Simulating the Buffalo Bulls and Ohio Bobcats football matchup

It was a brutal showing last week by our Buffalo Bulls. After a strong first quarter against CMU, UB absolutely collapsed. This was the first time of the season that UB wasn't in the game until the very end. This week, the Bulls return home and face the team we all hate: the Ohio Bobcats.

Ohio has had an interesting season at the very least. They started out strong and could've been 6-0. Their first loss came against a slightly overrated Minnesota team by a field goal. Last week they were surprisingly blown out by Western Michigan and will be ready to take out their frustrations on us.

So without further ado, here are this week's sim results:

This is a very winnable game. There were many fourth quarter opportunities for UB to snatch even more wins during this simulation. Unlike last week, we were able to get some blowout wins (which means the offense started getting a rhythm). Ohio usually dominated when we had a first half collapse. Please note, that all of these simulations ran without Anthone Taylor, no pun intended. The sim determined that he won't be playing on Saturday for whatever reason.

Player Stat Highlights

1. The Big 4

The passing attack is going to be crucial to winning this game. Willoughby is expected to lead the receivers into a good day and hopefully so. Most of the passing attempts went to these four guys and rarely to anyone else. Tight end play is absolutely crucial and will be able to get UB out of some tough situations. I really liked seeing short passes to a tight end like Weiser or Schreck, followed by longer yardage throws to the Wide Receivers. We were really successful when that happened in these simulations.

2. Johnson and Hawkins pick up the slack

If Taylor doesn't play, we're going to have to count on two guys that I know can get the job done. There are times where I feel that Jordan is the better running back than Anthone. There weren't too many rushing touchdowns in these sims but there was plenty of good rushing attempts that freed up the passing attack. This was very crucial when UB won close three or four point games.

3. Everyone gets a turn with the football

Ohio had a field day with their passing offense. This kind of thing was common (although it was frustrating to watch). What's interesting with this particular game is that Ohio only had three touchdowns even though five players received around fifty yards or more. Jordan Reid seems to be the sleeper receiver for Ohio and he shouldn't be underestimated.

Keys for a UB Win

1. Keep Ohio to 21 points or lower before the 4th quarter

We won a lot games when scoring was low on both sides coming into the fourth. I really think we have a shot at closing at one of these really close games. If the defense keeps things in line this time around, I think the offense will finally show up.

2. Rush that football

Jordan Johnson and Johnathan Hawkins are very capable and can help move the ball. PLEASE, RUN THE BALL MORE OFTEN. I'm begging you. On top of that, try some wide runs. I'm surprised that Taylor doesn't have more rushing touchdowns this year.

3. Minimize the INT total to one or less

Most games that I saw with more than one INT thrown by Licata didn't end well for us. The games often times just got completely out of hand when this happened. Ohio seemed to capitalize on these turnovers really well and it dug a hole too deep for UB to come out of.

Farce of the Simulation

Don't you do this to me Adam!

Projections of Future Opponents

Bowling Green 21 - Kent State 17

Miami (Not Florida) 13 - Western Michigan 40

Toledo 22 - UMass 26

Eastern Michigan 23 - Northern Illinois 31

The simulation entailed above may or may not agree with the writer's prediction of the game outcome. It is only a simple analysis based on computed data. If all of this proves to be true, run for the hills.