2026 MAC Football Week 8 Game Preview: Bowling Green Falcons at Buffalo Bulls

Both Buffalo (4-3, 2-1 MAC) and Bowling Green (2-4, 2-1 MAC) had very visible struggles to start the 2026 campaign.

UB had to sneak past two FCS foes and navigate a bevy of injuries on offense, which they finally seem to be getting over for the most part. BGSU, meanwhile, endured an 0-4 non-conference slate, which included two blowout losses to Power Four teams and a season-opening loss to Tarleton State, the current #1 team at the FCS level.

Now they meet at a cross-roads for both sides. Buffalo finds themselves in the hunt for a trip to Detroit thanks to an upset win over Toledo a few weeks back, while BGSU took a tough loss to Ball State, threatening their ability to make the postseason.

With both teams at 2-1 in MAC play, this game will essentially serve as a potential eliminator.

Game notes

• Date and Time: Saturday, October 24th, 2026 at 3:30 p.m. Eastern time
• Location: Broadview Stadium in Amherst, New York
• TV options: The game will stream exclusively on ESPN+. A valid subscription is required.
• Bowling Green radio: Todd Walker (play-by-play) and John Gibson (color) will provide the BGSU call for Eagle FM 99.
• Buffalo radio: Paul Peck (play-by-play) and Scott Wilson (color) providing the Buffalo call on The Varsity Network App.
• Gambling Considerations: UB is a 4.5-point favorite; over/under is 44.5, per Covers.
• All-time series: BGSU leads the all-time series 13-9. Neither team has held a winning streak in the last five years; coincidentally, the road team has won every time in that stretch. Buffalo is the defending winner in the series thanks to a 28-3 result last season.

Bowling Green outlook

BGSU took a stumble they couldn't afford last week to Ball State, losing in walk-off fashion in overtime on a freakish two-point conversion.

The fact BGSU was even in contention was impressive in and of itself, as the Falcons had to score 14 points in 11 seconds in the fourth quarter just to take their first lead of the game– but the flipside of that is that they also gave up the lead twice in leverage situations.

As a result, they miss a golden opportunity to control their own destiny before the schedule gets a lot harder.

To say the Falcons have been a tough watch so far would be understating it. BGSU's statistical output is amongst the worst in the MAC, currently 12th in total offense (280.4 yards) and 11th in total defense (383.9 yards allowed), while giving up 29.6 points per game (ninth in MAC) and scoring 18 points per game (10th in MAC).

One of the few bright spots has been the defense, particularly its pass rush. The Falcons lead the MAC with 18 sacks, complementing nicely with the best third-down defense in the league, killing opponent drives on 32 percent of attempts.

As a unit, the Falcons have 37 tackles-for-loss, with five players collecting three TFLs or more in seven games. EDGE rusher Myles Bradley has positioned himself nicely for all-MAC honors with seven TFLs and seven sacks to go along with four QB hits, a fumble recovery and two forced fumbles (all team leads). Opposite him is Eriq George, who's having a nice season of his own with 29 tackles, 6.5 TFLs and 3.5 sacks to go with 2 QB hurries. Redshirt freshman linebacker Cashmire Lewis has also been a force, with four sacks and six TFLs on 37 tackles. BGSU rosters the MAC's leader in total tackles in linebacker Dorian Pringle, who has notched 67 stops in all and has five TFLs and a forced fumble as well.

Josira Andrews (22 tackles, three PBUs) has stepped up in the absence of JoJo Johnson at corner, complimenting veteran presence Kal-El Pascal well. The elder Pascal had a key forced fumble last weekend and has collected 51 tackles (second on team) in 2026.

On offense, the Falcons want to run first and convert on explosive pass plays. The results have been mixed so far, but when the offense is in rhythm, they're fully capable of scoring quickly.

Quarterback Jay Kastantin has played past his expectations, currently sixth in the MAC with 171.6 yards per game on average and third in completion percentage (66.5) after transferring up from Division II Assumption College. BG spreads the ball around, with four receivers each sitting at 20+ receptions. The receiver pair of Brennan Ridley (22 catches, 257 yards, TD) and Winn Sharp (20 catches, 255 yards, TD) have been Kastantin's favorite targets of recent thanks to their big play potential. Ridley had a 77-yard tunnel screen score last week, while Winn averages over 12 yards a reception and has multiple 50+ yard receptions.

On the ground, the Falcons have seemingly stirred awake after a slow start. Nakai Amachree has been depended on as a dual-threat back, with 166 rushing yards and 141 receiving yards on the year, with two total scores, while Austyn Dendy has rounded into form with 161 yards and three TDs the last two weeks on the ground.

Placekicker Travis Kenner put foot to leather for a career-long 49-yard field goal in last week's loss and is 7-of-8 on the season. Punter Ryan Kingston has 10 punts inside-the-20 of 33 attempts, netting jsut over 40 yards per punt. BG, which has of recent been on the MAC's more explosive return teams, has looked pedestrian this season.

Buffalo outlook

The Bulls have looked resurgent in recent weeks, taking the Western Michigan Broncos to the final whistle to open up MAC play, then absolutely eviscerating the Toledo Rockets to put a major dent in the Rockets' title hopes. Last Saturday saw the Bulls take down UMass in an absurd overtime victory which saw special teams have a critical role.

UB has absolutely put the clamps down on MAC opponents since the opening of league play, averaging 324 total yards and 15.3 points allowed per game over three contests. That's a notable change from 426.3 total yards and 33.3 points allowed per game in the non-conference slate.

That defense has been led by UB's ability to dictate the terms of engagement to the offense, sitting second in the MAC in both opponent third-down percentage (33.3 percent) and opponent fourth-down percentage (38.5 percent) while also drawing the second most opposing penalty yards. That's allowed them to stay in games despite being one of the worst in the MAC at causing havoc, where they sit 12th in interceptions (two) and 11th in sacks (10). UB is sixth in the MAC in recovered fumbles (five) despite being the best at forcing fumbles (seven), another strange anomaly.

UB's linebackers have been a little unconventional from what we're used to, with starter Zach Bergmann leading the team with four PBUs. Instead, it's a plethora of defensive backs leading the way as tacklers. Nickelback SaVeon Brown leads the team in both solo tackles (34) and total tackles (59), sitting as the highest non-linebacker (fourth overall) in the MAC in stops, while also reeling in 2.5 TFLs and a sack. Miles Greer has excelled as a hard-hitting safety, with 42 tackles 2.5 TFLs, a sack and two pass break-ups. Kobi Blackwell has been UB's most reliable corner, with 18 tackles (15 solo), an interception, two PBUs and two TFLs.

We'd be remiss not to mention the pass rush as well, with Logan Goodwin and Sedrick Vessa holding the joint-lead with 3.5 TFLs and two sacks apiece. Goodwin has been effective at getting to the QB even without the pulldown, notching nine hurries.

The offense is predicated on ground control, with UB sitting third in the conference in time-of-possession (31:10) and fourth in rushing offense (165.7 yards per game).

Messiah Burch's emergence has been key, especially with anticipated starter Terrance Shelton Jr. down with injury, rushing for 100+ yards in each of the last four contests. Through seven games, the senior runner has 661 yards and two scores on 118 carries, averaging 5.6 yards per run. Sophomore halfback Nino Hill (170 yards, two TDs) has also contributed highly.

Jason Wright inherited the starting quarterback role after Elijah Holmes was declared out for the season a few weeks ago, and has been inconsistent overall with a 48 percent completion rating. He has 860 passing yards for six touchdowns and four interceptions, with an additional two rushing scores.

Jasaiah Gathings' loss early in the season has impacted the team, but that allowed a few other contributors to emerge, most notably Chase Morrow. Through seven games, Morrow has 37 catches for 441 yards and six of the team's nine receiving TDs– though he has been limited to 44 yards the last two contests.

Special teams has lifted the Bulls the last few weeks. Placekicker Oliver Hautanen won MAC Special Teams Player of the Week thanks to his 3-of-3 field goal performance in an overtime win. Ethan Stumpf is second in the MAC in net punting yards (45.5) with 15 inside-the-20 boots and 12 boots of 50+ yards on 44 attempts.

Game outlook

The fact both teams sit at 2-1 in MAC play despite their initial struggles has been wonderful to see. Indeed, it's a testament to never give up too early in the season, as there's still a lot to fight for.

Alas, the loser of this game will be fairly wounded. Should Buffalo lose, they might still be in position for the postseason, but would find themselves almost assuredly out of the MAC title race without a little help at the top. Should BGSU lose, they're staring at five losses overall and could be in danger of missing the postseason completely.

The fact BGSU is finally seeming to find some offensive footing is nice– but it simply has not been enough to matter, and at this point, it might be too late to salvage the season. That will be further complicated by Buffalo's concurrent defensive awakening in league play.

The Falcons have scored points on defense in each of the last two weeks, but it's hard to win that way. The main matchup to watch will be in the passing game, as Wright's inefficiency could pair unfavorably with Bowling Green's competent play on the outside.

Oddsmakers have Buffalo favored, and really, that feels correct here– though the spread feels a little thin.