Buffalo running back Jaret Patterson led the FBS with 170.33 yards rushing per game entering Week 13. He obliterated that average while making college football history against Kent State on Saturday afternoon.
Patterson tied a FBS single-game record with eight rushing touchdowns against the Golden Flashes in a 70-41 win. The record is now held both by Patterson and former Illinois running back Howard Griffith, who rushed for eight scores in 1990 against Southern Illinois.
Patterson finished the game with 36 carries for 409 yards, 18 yards short of the single-game FBS record held by former Oklahoma RB Samaje Perine in 2014. He does, however, check in with the second-most yards rushing in a single game, passing former Wisconsin running back Melvin Gordon.
Here's how he stacks up with the top five FBS rushing records entering Saturday.
- 427 -- Samaje Perine, Oklahoma, Nov. 22, 2014
- 409 -- Jaret Patterson, Buffalo, Nov. 28, 2020
- 408 -- Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin, Nov. 15, 2014
- 406 -- LaDainian Tomlinson, TCU, Nov. 20, 1999
- 396 -- Tony Sands, Kansas, Nov. 23, 1991
- 386 -- Marshall Faulk, San Diego State, Sept. 14, 1991
Sadly, Patterson was taken out of the game by coach Lance Leipold during Buffalo's final offensive possession, preventing him from getting either the touchdown record or potentially the yardage record. RB Kevin Marks, who had 97 yards of his own, ran in for a touchdown on the play after Patterson was removed for the game.
It's a little disappointing that Patterson would come so close only to be pulled, but he still had a historic day, breaking school and MAC rushing records along the way. His eighth and final touchdown was easily his most impressive.
Patterson is a great story, too, as he wasn't heavily recruited coming out of high school in 2017.
Patterson's twin brother, James, led Buffalo with 13 tackles on the day as the family got it done for the Bulls on both sides of the ball.