Box Score

WESTERVILLE, Ohio –The Otterbein University football team absorbed a tough loss Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium, falling 29-0 to visiting SUNY Buffalo State in what was the season opener for both schools.

The Cardinals, dropping their opener to a challenging non-conference opponent for a third-straight year, will have a bye next week before starting Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) play on Saturday, Sept. 19 at Marietta College.

Buffalo State, a veteran squad featuring 17 senior starters, silenced the Otterbein crowd early when running back Tre Jones broke a few tackles and scampered 81 yards for a touchdown on the second offensive snap. The sequence happened just after the Cardinals lost standout linebacker Austin Jones, who was forced to exit with an injury after the first play of the game.

Otterbein moved the ball on its opening possession, converting two third downs before a pass from quarterback Kevan Green was intercepted in Buffalo State territory. The Bengals would miss a 28-yard field goal shortly after, but a long ball from Green would be picked off on the next possession as Buffalo State held a 7-0 lead after the opening period.

Buffalo State, 8-3 a year ago, pulled away in the second quarter with touchdown runs of 2, 13 and 15 yards en route to a 26-0 halftime lead. The visitors outgained Otterbein 336-59 in the first half and 501-114 for the game.

The Cards advanced the ball near midfield on the first possession of the second half, but Green eventually had to pooch-punt and Otterbein would unfortunately never make it onto the scoreboard.

Junior linebacker Drew Ervin, making his first appearance on defense after switching from running back in the offseason, led the Cardinal defense with 13 tackles. Safety Jordan Bonifas tallied 11 (six solo) while linebacker Nick Toledo added 10 of his own.

Sophomore wide receiver Julian Lowe, making his Otterbein debut after transferring from the University of Akron, made three catches for 39 yards. The offense had four interceptions and just 15 yards of net rushing.

Tre Jones finished with 136 yards rushing on the Buffalo State side, while backup Dale Stewart contributed 77 of his own. Both had one touchdown for a Bengal offense that ran for 339 yards. Quarterbacks Kyle Hoppy and Dan Serignese rotated throughout the game after Hoppy, the starter, suffered a slight injury near the end of the first quarter.