Eighth-ranked Bears hit road to battle Bulls

Sep 10, 2014 - 3:14 PM Buffalo, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - The eighth-ranked Baylor Bears will tackle their first road test of the season under Friday night lights when they travel to UB Stadium to play a non-conference bout with the Buffalo Bulls.

Buffalo started its season off on the right foot two weeks ago with a home- opening victory over Duquesne, 38-28. In last weekend's matchup at Army, the Bulls fell behind by as many as 30 points in the fourth quarter only to rip off 22 unanswered points to make it a one-possession game, 47-39, with under three minutes to play, but they could not complete the comeback.

Baylor has barely broken a sweat in its first two games. After shutting out SMU in the opener, 45-0, the Bears put together a dominant performance versus Northwestern State last Saturday in a 70-6 win.

Baylor head coach Art Briles has taken the necessary steps to make sure his team is prepared to play on short rest for the second straight week.

"It is a short week of course, and it is not like all of a sudden we woke up and said we have a game Friday," Briles said. "We have tried to gear our guys to have it where we will be as fresh as possible Friday night up in Buffalo. I am anxious to get our guys up there and get after it."

The Bears have defeated the Bulls on all three previous occasions, including last year in a 70-13 trouncing.

After owning the FBS' top offense a season ago, the Bears have picked up right where they left off in 2014 with 57.5 ppg and 647.0 ypg, but they won their most recent game without their star quarterback.

Bryce Petty had 182 total yards and three touchdowns in the opener before leaving with a pair of cracked bones in his lower spine, which caused him to miss the Northwestern State game. He is questionable to return to the field this week.

"He said he was sore, but not painful and that is a big difference," Briles said of his Heisman-hopeful quarterback. "If he is able to go, he will go."

In Petty's absence, Seth Russell dazzled against Northwestern State, earning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week honors by completing 16-of-25 passes for 428 yards while accounting for six touchdowns, proving he's more than capable of running the high-octane offense if Petty is unable to go again.

There are plenty of big plays to go around in the passing game and several receivers have reaped the benefits so far. KD Cannon has 282 yards, sixth-most in the nation, on just eight catches (35.3 ypc) and has reeled in four touchdowns. Davion Hall (11 receptions, 164 yards, TD) and Jay Lee (10 receptions, 158 yards, two TDs) are also actively involved.

Three players have more than 100 yards rushing, paced by Johnny Jefferson (32 carries, 164 yards, TD).

Although the competition hasn't exactly been top-notch, the Baylor defense has nonetheless performed extremely well, allowing a mere 3.0 ppg and 134.5 ypg, ranking third and second in the nation, respectively.

The team has 12 sacks, with Taylor Young and Shawn Oakman both recording a pair. Xavien Howard has picked off two passes and Bryce Hager has a team-best 14 tackles and a forced fumble.

While the Bulls' offense is nowhere near as potent as Baylor's, they have still impressed in the early going this season by putting up 38.5 ppg and 510.5 ypg, although they have been careless with the ball, committing five turnovers.

There were two shades of Joe Licata's game in the loss to Army. On one hand, he completed 34-of-49 passes for 396 yards and a career-high five touchdowns, but he also cost his squad by tossing three interceptions. Through two games, the signal caller has completed 69.4 percent of his passes for 694 yards, eight touchdowns and four picks.

Marcus McGill shined in the loss out wide with six receptions for 123 yards and two touchdowns, upping his season totals to 10 receptions and 163 yards. Ron Willoughby was Licata's go-to guy in the opener and has 15 catches for 187 yards and two scores.

Anthone Taylor acts as the featured back and has turned 46 carries into 194 yards and two touchdowns.

Buffalo has been let down by the play of its defense in the early going this season, with the unit allowing 37.5 ppg and 419.5 ypg, although it has generated three takeaways.

Adam Redden has been a terrific playmaker in the defensive backfield with team highs in tackles (16), TFL (3.5) and sacks (2.0). Lee Skinner has 15 tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Tedroy Lynch has registered 1.5 sacks and a blocked kick.