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2024 Buffalo

9–⁠4 (6–⁠2 Mid-American Conference), coached by Pete Lembo.

Schedule and results

Buffalo in 2024, game by game: won vs. Lafayette 30–13; lost at No. 9 Missouri 0–38; won vs. Massachusetts 34–3; won at No. 23 Northern Illinois 23–20; lost at UConn 3–47; won vs. Toledo 30–15; lost vs. Western Michigan 41–48; lost at Ohio 16–47; won at Akron 41–30; won vs. Ball State 51–48; won at Eastern Michigan 37–20; won vs. Kent State 43–7; won vs. Liberty 26–7+36−44Won 30–13 vs. Lafayette+17LafayetteLost 0–38 at No. 9 Missouri-38No. 9 MissouriWon 34–3 vs. Massachusetts+31MassachusettsWon 23–20 at No. 23 Northern Illinois+3No. 23 Northern Illino…Lost 3–47 at UConn-44UConnWon 30–15 vs. Toledo+15ToledoLost 41–48 vs. Western Michigan-7Western MichiganLost 16–47 at Ohio-31OhioWon 41–30 at Akron+11AkronWon 51–48 vs. Ball State+3Ball StateWon 37–20 at Eastern Michigan+17Eastern MichiganWon 43–7 vs. Kent State+36Kent StateWon 26–7 vs. Liberty+19Liberty
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 29vsLafayetteW 30–⁠1367%
Sep 7at9MissouriL 0–⁠3818%
Sep 14vsMassachusettsW 34–⁠372%
Sep 21at23Northern IllinoisW 23–⁠2034%
Sep 28atUConnL 3–⁠4745%
Oct 12vsToledoW 30–⁠1532%
Oct 19vsWestern MichiganL 41–⁠4862%
Oct 26atOhioL 16–⁠4732%
Nov 2atAkronW 41–⁠3058%
Nov 12vsBall StateW 51–⁠4866%
Nov 20atEastern MichiganW 37–⁠2045%
Nov 26vsKent StateW 43–⁠788%
Jan 4Bowls & playoffvsLibertyBahamas BowlW 26–⁠733%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Liberty 26–⁠7 in the Bahamas Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 3rd in the Mid-American Conference.

In program history: The 4th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 54 on file).

Consensus All-AmericanShaun Dolac, LB

Record
9–⁠4
Conference
6–⁠2 tied for 3rd in Mid-American Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
375–⁠343
Coach
Pete Lembo
Elo
1531 +114 this season
SP+ rating
-4.0 No. 87 of 134; offense No. 84, defense No. 93, special teams No. 46
SRS
−6.1 No. 93 of 134 in FBS
Returning
14% of last season’s EPA, No. 127 of 133
Recruiting class
No. 110 roster talent No. 126 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Dave Patenaude
Defensive coordinator
Joe Bowen
Offense
Pro spread
Defense
Multiple

How good, play by play

  • Offense74th of 134
  • Defense58th of 134
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted94th of 134
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted82nd of 134
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1037%1.3574th of 134
Defense0.0943%1.3558th of 134
Opponent-adjusted0.06 off
0.13 def		35% off
45% def		—94th off
82nd def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.0own 3216% allowed
Defense3.7own 2919% caused

CORE rating -4.6, 82nd of 134 (offense -4.3, defense 0.4).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsC.J. Ogbonna QB2,381 yds
Passing touchdownsC.J. Ogbonna QB19 TD
Rushing yardsAl-Jay Henderson RB1,078 yds
Rushing touchdownsAl-Jay Henderson RB9 TD
Receiving yardsVictor Snow WR651 yds
Receiving touchdownsVictor Snow WR6 TD
TacklesShaun Dolac LB168 tkl
SacksKobe Stewart DE9.5 sacks
InterceptionsShaun Dolac LB5 INT

Top recruits in the 2024 class

Shamar Riser-Pressley DE★★★No. 1391
Patrick Clacks III WR★★★No. 1460
Kobi Blackwell ATH★★★No. 1513
Terrance Shelton Jr. RB★★★No. 1741
Ronnell Davis S★★★No. 1848

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2024 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Running backs13.00.847
Receivers33.00.822
Offensive line22.50.794
Defensive line33.00.825
Linebackers23.00.821
Defensive backs32.70.809
Athletes and specialists13.00.853
Whole class152.90.820

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 119

The 2024 roster

119 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2024 line; 61 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 17

The 2024 portal
Eddie Pleasant III CB★★★from Michigan State
Gabriel Arena OL★★★from Virginia Tech
Saveon Brown S★★★from Western Michigan
Kobe Stewart DE★★★from Samford
Oliver Bridges CB★★★from Cincinnati
Taji Johnson WR★★★from Boston College
Tristan Souza DL★★★from Washington State
J.J. Jenkins WR★★★from Columbia
Jack Shields QB★★★from Old Dominion
Antonio Colclough DE★★★from Monmouth
Ethan Duane P★★from Old Dominion
Byron Floyd LSfrom Pittsburgh

And 5 more, lower-rated or unrated.

Transfers out 17

Cameron Ball TE★★★★to Mississippi State
Devin Grant S★★★to Syracuse
Cole Snyder QB★★★to Eastern Michigan
Isaiah Wright OL★★★to Maryland
Marlyn Johnson WR★★★to Florida Atlantic
Kyler Laing DE★★★to Florida Atlantic
Kameron Olds DE★★★to Kent State
Caleb Offord CB★★★no new school on file
D’Andre Greeley CB★★★no new school on file
Dylan Kedzior RB★★★to Bryant
Micah Woods WR★★★to South Alabama
Caron Robinson RB★★no new school on file

And 5 more, lower-rated or unrated.

2024 Mid-American Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Ohio7–⁠111–⁠3
Miami (OH)7–⁠19–⁠5
Buffalo6–⁠29–⁠4
Bowling Green6–⁠27–⁠6
Western Michigan5–⁠36–⁠7
Northern Illinois4–⁠48–⁠5
Toledo4–⁠48–⁠5
Akron3–⁠54–⁠8
Eastern Michigan2–⁠65–⁠7
Central Michigan2–⁠64–⁠8
Ball State2–⁠63–⁠9
Kent State0–⁠80–⁠12

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.