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Bowling Green Falcons at Buffalo Bulls

Oct 24, 20262:30 PM CTESPN+Buffalo, NY
By JR·2 min read
Bowling Green(2-5)
Buffalo(4-3)
2:30 PM

TLDR: Two MAC teams at 2-1 in conference meet in western New York on Saturday, October 24. One has been putting up points lately. The other has been keeping them off the board without its starting quarterback.

SAT 10/24, 2:30 PM CT · Week 8ESPN+
Bowling Green
(2-5)
LWWLL
Buffalo
(4-3)
WWLWL
Kickoff 62°

Bowling Green (2-5, 2-1 MAC) visits Buffalo (4-3, 2-1 MAC) with both teams tied in the conference standings. The Falcons' offense has scored 24 or more in 3 straight games after a rough start. The Bulls have held their last 3 opponents to 20 or fewer, without season-ending-injury QB E. Holmes and with 3 receivers out. The likely deciding question is whether Buffalo's thinned passing game can keep pace if Bowling Green's offense keeps producing.

Bowling Green Falcons
  • Scored 24+ in each of the last 3 games
  • Won at Miami (OH) for a road MAC win
  • Hung 31 on Ball State despite WR injuries
  • Lost a 1-point game at home to Ball State
  • WRs Clay (season) and Dawson (indefinite) out
  • Scored 7 and 6 in back-to-back September losses
Buffalo Bulls
  • Allowed 20 or fewer in each of the last 3
  • Won 2 straight, including 23-8 at Toledo
  • Home game at Broadview Stadium
  • QB E. Holmes out for season with a knee injury
  • 3 WRs out: Mays, Richards, Gathings
  • Offense hasn't topped 25 in the last 3

The quarterback picture is the first thing to sort out, and it is Buffalo's problem. E. Holmes has been shut down for the rest of the season with a knee injury, so the Bulls are winning with someone else under center. J. Wright took the snaps against UMass, according to the CBS gametracker. With 7 days to go, nobody should treat that as a settled depth chart, but whoever plays QB for Buffalo will be working with a short-handed offense.

Look at who that quarterback is throwing to. Buffalo has 3 receivers out: B. Mays for an extended period, and T. Richards and J. Gathings with no timetable. Bowling Green has its own receiver problems. A. Clay is done for the season and I. Dawson is out indefinitely. Both teams are going to lean on depth players to catch the ball, and Buffalo has less of it. Once a board posts, that's the thing to price.

Bowling Green is 2-5, and the record is mostly the first half of the season. The Falcons scored 7 at Iowa State and 6 against South Florida, then the offense showed up: 24 to win at Miami (OH), 38 against Sacramento State, and 31 against Ball State. That last one was a 32-31 home loss, so the improvement hasn't fully turned into wins yet.

Bowling Green Falcons
(2-5)
10/17LvsBall State31-32
10/10WvsSacramento State38-10
10/03W@Miami (OH)24-20
09/26LvsSouth Florida6-14
09/19L@Iowa State7-55
Buffalo Bulls
(4-3)
10/17WvsMassachusetts25-18
10/10W@Toledo23-8
10/03LvsWestern Michigan17-20
09/26WvsRobert Morris31-28
09/19L@Penn State13-55

Buffalo is 4-3 and has won 2 straight, mostly on defense. In the last 3 games the Bulls gave up 20 to Western Michigan, 8 at Toledo and 18 to UMass. The offense scored 17, 23 and 25 in those games, which is enough when the defense holds up like that. The 55-13 loss at Penn State shows how the floor drops out when the defense doesn't hold, but MAC teams aren't Penn State.

The forecast at Broadview Stadium is 64 degrees and cloudy, with a 2% chance of rain and 5 mph of wind. Weather shouldn't decide this one. Bowling Green's improved offense and its receivers decide it, along with a Buffalo defense that just held 2 conference teams under 20.

There's real MAC stakes here. Both teams are 2-1 in the league, and the loser drops into the crowd in the middle of the conference. Buffalo has home field and the hotter defense. Bowling Green has the offense that has looked better over the last 3 weeks. Neither team plays before this, so both get a full week to get healthier.

Bowling Green vs. Buffalo: Polymarket Odds & Prediction (Oct. 24) — Bowling Green's Waking Offense Runs Into Buffalo's Stingy Defense · Barstool Bush