Lightning lit up the skies on Saturday at UB Stadium and sent a charge into a Bulls running game that had been missing in action since Buffalo's season-opening win over Texas-El Paso.
That spark, however, was not enough for the Bulls (1-4, 0-2 Mid-American Conference). They lost 20-13 at the hands of the Central Michigan Chippewas (4-1, 2-0 MAC).
The kickoff was delayed 20 minutes because of lightning and play was again halted for 40 minutes with 5:53 remaining in the third quarter.
The stop-and-go was no problem for junior running back Ike Nduka, who took over as the starting running back because of the inconsistent play of junior Brandon Thermilus and senior running back Mario Henry.
Despite a minor mishap on the first play from scrimmage in which Nduka ran into sophomore quarterback Zach Maynard on an attempted hand off, Nduka was the offensive star for the Bulls.
Nduka rushed 22 times for a career-high 178 yards and despite being prepared, could barely contain his excitement over the chance to play.
'[Bulls head coach Turner Gill] has us all practice like we are going to start, so when he told me I was starting, I was just excited and I felt really confident,' Nduka said.
Nduka felt the need to showcase his talent and prove the promotion to starting running back valid.
'I wanted to do something,' Nduka said. 'I felt confident and prepared. Having my teammates and coaching staff believe in me helped me in the game.'
While the Bulls improved in all sides of the ball from their previous three efforts, mistakes and missed opportunities continued to plague them.
'[It was a] tough ballgame,' Gill said. 'I'm proud of the effort of our players. Bottom line is that Central Michigan made a few more plays than we did and executed a few more plays than we did and that's why they got the victory.'
Down by one touchdown in the fourth quarter, the Bulls had three chances to tie the score, but failed to capitalize each time.
The Bulls put together an effective drive early in the fourth quarter and reached the Chippewas' red zone. After a third down pass fell inches short of the first down marker, the Bulls were faced with a 4th-and-1 from the Central Michigan 11-yard line. Gill called timeout and called for a quarterback sneak.
Central Michigan's defensive tackles held the line and prevented Maynard from getting the first down.
'If it's less than one [yard] I'm going to go for it,' Gill said. 'That's just my mentality in most cases. There might be one or two cases in a game where I may not go for it, but most cases I'm going to go for it on fourth and less than one.'
While Gill has confidence in his team's ability to convert, he recognizes the downfall.
'I believe we should get it,' Gill said. 'If we don't get it, then I don't think we deserve to win the football game.'
The defense made up for the offense's occasional ineffectiveness and limited CMU to 20 points. A familiar face on the defensive unit showed up and had his best game of the season.
Junior safety Davonte Shannon finished with eight tackles and made his presence known early on when he intercepted Chippewa quarterback Dan LeFevour with 1:38 left in the first quarter.
Shannon made another big play on a third down in the fourth quarter. He got into the offensive backfield and stopped LeFevour on a quarterback keeper to bring on the punt team, stalling a possible scoring drive that would have put the game away for the Chippewas.
Central Michigan head coach Butch Jones was high on Shannon and the rest of the Bulls' secondary.
'That was the best secondary we have faced up to this point in time,' Jones said. 'And they're very well coached.'
But Shannon's play was all for naught. After running for a first down with less than three minutes left, Maynard attempted a deep pass down the sideline to senior receiver Naaman Roosevelt. Well covered, Roosevelt stopped his route, leaped early and attempted to make a one-handed catch. He missed the ball and Central Michigan cornerback Josh Gordy came up with the diving interception.
The interception essentially marked the end of the game. Buffalo got the ball back at its 25-yard line with 11 seconds left and was unable to produce magic. Maynard's downfield heave with no time left on the clock fell to the turf and left Buffalo with its fourth-straight loss.
LeFevour threw for 268 yards and two touchdowns and one interception. He also racked up 98 rushing yards on 21 attempts.
For the Bulls, Maynard threw for 210 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He also ran for 47 yards on eight attempts.
One complaint about the sophomore thus far in his career has been his reluctance to run, but he was able to find some openings against the Chippewa's.
'[It was] an adjustment I made myself based on the tempo and some of the routes we run,' Maynard said. 'The running lanes opened, so I just took it and went and used my second dimension. In turn I hoped it would open up the defense a little more.'
The Bulls will next host Gardner-Webb on Saturday at UB Stadium with kick-off scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
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