Ohio Bobcats vs. Buffalo Bulls
The fans at UB Stadium will be treated to a game between the Ohio Bobcats and the Buffalo Bulls when they take their seats on Tuesday.
Oddsmakers currently have the Bulls listed as 2½-point favorites versus the Bobcats, while the game's total has not yet been posted.
Theo Scott's touchdown pass with just over three minutes left gave Ohio a 20-17 win over Ball State in Week 9.
The Bobcats did not cover the 5.5-point spread, while the final score played UNDER the day's posted total of 44.
Jeffvon Gill ran for 172 yards on 23 carries with a touchdown for Buffalo in its 30-29 loss to Bowling Green in Week 10.
Bowling Green cashed as 3-point road underdogs, while the the game played OVER the 57.5-point total set by oddsmakers.
Current streak:
Buffalo has lost 2 straight games.
Team records:
Ohio: 6-3 SU, 4-4 ATS
Buffalo: 3-6 SU, 3-5 ATS
Ohio most recently:
When playing in November are 7-3
When playing on turf are 8-2
After outgaining opponent are 2-8
When playing within the conference are 6-4
Buffalo most recently:
When playing in November are 4-6
When playing on turf are 4-6
After outgaining opponent are 5-5
When playing within the conference are 5-5
A few trends to consider:
Ohio is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Ohio's last 5 games
Ohio is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
Ohio is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
Buffalo is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Ohio
Buffalo is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games at home
Buffalo is 2-6 SU in its last 8 games
Next up:
Ohio home to Northern Illinois, Saturday, November 21
Buffalo at Miami (Ohio), Wednesday, November 18
OHIO U (6 - 3) at BUFFALO (3 - 6)
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
BUFFALO is 2-0 against the spread versus OHIO U over the last 3 seasons
BUFFALO is 2-0 straight up against OHIO U over the last 3 seasons
1 of 2 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
OHIO vs. BUFFALO
Ohio is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Buffalo
Ohio is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
Buffalo is 2-6 SU in its last 8 games
Buffalo is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games at home
OHIO U at BUFFALO
OHIO U: 11-3 ATS off road game
BUFFALO: 25-12 Over vs. conference
What Bettors Need to Know: Ohio at Buffalo
By Marc Lawrence
The Mid American Conference is back in the spotlight Tuesday night when Buffalo (3-6, 1-4) hosts Ohio University (6-3, 4-1) in an East Division battle at the University of Buffalo Stadium. The game is televised on ESPN2.
The Bulls opened as 3-point favorites and the line has moved to -2.5.
Weather or not
The forecast calls for partly cloudy skies with lows in the mid-40s and a zero percent chance of rain. Northeast winds at 5 mph.
Not so bullish
One week to the day after dropping a disappointing 30-29 decision on this field to Bowling Green, the Bulls return to the scene of the crime to host the Bobcats in a matchup of two teams going in opposite directions.
After keeping Falcons receiver Freddie Barnes in check for three quarters, the floodgates opened in the final stanza. Barnes, the nation's leading receiver, caught four passes, including the game-winner on an 18-yard pass from Tyler Sheehan as the Falcons rallied to stun Buffalo.
Barnes, a Biletnikoff Award finalist, finished with a game-high eight catches for 122 yards.
The Bulls gained 302 yards and 21 points by halftime and led, 29-16, heading into the fourth quarter. Buffalo had just eight points and 109 yards in the second half.
Junior tailback Ike Nduka, the Bulls' leading rusher, re-injured his ankle early in the first quarter and didn't return. UB true freshman tailback Jeffvon Gill – no relation to head coach Turner Gill – relieved Nduka and rushed for a game-high 172 yards for the Bulls.
It prompted Bowling Green coach Dave Clawson to ask, "How many tailbacks do these guys have?"
Buffalo has rushed for over 200 yards in four of its last five games.
Bobcatting
Winners of four of their last five games, the Bobcats are on track for a showdown with Temple for East Division honors in a season-ending contest Nov. 27.
Ohio has three games remaining, including two at home. Already bowl-eligible, the Bobcats have a chance to wrap up their second divisional title in four years with a strong finish.
OU’s success this season has centered around its new offense - a spread variant with a mix of the pistol formation.
Senior QB Theo Scott has been solid and Ohio's passing game picked up nicely where it left off last season. Scott has completed 55 percent of his throws, good for 1,437 yards with 13 touchdowns and nine interceptions this season. Ohio's choice to go to a spread offense this season is paying dividends.
WR Taylor Price missed the end of the Ball State game on Oct. 31 with a sore left knee and is questionable.
RB Chris Garrett leads the team with 389 yards rushing and two rushing scores, but hasn't been able to hold onto the No. 1 spot on the depth chart. He's missed two games because of injury.
Defensively, Ohio is a bit soft against the run, allowing 150 rushing yards per game.
Ohio has won four straight MAC road games and is 4-1 on the road this season. The 'Cats only road loss occurred at Tennessee, in an 11-point decision on the final week in September. The Bobcats haven't won five straight conference road games since a seven-game stretch from 1959-1961 when Dwight D. Eisenhower was President.
Just in time
The Bobcats have enjoyed the extra time off this week to heal up. With one game over a 20-day stretch, the Bobcats hope the late breather will be enough to power them through the final three games and into a divisional title and bowl game.
The good news is Ohio will have plenty of time to achieve those goals. The Bobcats have another 11 days off until a home date with Northern Illinois on November 21.
"We've been playing for nine straight weeks. The timing of this is a pretty good thing for us,” said Ohio head coach Frank Solich on Ohio's schedule.
According to Hoyle
After winning and covering three straight seasons from 2004-06 against Buffalo, Ohio has dropped the last two decisions to the Bulls.
The Bobcats are 7-4 SU overall in this series, having been favored in all 11 games.
Sidebar: teams off a SU and ATS loss (Buffalo) are 20-9-3 ATS on Tuesdays during the regular season, including 13-2-1 ATS versus an opponent they defeated in their most recent meeting.
Ohio (6-3, 5-4 ATS) at Buffalo (3-6, 4-5 ATS)
The Mid-American Conference gets the national spotlight to itself as Ohio – looking to remain in the hunt for the MAC East Division title – travels to Buffalo for a divisional battle.
The Bobcats went on the road on Halloween and held off lowly Ball State 20-17, but failed to cover as a 5½-point road favorite. Ohio is 4-1 SU since MAC play began, but after cashing in the first three, it has come up short against the number the last two weeks. The Bobcats, who trail Temple by a game in the East Division standings, have stepped up on defense the last four weeks, allowing just 12.75 ppg.
The Bulls’ difficult season continued a week ago tonight when they blew a 29-16 fourth-quarter lead to Bowling Green, falling 30-29 as a three-point home favorite. Buffalo, which lost to Bowling Green despite a 411-361 edge in total offense (262-48 in rushing), has dropped six of its last eight games (3-5 ATS), with the last three decided by a total of eight points.
Buffalo has posted double-digit upset wins over Ohio the last two years, winning 31-10 as a four-point home ‘dog in 2007 and 32-19 as a 1½-point road pup last season. The home team has won eight of the last 10 in this rivalry dating to 1999, going 7-3 ATS. The SU winner has covered in nine of the last 10 meetings.
Ohio is on ATS runs of 5-2 overall, 5-2 in MAC action, 8-3-1 on the road, 6-1-1 as a road underdog, 5-1-1 after a SU victory and 7-3 after a non-cover. On the downside, the Bobcats are 4-12-1 ATS in their last 17 games when catching three points or less. The Bulls have covered in eight of their last 11 when coming off a non-cover, but otherwise are in pointspread slumps of 2-7 at home and 0-6 as a favorite (all at home).
The Bobcats have stayed under the total in four straight games (all in conference), but the over is 4-1 in their last five November outings and 7-1 in their last eight as an underdog of three points or less. Meanwhile, Buffalo carries “over” trends of 8-3 in conference play, 5-2 as a favorite (all at home) and 5-1 against winning teams. Finally, three of the last four meetings in this rivalry have topped the posted total.
ATS ADVANTAGE: OHIO and OVER
Tips and Trends
Ohio at Buffalo
Ohio: The bowl eligible Bobcats are in the hunt for a MAC championship this year. Ohio is in the middle of a span of 1 game in 20 days, which has allowed this team to rest and get healthy. Ohio is 6-2 SU this year, and their new spread offense is a major reason for their success. Senior QB Theo Scott (1,400 YDS; 13 TD's) is having a great year leading this offense. Ohio is battle tested on the road this year, as they've already played 5 road games. They are 4-1 SU this year on the road, with their only loss at Tennessee as 22 point underdogs. Ohio has won four straight MAC road games.
Ohio is 6-1-1 ATS in last 8 games as a road underdog.
Under is 4-0 in Bobcats last 4 conference games.
Key Injuries - LB Melvin Payne (concussion) is probable.
P Matt Schulte (concussion) is probable.
PROJECTED SCORE: 24 (Side of the Day)
Buffalo (-1, O/U 45): Head Coach Turner Gill has his work cut out for him. Buffalo is not going to have a winning season, despite all of the success this team tasted last year. The Bulls have only 1 lined win this season, a 4 point win against Akron. QB Zach Maynard leads this Bulls offense, as he has thrown for over 2,000 YDS and 15 TD's. His main targets are WR Naaman Roosevelt and WR Brett Hamlin, who have over 1,500 YDS and 8 TD's combined. Buffalo has won the last two meetings in this series
Buffalo 8-3 ATS in last 11 games following an ATS loss.
Buffalo is 0-6 ATS last 6 games as a home favorite.
Key Injuries - LB Justin Winters (flu) is questionable.
PROJECTED SCORE: 20
Ohio Bobcats vs. Buffalo Bulls
By Who2BetOn
Tuesday night football presents CFB bettors a chance to take in some MAC action when Ohio and Buffalo lock horns.
Tuesday night CFB betting action once again takes us to Buffalo, NY where the Bulls (3-6, 4-5 ATS) look to bounce back from last week's gutwrenching loss when they host the Ohio Bobcats (6-3, 5-4 ATS). The Bobcats were last in action on Halloween night when they scored a 20-17 win at Ball State but failed to cover the pointspread for the second week in a row. The nation was witness to an epic collapse by the Bulls in the 4th quarter last week after it choked away a 13-point 4th quarter lead and lost by one in the final minute of play.
Currently the host Bulls are short 1-point favorites with the game 'total' set at 45 for tonight's battle under the lights.
This is a crucial contest for the Bobcats if it has any hopes of securing the MAC East Title. They currently sit a game in back of Temple in the standings, and could put the pressure on the Owls with a win when they invade Akron to battle the Zips on Friday night. Ohio has had a good nine days of practice to prepare for tonight's battle. They're already bowl eligible and have hung with decent superior conference teams in UCONN and Tennessee. HC Frank Solich's club has been dreadful offensively ranked 105th in total yards with 315.3 YPG and 77th in scoring offense averaging 24.4 PPG, but has proven to be capable on the defensive side of the ball raking 37th in total defense (332.7 YPG) and 30th in scoring defense (20.6 PPG). The defense has forced 27 turnovers, but the offense has turned the ball over 18 times.
Buffalo looked to be well on its way towards taking two in a row from division rival Bowling Green, but blew up in a big way in the 4th quarter and eventually lost by a single point (30-29) as 3-point chalks. Because of the choke, the Bulls must win their final three games of the season just to become bowl eligible. HC Turner Gill will certainly have his kids ready in their home finale, bit they'll have to be perfect to pull the feat off. The Bulls have been careless with the ball this season evidenced by their (-5) turnover margin heading into tonight's game. Where they might have an edge in this match-up is on the ground as the Bulls have rushed for 476 yards their L/2 games and Ohio's defense has been susceptible on the ground allowing 150.3 YPG (#71). If they don't turn the ball over and look to set the tempo of the game with their ground attack, the Bulls could upend the Bobcats for the third season in a row.
Last year's 32-19 home loss saw Ohio drop back-to-back games in this series for the first time ever. The Bobcats are 12-6 ATS as an underdog and 3-1 ATS as a road underdog of 3 points or less the L/3 seasons. Buffalo counters with an 8-3 ATS their L/11 games off an ATS defeat, but has covered the spread in just 2 of its L/9 home games.