EAST HARTFORD, Conn. — After two dominant home victories, UConn football picked up right where it left off Saturday by defeating Buffalo 47-3.
UConn remains unbeaten at home on the season following blow out victories over Merrimack and Florida Atlantic. In three games at Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field in 2024, the Huskies have outscored opponents 158-34.
Buffalo, coming off an upset road overtime win over No. 23 Northern Illinois and featuring the nation’s leading tackler in Shaun Dolac, appeared to be a dangerous opponent, but UConn had other ideas.
Wide receiver Skyler Bell was the clear star of the game, catching six passes for 153 yards, including three receiving touchdowns. One went for 70 yards.
After a quiet game against FAU, running back Cam Edwards led the ground game with 97 yards on 10 carries, including a touchdown. Running back Durrell Robinson also rushed for 73 yards on eight carries, while running back Mel Brown carried the ball 10 times for 54 yards and a touchdown.
For the second time this season, starting quarterback Nick Evers was forced to leave the game with an injury, exiting in the second quarter. While on the field, Evers completed seven of 12 passes for 51 yards and ran the ball eight times for 23 yards.
Backup quarterback Joe Fagnano shined immediately upon entering the contest. He connected with Bell for three touchdowns en route to completing 11 out of 19 passes for 217 yards.
UConn scored on all four trips to the red zone and gained 28 first downs compared to Buffalo’s 12. The Huskies’ defense was stellar again, holding Buffalo to 1-14 on third down and 0 for 3 on fourth down. UConn added a late interception in the fourth quarter with the game already decided.
To begin play, Buffalo received the ball first, but it was UConn that got the scoring started. After a Bulls punt, the Huskies capped off a 12-play, 58-yard drive with a 26-yard field goal by Chris Freeman with 8:49 left in the first quarter.
After another Buffalo punt, UConn embarked on a four-play, 57-yard drive that ended with an emphatic 43-yard touchdown run by Cam Edwards to put the Huskies up 10-0.
The Huskies and Bulls then traded punts. While the UConn offense was functional, the Huskies’ defense had Buffalo all out of sorts offensively.
Momentum was already trending the Huskies’ way, but it shifted entirely to UConn’s favor when the defense forced a key turnover on downs as Buffalo failed to convert a 4th & 1 at the Huskies’ 33-yard line early in the second quarter.
UConn took over and drove down the field again, and Freeman hit a 39-yard field goal to finish an 11-play, 46-yard drive with 11:09 remaining in the half to put the Huskies up 13-0.
Buffalo proceeded to lose nine yards on their next drive and punted again after going three and out. The UConn offense stalled as well, gaining one first down before Evers left the game with an injury. The Huskies punted the ball back to the Bulls, who proceeded to go three and out once more.
After a dynamic 33-yard punt return by TJ Sheffield, UConn started on the Buffalo 22 yard line but failed to capitalize with a touchdown, instead settling for a Freeman field goal from 22 yards. It put the Huskies up 16-0 with 5:18 remaining in the second quarter.
Buffalo then lost 16 yards on three plays before punting again. UConn answered this time, going seven plays for 64 yards on a drive that ended with a 40-yard touchdown throw from Fagnano to Bell to put the Huskies up 23-0.
Buffalo was able to march into UConn territory and hit a field goal before the first half expired, cutting UConn’s halftime lead to 23-3. The Bulls wouldn’t score again.
The Huskies received the ball first to start the second half and continued to punish the Buffalo defense. Fagnano connected with Bell again for a 70-yard touchdown to complete a three-play, 75-yard drive. UConn led 30-3.
The Huskies’ defense continued its strong effort, forcing the Bulls to punt on their first two drives to start the third quarter.
After punting on their own second drive of the third quarter, the Huskies made the most of their third drive, going 57 yards in six plays. Fagnano connected with Bell on a 12-yard touchdown pass with 5:33 remaining in the frame. It was Bell’s third touchdown of the day. UConn built its lead to 37-3.
On Buffalo’s next possession, the Bulls turned it over on downs again. Then, on just four plays, the Huskies moved the ball 83 yards, scoring another touchdown with 14:56 left in the game. Brown carried the ball 23 yards for the score.
Buffalo would punt again on its next drive after only three plays, which was a recurring theme of the game. When UConn got the ball, the Huskies went 41 yards on six plays, capped by a 27-yard field goal from Freeman to build the lead to 47-3. The score held up for the rest of the game.
The Huskies move to 3-2 and take on Temple next week in East Hartford at 3:30 p.m. It is the first time since 2012 that UConn has a record above .500 through five games.
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Dalton Zbierski is a digital content producer and writer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com.
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