AMHERST, N.Y. – The UConn football team will take a win, no matter how it looks.
The Huskies started slow and were inconsistent on offense, especially in the first and fourth quarters when they punted five times in six drives, once again failing to put the game away and leaving it in the hands of their defense late.
After forcing six punts and making two 4th-down stops on eight of Buffalo’s first 10 possessions, UConn gave up a big passing play that put the Bulls just outside the red zone with less than four minutes to go. UConn held strong for the next seven plays but lost track of running back Al-Jay Henderson on a screen pass on 4th-and-goal from the 5-yard line and the Bulls tied the game with a minute left.
When he needed to most, Fagnano diced the Buffalo defense and got into field goal range in less than 50 seconds of game-time to set up Chris Freeman for the win.
Chris Freeman’s game-winning field goal leads UConn football to first road win, 20-17 at Buffalo
“It was a gut-check win. It was not a pretty game at all, but to come on the road and play what I think is a really tough-minded, physical Buffalo team that plays great defense, to get a win is the No. 1 priority. These are the kind of games that you learn a lot from and you can really build on,” head coach Jim Mora said. “Still very concerned with the way we’re playing defense in those critical situations. We were playing a three-deep coverage and they hit a seam route on us and we’ve got to make those plays, because those end up hurting you. People are gonna say it was ugly, well I’ll tell you what, I’d rather have an ugly win than an ugly loss. Nobody in that locker room – they’re elated to get the win, but nobody feels like we’ve even come close to reaching our potential.”
Some takeaways from UConn’s first road win of the season:
Defense is still susceptible to big plays, but showed improvement
There were two big plays that really hurt the UConn defense, which otherwise stood tall for most of the game.
First was the 63-yard touchdown run from Lamar Sperling in the second quarter, which came just seven minutes of real time after Cam Edwards found the end zone to start the scoring. Sperling split two defenders in the backfield and broke a tackle to get through the second level.
Then it was the pass down the seam to start Buffalo’s final scoring drive, a 27-yard gain to Victor Snow, who was somehow able to hold on to the ball despite getting sandwiched hard by UConn’s Tyrece Mills and Devin Pringle. The Huskies keyed-in on the run and made several stops before Henderson slipped out of the backfield on the 4th-down screen.
“What’d we give up? 17 points?” Mora said. “That’s not bad, but the problem is the one at the end, that’s the one that just gnaws at you.”
The Huskies allowed 204 yards on 42 rushing attempts (4.9 yards per carry) and just 125 yards through the air – their fewest of the season so far, including the season-opener against Central Connecticut State.
Atypical rushing performance
UConn feels the effects of Mel Brown‘s broken collarbone.
The team survived a scare when Edwards laid face-down on the turf and eventually limped off the field after getting hit just above the hip early in the second quarter. He was only in the medical tent for about two minutes before jogging back to the sideline and ultimately reentering the game during the same drive, but the explosive runs the Huskies are used to seeing never happened.
Part of that could be credited to the Buffalo defense, which is strong up front and entered the game ranked as one of the 50 best teams in the FBS against the run.
UConn running back Cam Edwards reaches into the end zone to complete an 8-yard rushing touchdown in the first half of the Huskies’ game at Buffalo on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025. (Courtesy of UConn)
Fagnano finished the game as UConn’s leading rusher with 64 yards on six carries. Edwards followed with 57 yards on 15 carries and Oliver Lundberg-Coleman ran five times for 31 yards, but had a fumble that was lucky to be recovered by the Huskies. MJ Flowers (3 carries, 3 yards) and Victor Rosa (2 carries, 10 yards) were also rotated into the backfield.
“We miss Mel,” Mora said. “We’re trying to use Terrence Smith in some of those things but having MJ finally get some touches, he’s just going to keep getting more and more. You see the style that Oliver runs with, now he’s got to take care of the football… We need that depth. This is a rugged, physical game and with us down Mel, we need those other guys to show up and they’re doing it.”
No penalties, no turnovers
There were only four penalties enforced during Saturday’s game, and all of them went against Buffalo. UConn was nearly hit with a costly targeting penalty on that big passing gain during Buffalo’s final drive, but the flag was picked up after review.
In similar fashion, Fagnano almost had a pass intercepted in the first quarter but the underthrown ball was dropped. The Huskies had a few of those almost-interceptions in their own defensive backfield and will have to continue working on forcing takeaways, but on the offensive side, they stand as one of three teams (Alabama, Temple) that hasn’t yet turned the ball over this season.
