Buffalo, N.Y. – The Bowling Green football team came back from a 13-point second half deficit to keep its
postseason hopes alive with a 30-29 win over Buffalo Tuesday night on a game seen nationally on ESPN2.
Freddie Barnes caught a touchdown pass from Tyler Sheehan with 39 seconds remaining to give the Falcons
the win.
Barnes, who is a semifinalist for the Biletnikoff Award as one of the top wide receivers in the country,
got his chance to shine on national television and he did not disappoint. He entered the game leading
the nation in receptions and receiving yards and he finished with eight catches for 122 yards and the
game-winning touchdown, which moved him into a tie for most receiving scores in the country.
Along the way, the Bowling Green special teams came up with two blocked punts that helped the Falcons’
cause. The first one was recovered at the one-yard line and led to the Falcons’ first score of the game,
while the second one sparked Bowling Green’s comeback. With Buffalo clinging to a 29-17 lead, P.J.
Mahone blocked a punt early in the fourth quarter and the Orange and Brown scored 2:56 later to cut the
deficit to 29-23.
Bowling Green forced a 3-and-out following that touchdown and drove inside Buffalo’s five-yard line but
Sheehan’s fourth down pass was knocked down and the Falcons still trailed with 8:09 left.
Buffalo’s next drive resulted in three first downs and the Bulls ran the clock down to under three
minutes before punting away. A 15-yard kick catching interference penalty gave the Falcons the ball at
their own 25 with 2:59 left.
Sheehan calmly drove BG 75 yards in the next 140 seconds, completing a pair of 3rd-and-10’s, eventually
driving the offense inside Buffalo’s 10-yard line. A holding penalty pushed Bowling Green back to the
18, but that’s when Sheehan found Barnes streaking to the back corner of the end zone for the winning
score.
The Bowling Green defense settled down in the second half, allowing just one Buffalo touchdown and that
score came courtesy of a fumbled punt return that gave the Bulls the ball at the Bowling Green five-yard
line. Otherwise, Buffalo’s offense was ineffective in the second half and the Falcons forced four
consecutive 3-and-outs.
With the win, Bowling Green’s postseason hopes remain alive as the Falcons improve to 4-5 overall and 3-2
in MAC play. Buffalo falls to 3-6 overall and 1-4 in league action. The Falcons will play their final
road game of the year next as the team travels to play Miami