By Budd Bailey
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” - George Santayana, Spanish philosopher.
Those who have been following the University at Buffalo football team realize that some of the scariest initials in the college game are FCS. That stands for Football Championship Subdivision, comprised of teams that old-timers think of “small colleges” and which in theory shouldn’t be a match for the teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
However, the Bulls and their opponents didn’t get the memo in the last two years. UB was shocked by Holy Cross in 2022, and Fordham did the same to the Bulls in 2023. Therefore, the Bulls probably had some reason to be a little concerned of opening the season against a very good FCS team in Lafayette in UB Stadium on Thursday night.
Luckily, college sports being what they are these days, there aren’t that many members of the Bulls’ staff that was around for those two FCS losses. They can’t remember what they didn’t experience. That includes new head coach Pete Lembo.
Therefore, UB’s 30-13 win over the Leopards went the way it should have gone … for the most part. The Bulls never trailed, they dominated the line of scrimmage, and were in control for most of the contest. After the previous two horror shows, that all sounded pretty good for anyone connected with the Bulls – even if the game came with a few anxious moments.
"It was really fun and exciting," quarterback C.J. Ogbonna said. "Having the defense playing well and the offense clicking, it was great."
It’s been almost nine years since Lembo had a win as a head coach. The last one came on October 31, 2015, with Ball State against Massachusetts. Those Cardinals gave up 150 points in their final three games, losing them all to conclude a 3-9 season. Lembo spent the next eight seasons as an assistant coach at four different schools before landing the job at Buffalo. Finally he had the chance to run out on the field as a head coach again, and he was thrilled to do it surrounded by this group.
"I really like these kids," he said. "We're going to have some cardiac moments, but I feel really happy for them. As I've said many times, I'm grateful to be here. There are a lot of people that needed this one."
As usual these days in college sports, a coaching change leads to massive roster moves for the Bulls. That meant Lembo had some decisions to make. The No. 1 action was to pick a starting quarterback, and C.J. Ogbonna had a good night in his debut. He finished 14 of 24 for 195 yards and two touchdowns. Even better, he had no interceptions, no fumbles and no sacks. In other words, the UB offense didn't beat itself - which sometimes is at least half the battle. Such a performance doesn't come out without preparation.
"It's been a long process," Ogbonna said. "It comes with extra work. We've been getting better every day."
Meanwhile, the Bulls didn’t let Lafayette run the ball at all. The Leopards finished with a mere 43 yards on the ground, although it’s worth noting that a starting lineman was injured on their first offensive series. Still, UB is supposed to do that against an FCS opponent, and it did.
Buffalo pitched a shutout in the first half, and did enough scoring to take a good-sized lead. Al-Jay Henderson ran it in from five yards for a score, and Ogbonna hit Nike McMillan on a 31-yard TD pass to put UB ahead by 13-0. Nick Reed added a 22-yard field goal in the second quarter, and there was hope that the second half could be a relatively relaxing time for the home team.
"I almost thought that first half went a little too much our way," Lembo said. "They have a really good football team, and we knew they would respond in the second half."
And for a while, that seemed to be the case. Lafayette opened the second half with a blocked punt followed by an option pass for a score. But Ogbonna found Taji Johnson on a 32-yard pass for a score. At 23-6 after three quarters, UB was still comfortable.
But then Dean Denobile threw a 13-yard scoring pass to Chris Carasia, and the conversion cut the lead to 23-13. Then the Bulls fumbled away the ensuing kickoff, putting Lafayette in the red zone and giving those who remembered previous years a case of déjà vu. But the Leopards couldn’t move the ball and missed a field goal, letting a huge opportunity get away.
"The stop after the (fumble on the) kickoff was absolutely humongous," Lembo said.
A little more than three minutes later, UB eliminated any remaining suspense. Standout linebacker Shaun Dolan, back after missing several games in 2023 with an injury, intercepted a pass in Lafayette territory. On the next play, Jacqez Varksdale ran it in from 19 yards out.
"I'm glad we had to deal with some adversity," Lembo said. "It's a good group of kids, and they've definitely earned this in more ways than one."
With the weight of history now gone for the Bulls, they have a big problem facing them in the present tense. UB goes to Missouri to face the No. 11-ranked team in the country on Sept. 7. The Bulls will be paid $1.5 million to be a designated opponent in that one. After all, the bigger school is supposed to pound on the little guy in this sport.
But stranger things have happened in college football. Maybe the Bulls should remember that part of football history as they prepare for Game Two.
(Follow Budd on X.com via @WDX2BB)
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