Patterson's game came on the heels of . . .
Patterson broke off a 62-yard run on the first play from scrimmage to set the tone. He scored the first of his eight touchdowns on a three-yard just one play later. He scored on a 31-yard run on UB's next possession and added a 42-yard TD scamper with 21 seconds left in the first quarter. He had a 49-yard TD run early in the second quarter and scored his fifth TD of the game on a 1-yard plunge with just over two minutes left in the half. Patterson rushed for 267 yards and five touchdowns in the first half alone.
Patterson added a 7-yard touchdown early in the third quarter and scored on a 58-yard dash in the fourth quarter to tie Illinois' Howard Griffith for the NCAA record set in 1990.
Aside from Patterson's heroics, the Bulls used a full team effort to defeat the 3-0 Golden Flashes. The Bulls never trailed in the game, but Kent State's high-powered offense kept KSU in the contest for much of the afternoon. In fact, the Golden Flashes scored on their first possession of the second half to cut the UB lead to 35-31. However, the Bulls had an answer for every Kent State threat and the UB defense stepped up when it needed to.
After Kevin Marks scored on a 7-yard run to put the Bulls ahead, 49-31, Cory Gross Jr. picked off Dustin Crum to give the ball right back to the Bulls. Patterson scored six plays later to extend the UB advantage to 56-31 early in the fourth quarter and deflate the Flashes.
Buffalo rushed for a program-record 515 yards in the game. Marks added 97 yards and two rushing touchdowns. The 10 total rushing touchdowns were also a school record.
Quarterback Kyle Vantrease was efficient, throwing for 148 yards. Jovany Ruiz had a career-high four catches for 49 yards. Dominic Johnson added three grabs.
Defensively, James Patterson had a game-high 13 tackles. Tyrone Hill added 10 tackles and two pass breakups. Malcolm Koonce recorded his fourth sack of the season.
The 70 points were the most scored by a UB team in its FBS era (since 1999), topping its previous best of 68 points scored in a seven-overtime game against Western Michigan in 2017.
Kent State totaled 235 yards on the ground, led by Crum's net of 76 yards. He also completed 22-of-32 passes for 343 yards and three TDs with one interception.Isaiah McKoy ad Ja'Shaun Poke combined for 12 receptions, 261 yards and a score.
The Bulls improved to 4-0 with the victory. Kent State falls to 3-1.