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Anthone Taylor is a scant 12 yards away from becoming the eighth player in school history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. He would join Branden Oliver and James Starks as only the third player to rush for 1,000 yards in UB’s FBS era.
At the same time Joe Licata is the only MAC quarterback to throw a touchdown in every game this season. His next touchdown throw will give him sole possession of UB's career touchdown passing record.
But for Licata and Taylor their best days of this season seem to have ended with the departure of Jeff Quinn.
Against Central Michigan and Ohio Taylor has had just two yards per carry and no touchdowns. Licata's once stellar touchdown to interception ratio has fallen to 1:1.
At the center of it all is the offensive line. As a unit they are playing with intensity but the cohesiveness that has been a hallmark of the group for two years has dissipated. Given that Quinn's primary calling in life is as an offensive line coach it's not surprising that the line is the unit most struggling.
While I don't buy the "cupboard's bare" mantra that Quinn apologists have been known to bring up I will acknowledge that the depth on UB's line was the lowest it had been in some number of years when he took over. After two years Quinn had built the unit up into a squad that would help Branden Oliver shatter most UB rushing records.
Defensively however the Bulls have shown marked improvement. The unit led by Lee Skinner and Adam Redden has not been stellar but has been respectable lately.
As a result Skinner's slow record climb has accelerated. He now has a real chance of finishing top ten in solo tackles and top 5 in total and assisted tackles.
Even if UB brings their offensive A-game today they face a very good and balanced Akron Zips defense. The Zips are ranked between 30-50 in most meaningful defensive categories.
On the flip side they have struggled offensively and shown a tendency to give up the ball in bad situations. Meaning both Skinner and Redden may have a chance to improve their standing before they graduate.