Lost in the bluster of the University at Buffalo’s nationally televised game Wednesday was Buffalo State football’s remarkable achievement: downing the No. 1 D3 football team in the land, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, in a 7-6 road affair last weekend. Previously, UW-Whitewater held the longest winning streak in all of college football.

The Bengals clawed back from a 6-0 deficit with a little trickery to move into scoring position—this double hook-and-ladder play that included three local products: QB Casey Kacz (Sweet Home), wide receiver Ryan Carney (Olean) and Brooks Estarfaa (Maryvale). Later in the video, Kacz finds Carney again from 10 yards out for the winning score.

Riding the tide of momentum from the giant upset—which received plenty of national coverage—the Bengals and head coach Jerry Boyes make their home debut in the Empire 8 Conference this Saturday.

Buffalo State (2-1) hosts Alfred University at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Coyer Field. Tickets are $5 (cash only) and can only be purchased at the gate. Students can attend for free with their college IDs.

Last weekend’s epic upset propelled the previously-unranked Bengals to No. 19 in D3Football.com’s Top 25 rankings. Alfred, 1-1 after toppling St. Lawrence 28-7, capitalized on 111 yards and two scores from junior running back Austin Dwyer. In front of an expected packed-house and with plenty of confidence from beating D3’s best, the Bengals should shellack Alfred, but letdowns and overconfidence cripple even the best teams.

More resources:

—Here’s Queen City Sports’ interview with Casey Kacz (audio player is bottom-right on homepage).
—The Buffalo News’ Amy Moritz chimes in on the Bengals’ future.