TOLEDO (Interstat) — Buffalo defeated Toledo 23-8 on Saturday in an NCAA Football Bowl Division game at the Glass Bowl in Toledo, Ohio. The Bulls improved to 3-3, while the Rockets fell to 4-2. The announced attendance was 24,767.

Buffalo built its lead with a steady scoring effort. The Bulls scored seven points in the first quarter, three in the second, seven in the third and six in the fourth. Toledo scored all eight of its points in the third quarter. Buffalo led 10-0 at halftime and carried a 17-8 advantage into the final quarter before adding six more points.

Jason Wright led Buffalo’s offense and was the Bulls’ top star. The quarterback completed 14 of 31 passes for 171 yards, rushed 16 times for 20 yards and scored one touchdown. Messiah Burch provided a powerful complement on the ground, carrying 17 times for 137 yards and one touchdown. Burch’s biggest run was an 87-yard scoring burst. Nino Hill added 12 carries for 24 yards.

Buffalo’s passing game spread the ball among several targets. Dwayne Early Jr. caught four passes for 77 yards. Jaylen Andrews had two receptions for 28 yards, and Clint Walker also had two catches for 28 yards. Patrick Clacks III recorded four receptions for 21 yards. Chance Morrow added two catches for 17 yards. Oliver Hautanen handled the kicking duties and made field goals during the game, including attempts from 24, 29 and 31 yards. Ethan Stumpf punted six times for 276 yards.

Toledo’s offense was led by quarterback John Alan Richter. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound signal-caller from Gray, Georgia, completed 22 of 35 passes for 203 yards. He also rushed four times for 2 yards. Connor Walendzak scored Toledo’s touchdown on a 1-yard run and finished with 10 carries for 50 yards and two receptions for 12 yards. CJ Miller added nine carries for 32 yards and two catches for 19 yards. Autavius Ison ran three times for 17 yards and caught one pass for 2 yards.

Through the air for Toledo, Terrell Crosby Jr. had eight receptions for 69 yards and led the Rockets in receiving. Sam Lee caught four passes for 39 yards. Adjatay Dabbs recorded two receptions for 35 yards, Daryl Barnett Jr. had two catches for 28 yards, and Rico Bond had one reception for minus-1 yard. Reice Griffith missed field-goal attempts from 47 and 38 yards. Markus Meincke punted six times for 261 yards. Bryson Hammer returned two punts for 10 yards. Nicholas Thompson recorded four tackles, one quarterback hurry and a kick return for minus-4 yards. Adjatay Dabbs’ pass attempt was successful on Toledo’s two-point conversion.

Toledo’s defense was busy throughout the game. Armorion Smith led the Rockets with 13 tackles. Julian Fox had nine tackles. Donovan Watkins and Andrew Zock each finished with nine tackles. Zock also recorded 1.5 sacks and two quarterback hurries. Isaac Zay and Mo Conteh each made seven tackles. Zach Johnson had four tackles and one sack. Lucas Lambert-Pipkin added four tackles, half a sack and one quarterback hurry. Ezra Odinjor contributed two tackles and one sack. Israel Petite, Tyrell Russell and Nathaniel Chandler each had three tackles. Caden Camese and KJ Thomas each made one tackle.

Buffalo’s defense also delivered key stops. SaVeon Brown led the Bulls with 11 tackles. Mikey Crawford had eight tackles. Zach Bergmann and Ronnell Davis each recorded six tackles. Sedrick Vessah made four tackles and one sack. Christopher Climes and Miles Greer each added four tackles. Jacari Bennett, Will Clark and Stevie Bracey each had three tackles. Jordan Owens had three tackles and John Keough had two. The Bulls limited Toledo’s scoring chances and kept the Rockets out of the end zone until the third quarter.

The game featured several momentum swings. Buffalo’s first-quarter scoring included field goals from Hautanen after an earlier touchdown run by Wright was nullified by an illegal formation penalty. Wright later scored on a 3-yard run in the second quarter, though a delay-of-game penalty backed up the extra-point attempt before Hautanen converted. Hautanen also missed a 39-yard field goal just before halftime. In the third quarter, Hautanen made a 31-yard field goal, while Griffith missed from 38 yards for Toledo. Toledo finally broke through with Walendzak’s 1-yard touchdown run and a successful two-point conversion. Buffalo answered late when Burch broke free for his 87-yard touchdown run.

Buffalo’s win came after Toledo passed for more than 200 yards and had several long possessions. Richter passed for more than 200 yards, and the Rockets had multiple receivers contribute. Toledo could not overcome missed field goals and Buffalo’s timely defense. The Bulls also leaned on Wright’s management and Burch’s explosive running. The victory evened Buffalo’s record at 3-3. Toledo dropped to 4-2.

Buffalo’s previous results this season included a loss to Western Michigan, a win over Robert Morris, a loss at Penn State, a loss at Florida International and a win over Albany. Toledo had beaten Ball State, San Diego State, Temple and Central Connecticut, with a loss at Michigan State. The Bulls are next scheduled to host Massachusetts and Bowling Green before road games at Miami (Ohio), Ball State and Akron, plus a home game against Central Michigan. The Rockets are set to play at Eastern Michigan and host Western Michigan before a road game at Sacramento State. Massachusetts and Bowling Green are also scheduled to visit Toledo, and the Rockets will play at Ohio.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of Toledo 46, Buffalo 16. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Toledo with a 93.3 percent probability to win. Buffalo had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of +18.5. The total score of 31 went over the over/under line of 55.5.