2026 MAC Football Preseason Preview: Buffalo Bulls

Buffalo may be in full rebuild mode in 2026.

This seems odd to say given the Bulls have recently followed down years with resurgent ones. After finishing 4-8 in 2021, the Bulls went 7-6 the following season with a win in the Camellia Bowl. In 2023, the Bulls finished 3-9. The next year, they beat the defending Fiesta Bowl runner-up Liberty in the Bahamas Bowl to cap an 9-4 campaign.

This year, the Bulls look to return to the postseason, but this seems like a tall task given that hardly any team in the MAC lost more. Unlike last year, the Bulls do not have another NFL-ready linebacker to replace the previous one. On offense, Buffalo loses their starting quarterback, two 800-yard receivers, and a running back who ran for 1,000 yards in 2023.

Nonetheless, the MAC’s parity means you cannot count out anyone out– even a team with a sea of departures and new additions coming into the season.

What’s New

Head coach Pete Lembo cleaned house in the offseason, on-boarding a new offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator, while also bringing on Will Brandau as Director of Football Analytics and David Bonacquisti as Director of High School Relations.

The school attributes Brandau as a key figure in Lembo’s game-day decision making throughout the 2024 nine-win season. Brandau returns after serving as a football analytics intern with the Green Bay Packers last year.

Tony Tokarz takes the wheel on offense after spending the last six seasons with Mike Norvell at Florida State as a QB and tight ends coach. Tokarz is credited with shepherding the development of Jordan Travis at FSU and helping the Seminoles win the ACC as an undefeated team despite starting three different players at signalcaller. Tokarz was Lembo's former tight ends coach at Memphis in 2019.

Brian Dougherty, UB's nickelbacks and safeties coach in 2025, was promoted to defensive coordinator in January. He has previous DC experience at the D-II level with UIndy (2023), where his Greyhounds were eighth in the country in scoring defense (14.9) and were second in their conference in total defense (290.5), and with Valparaiso (2018-22), where his defenses were top 1o in both redzone and fourth down defense in his final season.

Special teams coordinator Garrett McLaughlin arrives from Columbia, but made his mark at New Hampshire (2023-24), where his Wildcats unit blocked an FCS-leading five kicks and were amongst the leaders in kickoff and punt returns in 2023. Both punters under McLaughlin's watch at Columbia made all-Ivy League teams, while UNH returner Dylan Laube eventually became an NFL prospect.

Buffalo does bring in a decent amount of transfers, especially along the offensive line and in the defensive front seven; given the relative stability of those two positional units in recent times, these will likely make or break the direction of the season.

Offense

• Key arrivals: QB Elijah Holmes (Wingate), OLs Nino Fancavilla (Miami [FL]), Joe Crocker (Baylor) and Nathan Natoli (Bucknell), WR Jaylin Andrews (East Strousburg), TE Clint Walker (Davenport)
• Key departures: QBs Ta'Quan Roberson and Gunnar Gray, WRs Nik McMillan (Kansas) and Victor Snow (North Carolina State), HB Al-Jay Henderson, OLs Tyler Doty and Trevor Brock
• Key incumbents: HBs Terrance Shelton Jr. and Messiah Burch, WR Jasiah Gathings, OG Alex Heininger

Buffalo loses both 2025 starter Ta’Quan Roberson and backup Gunnar Gray at signalcaller. Roberson finally came into his own as a passer in 2025, throwing for 2,520 yards and 17 touchdowns. This year, the Bulls look to another transfer, this time one from the Division II level, signing Elijah Holmes from Wingate.

Holmes brings both wise decision-making and elite running ability to the offense. He threw 20 touchdowns to three interceptions on 284 passes and averaged nearly eight yards per carry on 39 non-sack rushes. This contrasts with Roberson and Grey’s combined 14 interceptions and Roberson’s less than four yards per carry on 61 non-sack rushes.

Unfortunately, Holmes does not have the receiving duo of Nik McMillan and Victor Snow to catch passes. Both exceeded 60 receptions and 800 yards, with McMillan notching 981 yards and Snow adding 815. Nonetheless, Jasaiah Gathings provides some continuity after catching 36 passes for 410 yards and three scores last season. Chance Morrow also looks poised for a breakout after learning in the system for four years.

Campbell transfer Trevor Wilson should bring much-needed reinforcement to the tight end room. Wilson’s 22 receptions for 193 yards in 2025 were nearly double what Buffalo produced at the position last year. Last year, Bulls tight ends caught 15 passes for 108 yards.

Much of the college football world knows Buffalo produces solid running backs, with Jarret Patterson and Kevin Marks carrying the ball recently. Al-Jay Henderson was no different. Although he regressed slightly in 2025 after a 1,000-yard campaign, Buffalo will miss his contributions to the run game. Terrance Shelton, Jr. is next in line for the Bulls. Shelton Jr.’s kickoff return rap sheet shows he can produce explosiveness from the backfield. He averaged over 22 yards per kick return on 17 opportunities and added 244 yards on 57 carries.

James McNeil, Jr. provides a power back countering Shelton’s style at 220 pounds. McNeil Jr. excelled in his lone extended playing time last year against St. Francis, gaining 64 yards on nine carries.

Who will block for these backs remains the biggest question. Buffalo must replace its entire offensive line, including all-MAC honorees Trevor Brock and Tyler Doty. The Bulls added two lineman with Power Four experience in Nino Francavilla, who played seven games with Miami (FL) over the last two seasons, and Joe Crocker, who played 18 games at Louisville and Baylor in the same time period. Nathan Natoli also adds 20 career starts at Bucknell at guard and tackle.

Defense

• Key arrivals: DE Sedrick Vessah (Cal Univ. [PA]); NTs Stantavious Smith (Florida A&M) and Mason Nickel (Saginaw Valley State); LBs Logan Goodwin (Indiana Univ. [PA]), Caleb Oliver (Wofford), Zach Bergmann (Missouri Southern State), Stevie Bracey (Virginia) and Joey Chesire; DB Zac Jennings (West Virginia)
• Key departures: DLs Kobe Stewart, George Wolo, Malin White, Junior Poyser and Devin Morgan; LB Red Murdock (NFL), Mitchell Gosner and Dion Crawford; DB Solomon Brown
• Key incumbents: NT Cornell Evans, DBs SaVeon Brown, Keontez Bradley and Kobi Blackwell; SAF Miles Greer

Buffalo fans have been spoiled with claiming two of the best linebackers of the decade in back-to-back seasons.

Red Murdock followed Shaun Dolac’s 168 tackles in 2024 with 142 in 2025. This year, Buffalo loses not only Murdock, but they also lose his counterpart in Mitch Gonser, who had 70 tackles in 2025. In fact, Buffalo does not return a single linebacker that recorded a tackle last season. The Bulls did land Stevie Bracey from the transfer portal, who had 20 tackles at Virginia in 2023, and also brought in D-II standout Logan Goodwin, who haled in 100 tackles, 5.5 TFLs and two INTs in 2025.

Defensive line is a little more situated even with a lot of movement, as Cornell Evans anchors the middle once again. Evans is a two-year starter with 29 tackles and three for loss in that span. Indiana University-Pennsylvania transfer Logan Goodwin brings solid potential off the edge after making 13 tackles-for-loss and sacking the quarterback seven times last season. On the whole, UB brought in four transfers to try and shore up the trenches in the hopes of bringing in experienced depth.

The secondary returns the most production out of the entire defense. Miles Greer returns to the safety position after making 74 tackles in 2025. Sa’Veon Brown is an unmistakable presence at nickel with 52 tackles and six TFLs in 2025. Keontez Bradley and Kobi Blackwell should have productive years at cornerback. Bradley made 28 tackles and broke up four passes in 2025, while Blackwell has star potential after breaking up seven passes in seven starts last year.

Special Teams

• Key arrivals: PK/KOS Zach McGowan (SUNY Brockport), PUNT Andrew VanSlyke (James Madison)
• Key departures: PK Jack Howes, PUNT Dyan Drennan (Purdue), RET Victor Snow (NC State)
• Key incumbents: RET Terrance Shelton Jr., PK Oliver Hautanen, PUNT Ethan Stumpf

Coach Lembo made his bread on special teams, so this will be something to keep an eye on as the year goes on.

The Bulls blocked four kicks in 2025, nearing the top of the NCAA, and was one of the steadiest groups in terms of field goals, punts and returns, not dipping below the late 60s nationally or seventh in the MAC in any special teams category.

2026 will be a tall task for Lembo and special teams coordinator Garrett McLaughlin, as they must replace departing pieces such as punter Dylan Drennan and kicker Jack Howes. Drennan averaged 44.8 yards per punt, while Howes was nearly automatic, making 14 of his 17 field goals and all of his extra points.

Placekicker will have a battle in likelihood, with uptransfer Zach McGowan (Bridgeport) and redshirt freshman Oliver Hautanen on the two-deep. McGowan was 7-of-8 in D-III action in 2025, and also served as the team's primary holder.

Punter could also see a battle, with James Madison transfer Andrew VanSlyke, former ECU transfer Ethan Stumpf and freshman Evan Pfeifer on the roster.

Terrance Shelton Jr. is back to handle kickoffs, which is good news, but Buffalo must still find a replacement for punt returner Victor Snow. Snow was efficient returning punts, averaging 10 yards per return on 20 chances and notching UB's first punt return touchdown in a decade last year.

Outlook

This year likely is a rebuilding year for Buffalo. The Bulls have a manageable non-conference slate with two FCS schools and Florida International, but also must face conference favorites Toledo, Western Michigan, and Miami.

Still, Pete Lembo’s experience is an asset many schools in the league do not have. This could lead the Bulls to a return to the postseason if the coin flips land right in what has been the most competitive conference in the NCAA in recent seasons.

Schedule

All dates and times are current as of publication. An asterisk (*) denotes a conference game.