Eastern Michigan
Bulls Host Eastern Michigan on Saturday in Homecoming Matchup
9/30/2025 2:05:00 PM | Football
Buffalo (2-3, 1-0 MAC) vs. Eastern Michigan (1-4, 0-1 MAC)
October 4, 2025
UB Stadium - 3:30 pm
Bulls on the Air
Buffalo - ESPN 1520
Rochester - Fox Sports 1280
Television
ESPN+
Storylines
• Buffalo is looking to start 2-0 in MAC play for the fourth straight season.
• This is the fourth straight year Buffalo and Eastern Michigan will match up.
• Eastern Michigan won six of the first seven meetings of this series after the Bulls joined the Mid-American Conference in 1999. However, Buffalo has won four of the last five meetings.
• Buffalo's three losses this year have come by a combined 20 points.
• The Bulls' last two losses have come with their opponent scoring the winning points with less than one minute to play.
• The Bulls have blocked a punt in three of the last four games. Their three blocked punts are tied for first in the country.
• Red Murdock is two forced fumbles shy of the NCAA career record of 16 career forced fumbles held by former UB great Khalil Mack.
• With 330 career punt return yards, Victor Snow is one yard behind Tom Elliott (1968-70) for fifth place, nine yards behind K.J. Osborn (2016-18) for fourth place and 30 yards behind Andy Hurley (1983-84) for third place in career punt return yardage in program history.
• Since allowing two sacks in the opener at Minnesota, the Bulls have only allowed one sack since. Their three sacks allowed are the fewest in the Mid-American Conference and rank ninth nationally.
• Al-Jay Henderson has scored a touchdown in four straight games (three rushing & one receiving).
Bulls Host Eastern Michigan in Homecoming Matchup
The University at Buffalo football team will host Eastern Michigan for homecoming on Saturday afternoon at UB Stadium.
Buffalo is 2-3 overall, 1-0 in the MAC and is coming off a 20-17 loss to UConn last Saturday. The Bulls were led by running back Lamar Sperling who rushed for 106 yards and a touchdown in the game.
Eastern Michigan is 1-4 overall, 0-1 in the MAC and is coming off a 24-13 loss to Central Michigan last Saturday. The Eagles are led by running back Dontae McMillan who has rushed for 416 yards and a touchdown on the season.
The Eagles lead the all-time series 7-5. Buffalo won the last meeting, 37-20, at Rynearson Stadium last season.
Forcing the Issue
Red Murdock has had three forced fumbles in the last two games to bring his career total to 14. He is currently tied for third in NCAA history in career forced fumbles. He is two shy of the all-time NCAA record of 16 career forced fumbles held by former UB great Khalil Mack.
After leading the nation in forced fumbles a season ago with seven, Murdock is already tied for first place again this season with three.
Sper of the Moment
Lamar Sperling had a breakout game for the Bulls against UConn last Saturday. The redshirt-sophomore running back had nine carries for 106 yards and a touchdown against the Huskies. He had a 63-yard touchdown run against UConn which was the longest by a Bull since Al-Jay Henderson's 68-yard TD run against Western Michigan on Oct. 19, 2024.
Sperling has rushed for 191 yards on 29 carries this season for a team-best 6.60 yards per carry average.
Block Party
The Bulls have blocked a punt in three of the last four games. Connor Henderson had a block against Saint Francis, Miles Greer had a block at Kent State and Jonathan Capo had a block against UConn.
The three blocked punts are tied for first in the nation.
It is the most blocked punts by a UB team since also blocking three in 2012. That season, Adam Redden had two and Khalil Mack had one.
Howes it Going
Kicker Jack Howes joined the Bulls prior to the season after transferring from Maryland. He has been a consistent threat for UB, making five of his six field goals and all 15 of his extra point attempts.
Howes has made a field goal in all five games this season.
Sack Lunch
The Bulls had a season-high seven sacks against Troy. It was the most sacks in a game for UB since posting a program-record 11 sacks at Akron in 2021.
With 17 sacks on the season, the Bulls rank second in the MAC.
They are getting contributions from several players. Kobe Stewart leads the team with 2.5 sacks, Red Murdock, Dion Crawford, SaVeon Brown and Junior Poyser each have two.
Buffalo leads the MAC and ranks 25th nationally with 34 tackles for loss.
Al-Jay All Day
Not only is running back Al-Jay Henderson Buffalo's leading rusher, but he is second on the team with 16 receptions through five games. He had a career-best eight receptions against Kent State in the MAC opener. It was the most receptions in a game by a running back since Mike Washington had eight catches against Akron in 2022.
Henderson leads the team in all purpose yards, averaging 94 yards per game.
Murdock Named to Allstate AFCA Good Works Team
Linebacker Red Murdock is one of 11 FBS players named to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, recognizing college football players from across the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) who exemplify community service, academic excellence and athletic achievement.
An All-MAC First Team selection, Murdock has been as impressive off the field as he has been on it. Along with volunteering at numerous community service events, he is the founder and director of the Virginia Homework Helpers branch - a free K-12 tutoring program for students back in his home state of Virginia. He founded this organization after seeing many of his peers struggle in school with no extra help resulting in getting in trouble outside of school or dropping out. He hopes this helps young men and women finish their education under the premise of it being a potential escape from the vicious cycle of becoming a product of high-risk environments.
He is just the second UB player named to the team, joining former wide receiver Fred Lee who earned the honor in 2013.
Let it Snow
Wide receiver Victor Snow has picked up where he left off last season. Through five games, Snow has 23 catches for 274 yards and three touchdowns. He had a touchdown catch in each of the first three games of the season to extend his regular season streak to six straight games dating back to last season. His streak was snapped in week four against Troy. He is averaging 11.9 yards per reception
As a punt returner, Snow ranks second in the MAC with a 10.3 average on 11 punt returns.
The Webster, NY native led the Bulls in receiving a season ago with 55 catches for 651 yards and six touchdowns en route to earning All-MAC Third Team honors.
New Dynamic Duo
Last season linebackers Shaun Dolac and Red Murdock ranked first and second in the nation in tackles. With the departure of Dolac to graduation, junior linebacker Dion Crawford is looking to fill the void.
Through the first five games, it looks like the Bulls are in good shape. Murdock and Crawford rank second and 10th in the MAC in tackles, respectively. Murdock has 53 tackles and Crawford has 41.
Roberson Settling In
Quarterback Ta'Quan Roberson had the best game of his early UB career to help the Bulls beat Kent State in the MAC opener. Roberson finished 28-for-40 for 318 yards and three touchdowns, including the game-winning TD with just over one minute to play.
It was the most passing yards by a UB quarterback since Kyle Vantrease threw for 365 yards against Ball State in the 2020 MAC Championship game. It was the most passing yards on the road by a UB quarterback since Tyree Jackson threw for 350 yards at Ball State in 2017.
Roberson transferred to UB after spending last season at Kansas State. He saw action in six games and went 3-for-7 for 18 yards and added a 7-yard rush.
The New Jersey native spent the previous two seasons at UConn where he started 10 games in 2023. He threw for 2,075 yards and 12 touchdowns and added 120 yards on the ground and two scores. Roberson began his career at Penn State as a reserve quarterback for three seasons. In 2021, he played in four games and threw for 85 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 24 yards.
Gimme That!
The Bulls created at least one turnover in four of the first five games of the season.
Linebacker Mitchell Gonser had an interception in the opener at Minnesota. Edge Kobe Stewart had a fumble recovery against Saint Francis, cornerback Keontez Bradley had a fumble recovery at Kent State and linebacker Red Murdock had a fumble recovery and safety Jalen McNair had an interception against Troy.
New York Nik
Nik McMillan was having a promising start to the 2024 campaign before suffering a season-ending injury in week two. Back healthy, McMillan has returned to form and is currently third on the team in receptions with 15.
He had the best game of his career at Kent State last week with seven receptions for 117 yards and a touchdown - all career highs.
Running Down a Dream
Buffalo rushed for 370 yards in its victory over Saint Francis. It was the most rushing yards by a UB team since the Bulls rushed for 515 yards against Kent State in 2020.
Al-Jay Henderson led the way with 98 yards and two touchdowns and Ta'Quan Roberson rushed for 88 yards and two scores. Roberson scored on a 40-yard touchdown run in the game, the longest TD run by a UB quarterback since Tyree Jackson scored on a 75-yard run at Kent State in 2017.
All six running backs who saw action in the game rushed for at least 30 yards - James McNeil, Jr. (64), Lamar Sperling (48), Messiah Burch (39), Terrance Shelton (33).
Code Red
Linebacker Red Murdock is coming off one of the most productive seasons in program history. The All-MAC First Team selection ranked second in the nation with 156 tackles which was third in program history for a single season. He added 16.5 tackles for loss, two sacks and an interception. His seven forced fumbles on the year were a school record and ranked first in the nation.
With 11 career forced fumbles, Murdock is five shy of the NCAA record of 16 career forced fumbles held by former Bull Khalil Mack.
Murdock was named a preseason fourth-team All-American by Athlon Sports and ranks 90th on the list of Top 100 players in college football by ESPN.
OK, Al-Jay
Al-Jay Henderson is coming off a career-best 1,000-yard season for the Bulls. He became the 11th different player to rush for 1,000 yards in a season in program history. His 1,078 rushing yards in 2024 ranks 10th in program history for a single season.
He got stronger down the stretch of the 2024 campaign, averaging 124.6 yards over the final five games of the season.
Over his career, he is averaging 5.1 yards per carry which ranks fifth in program history.
Portal Friendly
The Bulls only lost one starter to the transfer portal following last season. Kicker Upton Bellenfant transferred to Texas Tech. In total, only four players who appeared on the depth chart for the 2024 Bahamas Bowl entered the transfer portal.
New Faces
Despite only losing a few players to the transfer portal, it didn't stop the UB coaching staff from dipping into the portal to strengthen the team. Eleven transfers joined the Bulls prior to the 2025 campaign.
All 11 of the transfers appear on the Bulls' depth chart for week one, including projected starters QB Ta'Quan Roberson (Kansas State), C Jake Timm (LIU), WR Jasaiah Gathings (UConn), CB Koentez Bradley (Arizona State), S Miles Greer (Shepard) and K Jack Howes (Maryland).
Others appearing on the depth chart include OL Jake Merritt (Michigan State), TE Marcus Velez (Bethune-Cookman), LB Mitchell Gonser (Harvard), LB Connor Henderson (North Texas) and P Ethan Stumpf (East Carolina).
Bulls Picked Fourth in Preseason Poll
Buffalo was picked to finish fourth in the Mid-American Conference preseason poll according to the MAC head coaches.
Toledo was picked first with 135 points, followed by Miami (131), Ohio (123), Buffalo (115), Northern Illinois (94), Bowling Green (81), Western Michigan (71), Eastern Michigan (68), Central Michigan (65), Ball State (41), Akron (39), Massachusetts (39) and Kent State (12).
Toledo was selected as the preseason favorite to win the MAC Championship.
On The Airwaves
Again this season, University at Buffalo football can be heard locally on ESPN 1520, a 50,000-watt station with one of the strongest signals in the nation. The Bulls can also be heard on 1280 AM in Rochester.
Calling all the play-by-play action of Bulls football for his 26th year, and 18th consecutive, will be Paul Peck. Scott Wilson is back for his ninth season as analyst. Brad Riter also returns as game host.
The UB Football postgame show will once again take place at The Anchor Bar on Maple Road with host Bob Gaughan.
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Bulls Picked Fourth in Preseason Poll
Buffalo was picked to finish fourth in the Mid-American Conference preseason poll according to the MAC head coaches.
Toledo was picked first with 135 points, followed by Miami (131), Ohio (123), Buffalo (115), Northern Illinois (94), Bowling Green (81), Western Michigan (71), Eastern Michigan (68), Central Michigan (65), Ball State (41), Akron (39), Massachusetts (39) and Kent State (12).
Toledo was selected as the preseason favorite to win the MAC Championship.
On The Airwaves
Again this season, University at Buffalo football can be heard locally on ESPN 1520, a 50,000-watt station with one of the strongest signals in the nation. The Bulls can also be heard on 1280 AM in Rochester.
Calling all the play-by-play action of Bulls football for his 26th year, and 18th consecutive, will be Paul Peck. Scott Wilson is back for his eighth season as analyst. Brad Riter also returns as game host.
The UB Football postgame show will once again take place at The Anchor Bar on Maple Road with host Bob Gaughan.
