assistant coach of the year for Notre Dame turned into a nightmare as a head coach for UConn.)

Really, what was the difference between what happened to Temple in 2003 and UConn now? The Big East then kicked Temple out for what it perceived to be (their words) “non-competitiveness” when, in reality, Temple was regularly beating some teams that the Big East decided to keep.

UConn was beating really nobody last year in football and its once dynamite men’s basketball program was in the middle of the league’s pack. (Hell, it’s now hard to pick out Geoff Collins’ worst loss: 2018 Villanova or 2017 UConn. Both times he played arguably the second-best quarterback on the team so it might be a toss-up.)

The AAC probably didn’t have the stones to kick out UConn like the Big East did to Temple back then so, in effect, what the UConn leaders did this week a favor to the AAC. There is no chance the league allows UConn to take out both of its good programs (men’s and women’s basketball) and leave its one crappy program (football).

Good riddance.

Temple, in my mind, belongs in the Power 5 but that doesn’t appear on the horizon soon and, failing that, we have to accept where we are now and UConn leaving the league improves our lot at least a little bit.

Now the American can add a team like BYU (not likely) or Buffalo/Army (more likely). They would have to figure out a way to flip the Army/Navy week and the league championship weeks and that might be an insurmountable hurdle. If so, then the league turns to Buffalo, which more fits the AAC profile of larger TV markets and has a program that is immediately ready to compete in the two highest-profile sports. AAC would have the top G5 market (Philadelphia, 4) plus Dallas-Ft. Worth (5), Washington D.C. (Navy, 9th), Tampa-St. Pete (USF, 13th), Orlando (UCF, 19th), Cincinnati (34th), Memphis (48th) and Buffalo (51) and New Orleans (Tulane, 53). That’s a lot of eyeballs.

Buffalo would be the logical choice, about the same distance away as UConn for Temple fans, and a current upgrade in both sports.

That should and will probably be the successful Northeast school that replaces the unsuccessful departed one.

Saturday: The Latest Hit Piece on Temple football

Monday: A Week of Best of TFFs

 

 

09.11.18
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TU-Buffalo: Adventures in would have, should have, land

weinraub

By Dave “Fizzy” Weinraub

Today’s write-up is going to be a little different because most everything has already been said. Basically, both the offensive and defensive strategies developed by this coaching staff simply don’t work.  They didn’t work last year, and certainly not this year as we are 0-2 against teams from lower divisions.  There is now a distinct possibility we may not win a game this year.  For those of us who have followed Temple football for eons, it’s a nightmare.

correction

Offense

The straight-ahead Broad Street Offense has no rhythm.  By that I mean there’s no setting up plays for down the line.  If you run to the right or up the gut a number of times, most teams would be readying counters or mis-directions.  If you’re going to throw on first down, why in the world would you not pass from play-action, rather than an empty backfield which tells the defense exactly what you’re going to do. If your current strategy isn’t working, why isn’t there a different one?  Just bringing Wright in to run the “wildcat” doesn’t fool anyone.  As soon as the defense sees it, they know what’s coming. (Why doesn’t he throw from that formation?)  And constantly going for field goals when you have fourth and two deep in the opponent’s territory is stupid and shows no guts and no imagination.

Defense

It’s the same defense all the time, with only minor variations.  This year, both Villanova and Buffalo manhandled our front seven most of the time.  As we’re always in the 4-3, the uncovered offensive lineman have been killing our linebackers. Unless we’re blitzing and hitting the proper gap, we constantly give up too much when trying to stop the run.  On pass defense, and going back to last year, we’ve never been able to stop a five to fifteen-yard pass over the middle. And in every game there are many missed tackles because our guys don’t wrap-up – they just throw the chicken-shit shoulder.

Some Solutions

On offense, and if our second string QB can run, then why not do that from a different formation as a change of pace – and still throw.  With all the practice time they have now, why not have a second offense?  How difficult is it to teach ten or twelve plays from a different set and force the opponent to spend extra preparation time?  As I’ve said lots of times before if there was a balance to the offense maybe we wouldn’t need to do this.

There has to be an entirely different, or at least an additional defensive philosophy because this one doesn’t work.  My plan would be to employ five guys as a rush defense with the down-linemen constantly changing position.  Six guys would play zone pass defense so they could sit and wait for the receiver to come in the middle and cream him.

Conclusion

My ideas may or may not be effective.  However, they’re at least different.  Over the two years this staff has been here, they’ve shown absolutely no ability to adapt, change, or be innovative.  The best possible record we could now have this year would be 2-10.

* Correction from last week – This writer apologizes for a misstatement. I said Joe Morelli ran a naked bootleg in 1962.  It was a bootleg, but it was Joe who was naked.

Thursday: How We Went From AAC Champs To AAC Chumps in 2 Seasons

Saturday: Maryland Preview

Sunday: Game Analysis

09.07.18
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Game Plan: No Wild Winging Against Buffalo

nitro

Hopefully, Nitro being named a game captain means he will be an every-down fullback which is just what the Temple offense needs right now.

Although both Villanova and Buffalo wear different shades of Blue and White, there is no doubt about one thing.

Buffalo is a better version of Villanova. Just because Buffalo is better than Nova, there is no reason for Temple to panic (3:30 p.m., Lincoln Financial Field, no over-the-air TV) against its former MAC rivals.

conditional

Fortunately, transitive property has been proven faulty on many occasions and matchups are more relevant than any other factor in college football.

In that area, Temple would seem to have the advantage.

The game will simply come down to this: Temple exploiting the one weakness Buffalo has demonstrated not only this year but over the past 13 games: Run defense. Against a very bad FCS team, Delaware State, the Bulls yielded 199 yards rushing. Villanova might be the Alabama of FCS football (although that is yet to be proven), but Delaware State is probably closer to the New Mexico State version of FCS football and the fact it could gain that many yards against a FBS team is alarming. Of the 127 FBS teams, Buffalo is ranked No. 95 against the run. Last year, the Bulls were even worse—ranked No. 96th (195.3 ypg) against the run in a 12-game season. This is probably not the game OC Dave Patenaude should have Frankie Nutile winging it all over the lot nor the kind of game he throws a couple of passes after getting first-and-goal at the 1 (like the Army game a year ago).

So if the Owls commit to the run behind a proven AAC championship tailback (Ryquell Armstead, 916 yards, 15 touchdowns in 2016)  following a fullback like they did in back-to-back 10-win seasons, they can accomplish two very important things:

  • Controlling the clock and the game, chewing up big chunks of yards and scoring touchdowns on the ground;
  • Keeping the ball away from the two NFL prospects on the Bulls, quarterback Tyree Jackson and wide receiver Anthony Johnson.

Jackson a very accurate 6-foot-7 passer and can see over a Temple pass rush that is already down one starting defensive end (Dana Levine, out 4-6 weeks with an injury). Levine’s subs got pushed around by the Villanova starting offensive line while the only heavy lifting at the defensive end position was being done by Quincy Roche at the other end. Too bad the Owls couldn’t recruit a guy who was named the No. 12-ranked DE in the United States when he got out of high school three years ago.

What’s that?


This will not be the easiest
game of the season, but
it will certainly be the
easiest game plan
of the remaining dozen or
so games left on the schedule.
In about 24 hours, we will
have a good idea if the highly
paid professionals running
the Temple program are able
to figure out what anyone
with a minimum football IQ can

 

They did?

Oh yeah, Karamo Dioubate is getting limited snaps in the interior of the line while walk-ons back up the other end. It would seem to be a simple move to slot Dioubate in his more comfortable position so as to help Roche create additional pressure.

A lot of things that appear logical to the casual observer about this Temple team were illogical the first week of the season.

Maybe naming fullback Rob Ritrovato one of the four game captains is a sign that the Owls are getting back to the Temple TUFF brand of running game Owl fans know and love. Maybe it’s just window dressing like calling Nick Sharga “the best fullback in the country” one year ago and limiting him only to five downs or less in the actual games.

This will not be the easiest game of the season, but it will certainly be the easiest game plan of the remaining dozen or so games left on the schedule. In about 24 hours, we will have a good idea if the highly paid professionals running the Temple program are able to figure out what anyone with a minimum football IQ can.

Sunday: Game Analysis

08.13.18
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Buffalo Shuffle Could Be a Tussle

leipold

The most intriguing thing about the University of Buffalo’s football team is the name of its head coach.

Lance Leipold.

If the name sounds familiar to college football junkies of all levels, it should.

Leipold was 109-6 at  DIII Wisconsin-Whitewater and won six national championships in eight years. He made it to 100 wins in the shortest time of any NCAA coach, any division.

gameresults

If that doesn’t tell you the man can flat-out coach, he supplied further evidence when he improved what had been a two-win Buffalo team to six wins last year.

Temple tried hiring a lower division legend in Bobby Wallace without similar success but it appears that the formula is working for the Bulls because the improvement indicates that Leipold is well on his way to having his system in place entering Year No. 4 at Buffalo.

If he’s able to make a similar improvement this season, this could be a very tough second game for Temple. His two top playmakers—quarterback Tyree Jackson and wide receiver Anthony Johnson—return.

Buffalo is dangerous because it was able to beat Lane Kiffin’s 11-3 FAU squad—a team many felt would have given Temple a much tougher bowl game last season than the other Florida alphabet school, Florida.

Jackson and Johnson were instrumental in that win and would like nothing better than performing well in the home stadium of the Super Bowl champions.

All of that said, Temple head coach Geoff Collins is paid very handsomely to hold serve at home against teams like Buffalo and reach up and win a game or two on the road against a team where the Owls are underdogs.

Still, don’t be surprised if it’s a much tighter game than the last time the Bulls visited, a 37-13 Temple win.

Wednesday: Position Flexibility

Friday: Thoughts From the Season-Ticket Holder Party