The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
2-7 , 1-4
Buffalo
5-4 , 3-2
Zips Comeback Falls Short against Buffalo
November 02 | Football
AKRON, Ohio - Redshirt junior Ben Finley matched his career high of four touchdowns as the Zips fell to the Buffalo Bulls at InfoCision Stadium-Summa Field, 41-30, on Saturday afternoon.
Finley went 23-for-42Â with 378Â yards passing on the way to his four-touchdown game.
Sophomore Adrian Norton hauled in six catches for 98 yards and two scores while junior Ahmarian Granger recorded five receptions for 95 yards and one touchdown. Freshman Kyan Mason recorded his first career touchdown on his first career reception on a 28-yard strike from Finley. The Zips also added 59 yards receiving from junior Bobby Golden
Redshirt junior Jordon Simmons totaled 68 yards to lead the Zips' ground attack, picking up 4.9 yards per carry. Redshirt sophomore Charles Kellom tacked on 12 yards rushing, picking up 6 yards per carry.
Junior Bryan McCoy led the Zips defense with 11 tackles. Redshirt junior Darrian Lewis and senior Paul Lewis III each recorded eight tackles. Senior Bennett Adler had two tackles for loss while D.Lewis, P. Lewis III, CJ Nunnally IV and McCoy all had tackles for losses.
Defensively, Akron held the Bulls to 180 yards rushing. The Bulls improved to 5-4 on the year and 3-2 in Mid-American Conference play, while the Zips fell to 2-7 overall and 1-4 in conference matchups.
How It HappenedAkron got on the scoreboard first and jumped out to a 7-0 lead on the opening drive of the game on a 26-yard pass from Finley to Granger. Buffalo then tallied 38 unanswered points to go up 38-7 before the Zips put a touchdown on the board to close the gap and make it a 38-15 game on a 28 yard strike from Finley to Norton and a two-point conversion pass from redshirt junior Tahj Bullock to Norton.
Akron got on the scoreboard again with 9:25 remaining in the fourth quarter to narrow Buffalo's lead to 38-22 after Finley found Norton again on a 25 yard pass.The Zips then scored again, narrowing the gap to 38-30 when Finley hit Mason with a 28 yard scoring throw while Bullock ran for a two-point conversion. Akron didn't score again in the game and Buffalo tacked on three more points to finish off the scoring.
Game Notes» Akron out gained Buffalo 452-390, including a 378-210 advantage through the air.
» Akron tallied 23 points in the fourth quarter, accounting for 76.7% of their total score.
» Akron converted 6 of 14 third downs while Buffalo was successful on 3 of 13.
» The Zips had three players with more than eight tackles in the ballgame led by McCoy, who had 11.
» Akron scored three fourth-quarter touchdowns.
What's Next?
Akron travels to DeKalb, Ill., to battle the Northern Illinois Huskies on November 13 for a 7 p.m. start.
Team Stats
UB 0, UA 7
UA - Granger,Ahmarian 29 yd pass from Finley,Ben (Smith,Garrison kick) 5 plays, 71 yards, TOP 01:44
UB 7, UA 7
UB - Jenkins,JJ 18 yd pass from Ogbonna,C.J. (Bellenfant,Upton kick) 2 plays, 62 yards, TOP 00:39
UB 14, UA 7
UB - Barksdale,Jacqez 1 yd run (Bellenfant,Upton kick), 7 plays, 23 yards, TOP 02:58
UB 17, UA 7
UB - Bellenfant,Upton 33 yd field goal 9 plays, 29 yards, TOP 03:42
UB 24, UA 7
UB - Orlando,Jake 2 yd pass from Ogbonna,C.J. (Bellenfant,Upton kick) 11 plays, 88 yards, TOP 04:17
UB 31, UA 7
UB - Henderson,Al-Jay 45 yd run (Bellenfant,Upton kick), 6 plays, 77 yards, TOP 01:48
UB 38, UA 7
UB - Ogbonna,C.J. 8 yd run (Bellenfant,Upton kick), 4 plays, 44 yards, TOP 01:57
UB 38, UA 15
UA - Norton,Adrian 28 yd pass from Finley,Ben (Norton,Adrian pass) 8 plays, 88 yards, TOP 02:32
UB 38, UA 22
UA - Norton,Adrian 25 yd pass from Finley,Ben (Smith,Garrison kick) 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:07
UB 38, UA 30
UA - Mason,Kyan 28 yd pass from Finley,Ben (Bullock,Tahj rush) 8 plays, 72 yards, TOP 02:32
UB 41, UA 30
UB - Bellenfant,Upton 36 yd field goal 4 plays, 4 yards, TOP 00:21
