CAMELLIA BOWL NOTEBOOK (Postgame): Ahmed sets marks for Buffalo; Hines makes impressive start; Fuller leaves legacy at Cramton Bowl

Ahmed sets career marks for Bulls

It seems to be a pattern for backup Buffalo tailbacks to grab the spotlight in the Camellia Bowl.

Two years after Kevin Marks filled in for the injured Jaret Patterson and earned most valuable player honors with a bowl-record 35 carries, senior Tajay Ahmed ran for 98 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries on Tuesday against Georgia Southern.

Ahmed was a former walk-on whose father played for the Bulls. He earned a scholarship prior to the 2022 spring game, but had only played in seven games this season as a special teams player and only carried the ball once (and only eight times in his career).

 He had 10 consecutive rushing attempts on the Bulls’ fourth-quarter FG drive that extended the lead to 23-14 with just over six minutes left.

His performance did not come as a surprise to Buffalo linebacker James Patterson.

“I call him Tiki Barber, the way he runs,” Patterson said. “He runs straight like Tiki. I’m just so glad he got his chance to shine because I know the type of worker than he is. Everybody says he’s a good runner, but I’ve known it because he did scout-team a couple of years before he worked his way up and got a scholarship.”

 Eagles score field goals, not touchdowns, early

Georgia Southern coach Clay Helton said the difference in the 23-21 loss on Monday was simple.

The Bulls got touchdowns early while Georgia Southern kicked field goals

They scored two touchdowns, we kicked two field goals early,” he said. I thought we did a better job in the second half. We finished, I think, 7 of 15, right about 50 percent. But we knew we were going to need to get two stops right there at the end. We knew play count wise, you were going to have two opportunities to get two stops. Hopefully, on third down. And we just came up short. I think they were 12 of 19 on the day. And that’s kind of the difference in the game.”

Helton added that third down was also a key with Buffalo converting on 12 of 19 attempts while the Eagles were a respectable 7 of 15.

“They made more third downs than us and you look up and they’re just slightly ahead of us,” Helton said. “The only other thing that really triggered to me were the two turnovers in the second half. I thought defensively (we) probably saved the game with a huge stop after the fumble deep in our territory, to be able to keep it to where we could strike. Offensively, I was proud of putting up yards, just needed to finish and be able to protect the ball a little bit better.”

Clevester Hines makes impression in first defensive start

Clevester Hines III, or Trey, didn’t think he would see much playing time late in the season after fracturing his wrist in late September. But the multi-positional Hines, a quarterback in junior college, a receiver at Buffalo and a cornerback in the Camellia Bowl, was ready for the challenge of taking on the high-powered Georgia Southern offense.

“Right before the bowl game, DBs left, some hit the portal,” Hines said. “Coach walked up to me before one of the practices and said, ‘Hey, you’re going to be with me today.’ I just took the bull by the horns, per se, and just ran with it.”

Hines credited College of San Mateo secondary coach Omari Green with his ability to transition from offense to defense. On Tuesday, Hines was third on the team in tackles and first among the secondary players with seven tackles.

“His first start, he did an amazing job, coming from receiver and being thrown into the fire,” Buffalo linebacker James Patterson said. “You’re going to be burned by the fire or you’re going to turn into a diamond. He’s shining right now.

“You saw how many plays he made on the ball today. He still owes me 20 pushups because he dropped a couple of picks.”

Hines had a team-high three pass breakups, but as Patterson noted, the junior dropped a pair of interceptions, including one which likely would have resulted in a Buffalo touchdown.

“Honestly, I owe a lot of people pushups,” Hines said. “I’m going to have to hear it from my family when I call them on the phone. I’ll probably get a Jugs machine for Christmas.”

Kicking records for the Bulls

Buffalo punter Anthony Venneri tied the Camellia Bowl record with a 61-yard punt in the third quarter. The kick tied the record previously set by Arkansas State’s Cody Grace (2017) and tied by Marshall’s Robert Lefevre (2020).

Also on Monday, Adam McNulty kicked his 49th career field goal, which set a school record. The kick gave Buffalo a 23-14 lead at the time and provided the Bulls the winning points.

Cramton Bowl longtime scoreboard operator Fuller works final game after 40 years

Steve Fuller can’t remember the first game he worked at Cramton Bowl as the scoreboard operator but chances are he will remember the final game.

That came on Monday during the ninth-annual Camellia Bowl where he competed his 40th season, and his last.

Fuller took over from his father-in-law at the Bowl in 1983. He worked everything from the Blue-Gray Classic, Alabama State and Tuskegee games as well as countless high school games.

He saw some of the best players to ever pass through Montgomery including former NFL greats Jerry Rice, Bruce Smith and Art Monk. He worked with several P.A. announcers including his longtime friend, Bill Summers.

Fuller said the time was right and that he wanted to spend time watching his grandchildren play ball during the fall.

Compiled by Barry Allen, Tim Gayle and Graham Dunn