KENT, Oh. - After losing some close ones late in the year, the Buffalo Bulls finally pulled out a close one.
A.J. Principe's 22-yard field goal with five seconds remaining was the difference Friday as Buffalo defeated hosting Kent State 9-6 at Dix Stadium. Principe also had a pair of 24-yard field goals as he became Buffalo's all-time leading scorer with 224 points.
Neither team scored a touchdown in the defensive stuggle, but the Bulls had 20 first downs to Kent State's eight and outgained the hosts 320-159 overall. Buffalo held the Flashes to just 14 yards passing and outgained them 178-68 in the first half, which ended with the Bulls holding a 3-0 advantage.
"Since I've been here, it's the best our defense has played," Buffalo coach Turner Gill said after the game. "It was great to see, because they had their backs against the wall several times and responded.They played with passion, and it was four quarters of our defense playing extremely well."
Kent State finally made it onto the scoreboard midway through the third quarter, although the Flashes ultimately forced themselves into a field goal situation.
Freshman Dri Archer carried the ball five times for 48 yards as the hosts moved to the Buffalo 16-yard line. Back-to-back penalties, however, moved KSU back to the 28-yard line.
Archer picked up another six of his career-high 93 total yards (on 10 carries) before Freddy Cortez kicked a 39-yard field goal to tie the contest at 3-3.
Buffalo moved back out front in the final stanza as the Bulls moved 66 yards in 10 plays for a score. Zach Maynard's 14-yard pass to Brett Hamblin gave the Bulls a first down at the Kent State five-yard stripe, but the Flashes dropped Brandon Thermilus for a two yard loss and Maynard threw two incompletions to set up fourth and goal from the seven. Principe came on for the field goal and converted the 24-yarder to nudge Buffalo ahead 6-3 with 7:51 remaining.
Kent State nearly took the lead a few moments later as Archer returned the ensuing kickoff 77 yards before he was tackled by kicker Joyn Rachuna at the UB 13-yard line.
"I just tried to make something happen and put our offense in good field position," said Archer,who had a career-high 217 all-purpose yards.
Having dodged a quick six on the kickoff return, Buffalo's defense capitalized by limiting Kent State to four yards over three plays. Facing fourth-and-six at the nine, KSU turned to Cortez, who tied the game with a 26-yard boot at 5:25.
Possessions were becoming critical, and the Bulls dug deep after taking over at the own 33-yard line after the kickoff. Buffalo used 10 runs during an 11-play drive that consumed 5:11. It was third-and-goal from the four-yard line when Principe kicked his game-winning field goal with five seconds remaining.
"As a kicker, that's what you want - for it to come down to the end with the game on your shoulders," Principe said. "I just kept positive, and I knew the offense was going to get us into scoing position on that last drive.
"The offensive line did a great job," said Thermilus, who led all rushers with 123 net yards on the ground. "We knew that we just had to execute and be at the right spot at the right time. We did what we had to do to slow things down. When you slow things down, everyone just controls what they had to do, and we we came out on top."
Buffalo, which had lost three straight games by three points or less prior to defeating Miami Nov. 18, finished the year with a 5-7 overal mark and was 3-5 in the MAC.
"Great win for us," Gill said "I'm proud of our football team. They hung in there.... By finishing up the season winning two games on the road, we have a lot of things to look forward to going into our offseason program and into the next football year."
Kent State, which battled through injuries in 2009, posted a 5-7 overall record and was 4-4 in MAC play. "When you have to play three quarterbacks in a year, that's just the way that goes," KSU coach Doug Martin said. "Unfortunately, we've suffered through that the last five years, playing three quarterbacks in a season. If we play with one quarterback for a year, we are going to be a good football team and a winning football team. We're really proud with the way our players fought."
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