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ATHENS, Ohio – The Ohio football program went on the road Friday (Nov. 28) to take on the Buffalo Bulls in the final game of the regular season. The Bobcats found success in all three phases of the game to earn a 31-26 victory.
"For our program, players and staff, some things we talked about are playing for as long as it takes to win and leaving no doubt," head coach Brian Smith said. "I thought that our kids did that, they played the entire game as hard as they could and it took that long to win this game."
Graduate student quarterback Parker Navarro (Tempe, Ariz.) led the Bobcat offense against the Bulls with 10 completions for 147 yards and two touchdowns in the air along with a team-leading 134 rushing yards and one touchdown on the ground. The Bobcats' leading receiver was junior wide receiver Chase Hendricks (St. Louis, Mo.), who tallied 92 yards and a touchdown. Navarro's other passing touchdown was caught by redshirt sophomore tight end Mason Williams (Mogadore, Ohio). On the ground, Ohio running backs also found success with redshirt senior Sieh Bangura (Bowie, Md.) going for 120 yards and a touchdown and sophomore Duncan Brune (Cologne, Germany) rushing for 69 yards.
On defense, the Bobcats were led in tackles by junior safety Jalen Thomeson (Greenwood, Ind.), who recorded seven tackles, including five solo stops. Ohio's only forced turnover of the game was an interception by redshirt sophomore defensive back Kendall Bannister (Woodbridge, Va.), who picked off the Buffalo quarterback late in the fourth quarter. Two Bobcats tallied solo sacks against Buffalo, redshirt sophomore defensive end Jay Crable (Massillon, Ohio) and redshirt junior defensive end Anas Luqman (Cincinnati, Ohio).
Defense was key to starting the game, as neither offense scored on their first drive.
After Ohio came up with a fourth-down stop to get the ball back, it capitalized with a score on its second offensive drive. The Bobcat rushing attack led the offense all the way into the red zone, which would set up an 11-yard touchdown catch from Navarro to Williams. With 8:02 to play in the first quarter, Ohio led 7-0.
Buffalo would later tie the game with a touchdown early in the second quarter.
Looking for a lead before halftime, Ohio used redshirt senior tight end Jake Bruno (Amherst, New York) on a fake punt play that would set the offense up inside the 10-yard line. Bangura would cap off the drive this time with a one-yard rushing score to put the Bobcats up 14-7 with 10 minutes to play in the first half.
The Ohio defense forced a punt once again, which led to yet another first-half touchdown for the Bobcats. This time it was Navarro to Hendricks for a 15-yard touchdown score to make it 21-7 with 3:43 to play in the game's first half.
Going into the half, the score remained 21-7 in favor of the Bobcats.
Buffalo scored on its first drive of the second half to shorten Ohio's lead to 21-13. The Bobcats were quick to respond, however, matching the Bulls' touchdown with one of their own.
A good mix of rush and pass got Ohio into the redzone, where it would cap off the scoring drive with a six-yard rushing score for Navarro on third down to make it 28-13 Bobcats.
Going into the game's final quarter, Ohio was still holding onto its 28-13 lead.
The Bulls would score a touchdown to start the fourth quarter, but a good defensive play by graduate student corner Tank Pearson (Oxford, Miss.) on the two-point conversion would keep it a two-score game in favor of Ohio at 28-19.
After getting the ball back with a chance to cut the lead to one score, the Ohio defense made its biggest play of the game with a Bannister interception.
Getting the ball back in enemy territory, the Bobcat offense capitalized on the turnover with a field goal to make it 31-19. Redshirt freshman kicker David Dellenbach (Park City, Utah) converted on the 33-yard attempt to add three points to the Bobcat lead.
Buffalo wouldn't go away easily, however, as they quickly responded with a touchdown to bring the game to one score at 31-26.
Getting the ball back with just under four minutes to play, Bangura and the offense would be able to waste the remainder of the clock to secure the victory.
#OUohyeah
