Buffalo Bulls football - 1990 and Kristjan Sokoli #90

• Position - Defensive Line
  
• Class - Senior
  
• Hometown - Bloomfield, NJ
  
• High School - Bloomfield
  
• Size - Ht:6-5 | Wt:300

Sokoli came to Buffalo having played defensive end, tight end, left tackle, punter and kicker at the prep level. After using a red shirt his first year at Buffalo he started seeing a lof of playing time in 2011. That season appeared as a backup in 10 games totaling 14 tackles.

As a Sophomore Sokoli played in all 12 games, making one start. He recorded 20 total tackles including thee in the season opener against Georgia (9/1).

Last season Sokoli started all 13 games anf finished the season with 29 tackles (11 solo) to go along with five tackles for a loss and 2.5 sacks.

With players Colby Way moving on to the NFL, camping with the Bills, and Beau Bachtelle lost to graduation it's up to Sokoli to lead the 3 man unit.

Well into the "Run to Division 1" the DIII Bulls were having trouble getting wins. So the department hires former UB great Sam Sanders to replace Bill Dando and lead the Bulls from Division III and into the spotlight of Division I.

Dando left as UB’s all-time winningest coach and the 1990 season saw the Bulls win just two games against eight losses.

The Wins came in back to back weeks over Brockport and Mercyhurst after UB opened their season 0-6.

Coach

Sam Sanders was a star on the UB football team during its Golden Era of the late 1950's. He played on the 1958 Labert Cup team and was a team captain under Dick Offenhamer the following season.

Sanders was picked up by the Buffalo Bills and was called a key "Hard Hitting" rookie by the team. At the time Sanders was considered by the By the coaching staff to be an integral part of their defensive future.

During his rookie campaign however Sanders suffered two Knee injuries in the preseason. The injuries kept Sanders off the field and ended his NFL career before it got started.

Following the NFL Sanders bounced between Lehigh and Northern Illinois as an Assistant coach from 1965 to 1977. In 77 he was hired by Alfred to be their head coach and coached the Saxons to a 49-37-2 record.

In the Mid 80's Sanders went to Toronto to be the defensive line coach for the Argos. His defensive line helped get Toronto to the Grey Cup but the team lost a 38-36 nail biter to Edmonton.

In 1990 Sanders was hired by UB as part of their preparation for division one football. Sanders had two rough seasons because his Division III Bulls were trying to schedule Division IAA opponents. After two years the UB great had to step down for health reasons.

New York Governor -

Mario Cuomo

Mario Cuomo was served as New Yorks the 52nd Governor of New York for three terms, from 1983 to 1994.

.Cuomo was known for his liberal views and public speeches, particularly his keynote speech at the 1984 Democratic National Convention in San Francisco,

The speech brought him to national attention, and he was widely considered a front-runner for the Democratic nomination for President in both 1988 and 1992, but he declined to seek the nomination in both instances.

His legacy as a reluctant standard-bearer for the Democrats in presidential elections led to him being dubbed "Hamlet on the Hudson".

The Big international news in 1990 was the release of Nelson Mandela by the south African Government. Mandela was a dissident fighting against the Apartheid state which existed in South Africa.

After being arrested in 1962 Mandela would spend 28 years in Prison while, for the most part, the world looked the other way. In the 1980's the international community started to ramp up pressure and Mandela was freed, and Apartheid ended.

Eventually Mandela would win the nations first full and fair election in a landslide. He served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999.