AMHERST, N.Y. -- Putting on a MACtion-packed show with a scintillating finish, University at Buffalo's football team has extended its inaugural campaign under coach Pete Lembo into bowl season.
Coming back to beat Ball State 51-48 in overtime Tuesday night at UB Stadium, the Bulls (6-4, 4-2) became eligible to play in the eighth bowl game in program history while remaining in contention for the Mid-American Conference championship.
In a game UB never led before CJ Ogbonna threw the winning touchdown pass to running back Lamar Sperling on its first OT possession, the Bulls overcame a two-touchdown deficit in the final seven minutes of the fourth quarter to win one of the MAC's weeknight showcase games on national television for the first time in four seasons.
"It was a wild night," Lembo said after winning against the school he coached from 2011-15. "I guess this is my own personal return to MACtion after a nine-year hiatus."
Making their season debut on prime time, the Bulls won despite giving up 520 yards on defense and creating just one takeaway while turning the ball over three times.
"We don't make things easy, but we've got some grit," Lembo said. "Ugly as it may have been at times, we're sitting here with six wins."
Ogbonna was 19 of 37 passing for 264 yards and three touchdowns, while rushing for 55 yards and two other scores. Ogbonna scrambled for a 26-yard TD with 5:43 left in regulation, then found JJ Jenkins for a leaping 33-yard scoring grab with 1:49 to go, and tied the game with a shovel pass to tight end Jake Orlando (Williamsville North) on the 2-point try.
"We talked about this being a 12-round fight," Lembo said. "Tonight really came down to who could throw the last punch. We hung in there and made plays down the stretch. Then we threw the last punch, and it connected.
Jenkings caught eight passes for 131 yards, while Victor Snow had six receptions for 74 yards and short TD grab on the final play of the first half after Shaun Dolac (West Seneca West) returned an interception to the doorstep of the end zone.
"Oh goodness, what a swing in momentum," Lembo said about the sequence that cut Ball State's lead to 28-24 at halftime.
Al-Jay Henderson rushed for 126 yards and two touchdowns as the Bulls gained 206 of their 470 offensive yards on the ground.
Red Murdock led the Bulls defense with 19 tackles while Dolac, the nation's leading tackler, had 17.
UB visits former quarterback Cole Snyder (Southwestern) at Eastern Michigan next week before finishing the regular season at home against winless Kent State.
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Jonah Bronstein joined the WIVB squad in 2022 as a digital sports reporter. The Buffalonian has covered the Bills, Sabres, Bandits, Bisons, colleges, high schools and other notable sporting events in Western New York since 2005, for publications including The Associated Press, The Buffalo News, and Niagara Gazette. Read more of his work here.