Buffalo–UMass rivalry

Flagship Cup
	Buffalo Bulls UMass Minutemen
Sport	Football
First meeting	October 3, 1964; UMass 24, Buffalo 22
Latest meeting	October 18, 2025; Buffalo 28, UMass 21
Next meeting	2026
Trophy	The Flagship Cup
Statistics
Meetings total	16
All-time series	Buffalo leads, 10–6
Trophy series	Buffalo leads, 1–0
Largest victory	Buffalo, 34–3 (2024)
Longest win streak	Buffalo, 4 (1965–1970) ; UMass, 4 (1995–1998)
Current win streak	Buffalo, 3 (2022–present)

110km
68miles

UMass

Buffalo

🌍

Locations of Buffalo and UMass

The Buffalo–UMass rivalry is a growing sports rivalry between the Buffalo Bulls of the University at Buffalo and the UMass Minutemen of the University of Massachusetts.

College Comparison
	UB	UMass
Founded	1846	1863
Type	Public	Public
Conference	MAC	MAC
Students	32,347	32,045
School colors
Nickname	Bulls	Minutemen

Football

The UB–UMass football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Buffalo Bulls football team of the University at Buffalo and the UMass Minutemen football team of the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

History

The first ever meeting between the two teams came on Oct. 3, 1964 when the Minutemen posted a 24–22 road win as part of an 8–1 regular season record that propelled them to a Tangerine Bowl berth.^[1]

On October 3, 1970 the University at Buffalo football team rallied to defeat Massachusetts, 16–13, in front of a homecoming crowd of 6,206 fans at Rotary field. Behind a 45-yard touchdown drive in the closing minutes, Joe Hudson took advantage of a short kick off and returned it to the UMass 45-yard line. Three straight passes from Kirk Barton to Joe Moresco set the Bulls up at the 19-yard line. After Mike Sharrow caught a pass at the eight and Joe Zelmanski barreled down to the three-yard line, John Faller rambled around the right end for the game-winning score.^[2]

Division 1-AA

For the 1998 game, Craig Cirbus and the (2–1) Buffalo team would travel to play the (1–1) Minutemen, infront of 11,672 people. UMass won 51–27. Later in the season, UMass would become NCAA Division I-AA national champions, under coaches Mark Whipple and Don Brown. This was also Buffalo's last season in the Division I-AA, before joining the MAC. Thus, ending the series.

Mid-American Conference

In April 2011, UMass announced plans to join the Mid-American Conference and move up to the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, the highest level of college football in the country. Prior to this decision, the last game played between the schools was on September 26, 1998.

On November 17, 2012, the UMass football team took a 13–0 lead into the locker room, but four second-half touchdowns helped Buffalo rally past the Minutemen, 29–19 at Gillette Stadium.

For the October 19, 2013 game, Buffalo would dominate the game 32–3, improving to 5–2 overall and 3–0 in the MAC. While UMass would go 1–6, 1–2 MAC for that week.

The most recent series went dormant after the 2015 season, when UMass announced its withdrawal from the MAC in order to keep all sports in the Atlantic 10.

On May 16, 2019, the schools had scheduled a six-game, home-and-home football series starting in 2022, until 2028.^[3] Buffalo won the first game in 2022, 34–7 and then won the second game in 2024 34–3. The yearly series will continue after the 2028 season, when UMass announced it would be rejoining the conference for all sports in 2025.^[4]

Flagship Cup

Three days before the 2025 game, both schools announced The Flagship Cup as the name of the new football rivalry against one another.^[5] Milton CAT was announced as the series sponsor.

For game one of the new rivalry series, both teams played infront of 15,239 fans at McGuirk Alumni Stadium. Buffalo would go on to win the game 28–21, by late game touchdown by Victor Snow.^[6]^[7]

Results

Buffalo victories	Massachusetts victories

No.	Date	Location	Winner	Score
1	October 3, 1964	Buffalo, NY	Massachusetts	24–22
2	October 2, 1965	Amherst, MA	Buffalo	18–6
3	September 28, 1968	Buffalo, NY	Buffalo	23–0
4	September 27, 1969	Amherst, MA	Buffalo	16–6
5	October 3, 1970	Buffalo, NY	Buffalo	16–13
6	October 14, 1995	Amherst, NY	Massachusetts	33–9
7	October 19, 1996	Amherst, MA	Massachusetts	41–20
8	October 18, 1997	Amherst, NY	Massachusetts	26–20
9	September 26, 1998	Amherst, MA	Massachusetts	51–27
10	November 17, 2012	Foxboro, MA	Buffalo	29–19
11	October 19, 2013	Amherst, NY	Buffalo	32–3
12	November 28, 2014	Amherst, MA	Buffalo	41–21
13	November 27, 2015	Amherst, NY	Massachusetts	31–26
14	October 15, 2022	Amherst, MA	Buffalo	34–7
15	September 14, 2024	Amherst, NY	Buffalo	34–3
16	October 18, 2025	Amherst, MA	Buffalo	28–21
Series: Buffalo leads 10–6

Men's basketball

History

The first ever game played between the two schools took place on February 18, 1993, in New York. Tony Barbee led the Minutemen to a 96–67 victory with 18 points. The win was Massachusetts' 12th straight overall and improved the Minutemen to 18–4. Buffalo, 5–18, a Division I independent, was led by Modie Cox with 15 points.

Results

Buffalo victories	Massachusetts victories

No.	Date	Location	Winner	Score
1	February 18, 1993	Amherst, NY	Massachusetts	96–67
2	January 24, 2026	Amherst, NY
3	February 21, 2026	Amherst, MA
Series: Massachusetts leads 1–0

Women's basketball

History

The 2025 game was played in the second round of the WNIT tournament. Buffalo down 16 entering the fourth quarter, rallied back to beat the Minutewomen in overtime 84–82 led by Chellia Watson with a game-high 26 points. It was UMass' last game as a member of the A10 conference, before joining the MAC and becoming Buffalo's conference mate. ^[8]^[9]^[10]

Results

Buffalo victories	Massachusetts victories

No.	Date	Location	Winner	Score
1	January 23, 1992	Amherst, NY	Buffalo	63–53
2	December 10, 2006	Amherst, NY	Massachusetts	72–67
3	December 22, 2007	Amherst, MA	Massachusetts	68–60
4	November 21, 2015	Amherst, MA	Buffalo	56–48
5	November 11, 2016	Amherst, NY	Buffalo	61–47
6	March 23, 2025	Amherst, NY	Buffalo	84–82
7	January 17, 2026	Amherst, NY
8	March 7, 2026	Amherst, MA
Series: Buffalo leads 4–2

Softball

History

The first ever game played between the two schools took place on February 2, 2020, in Spartanburg, South Carolina as part as a opening day doubleheader at the Upstate Classic. Massachusetts won 6–2.

Results

Buffalo victories	Massachusetts victories

No.	Date	Location	Winner	Score
1	February 2, 2020^[11]	Spartanburg, SC.	Massachusetts	6–2
Series: Massachusetts leads 1–0

Women's soccer

Buffalo victories	Massachusetts victories

No.	Date	Location	Winner	Score
1	Unknown Date	--	Tie	0–0
2	October 9, 2025	Amherst, MA	Massachusetts	2–0
Series: Massachusetts leads 1–0–1

Baseball

Buffalo stopped sponsoring baseball after the 2017 season.^[12]

Men's soccer

Buffalo stopped sponsoring soccer after the 2017 season.^[12]

References

^ "Massachusetts Football Welcomes Buffalo To McGuirk On Saturday". University of Massachusetts Athletics.
^ "This Day in History: Bulls Rally for 1970 Homecoming Win over UMass". University at Buffalo.
^ Kelley, Kevin (May 16, 2019). "Buffalo, UMass schedule six-game football series". fbschedules.com.
^ "UMass returning to MAC as full member for all sports beginning in 2025 after 10-year absence from league". CBS Sports. February 29, 2024.
^ "UMass Athletics And Buffalo Athletics Announce Milton CAT as Presenting Sponsor of the Newly Coined Flagship Cup Rivalry Series". University of Massachusetts Athletics. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ "Football Edged By Buffalo". University of Massachusetts Athletics. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ "Bulls use Late Heroics to Top UMass and Win Inaugural Flagship Cup". University at Buffalo. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
^ https://getsomemaction.com/news/2025/3/24/womens-basketball-bulls-rally-to-overtime-win-against-umass-in-wnit-second-round.aspx
^ https://ubbulls.com/news/2025/3/22/womens-basketball-bulls-host-umass-in-wnit-second-round
^ https://umassathletics.com/news/2025/3/23/womens-basketball-minutewomen-take-bulls-to-the-limit-fall-in-ot-heartbreaker-82-84
^ "Softball Sweeps Opening Day Doubleheader At Upstate Classic". University of Massachusetts Athletics.
^ ^a ^b Jimenez, James H. (April 3, 2017). "Buffalo to cut four varsity sports at the end of 2017 season". Hustle Belt.

[1] "Massachusetts Football Welcomes Buffalo To McGuirk On Saturday". University of Massachusetts Athletics.

[2] "This Day in History: Bulls Rally for 1970 Homecoming Win over UMass". University at Buffalo.

[3] Kelley, Kevin (May 16, 2019). "Buffalo, UMass schedule six-game football series". fbschedules.com.

[4] "UMass returning to MAC as full member for all sports beginning in 2025 after 10-year absence from league". CBS Sports. February 29, 2024.

[5] "UMass Athletics And Buffalo Athletics Announce Milton CAT as Presenting Sponsor of the Newly Coined Flagship Cup Rivalry Series". University of Massachusetts Athletics. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[6] "Football Edged By Buffalo". University of Massachusetts Athletics. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[7] "Bulls use Late Heroics to Top UMass and Win Inaugural Flagship Cup". University at Buffalo. Retrieved October 24, 2025.

[8] ttps://getsomemaction.com/news/2025/3/24/womens-basketball-bulls-rally-to-overtime-win-against-umass-in-wnit-second-round.aspx

[9] ttps://ubbulls.com/news/2025/3/22/womens-basketball-bulls-host-umass-in-wnit-second-round

[10] ttps://umassathletics.com/news/2025/3/23/womens-basketball-minutewomen-take-bulls-to-the-limit-fall-in-ot-heartbreaker-82-84

[11] "Softball Sweeps Opening Day Doubleheader At Upstate Classic". University of Massachusetts Athletics.

[auto-12] Jimenez, James H. (April 3, 2017). "Buffalo to cut four varsity sports at the end of 2017 season". Hustle Belt.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

Buffalo Bulls football
Venues	Olympic Park (1894–1919) International Park (1915–1917, 1919) Rotary Field (1920–1942, 1955–1984) War Memorial Stadium (1946–1954, 1958, 1960, 1968–1969) Kunz Stadium (1985–1992) University at Buffalo Stadium (1993–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games
Culture & lore	Victor E. Bull "Victory March" Thunder of the East Marching Band
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders NFL draftees
Seasons	1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904–1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971–1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025

Buffalo Bulls men's basketball
Venues	Clark Memorial Gymnasium (1938–1982) Alumni Arena (1982–present)
Culture & lore	Victor E. Bull
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26

UMass Minutemen football
Venues	Alumni Field (1879–1964) Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium (1965–2011, 2014–present) Gillette Stadium (2012–2016)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Boston College New Hampshire: Colonial Clash UConn
Culture & lore	Sam the Minuteman "Fight Mass" University of Massachusetts Minuteman Marching Band
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
National championship seasons in bold

UMass Minutemen basketball
Venues	Drill Hall (1899–1931) Curry Hicks Cage (1931–1993) William D. Mullins Memorial Center (1993–present)
Rivalries	Boston College UConn
Culture & lore	Sam the Minuteman "Fight Mass"
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1899–1900 1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26
NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

All-sports or multi-sport rivalries in NCAA Division I
Trophy/point system competitions	Arizona–Arizona State (Territorial Cup Series) Boston University–Holy Cross (Turnpike Trophy) Clemson–South Carolina (Palmetto Series) George Mason–George Washington (Revolutionary Rivalry) Georgia Southern–Georgia State (Modern Day Hate) Indiana–Purdue (Indiana National Guard Governor's Cup) Iowa–Iowa State (Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series) James Madison–Old Dominion (Royal Rivalry) New Mexico–New Mexico State (Rio Grande Rivalry) Oklahoma–Oklahoma State (Bedlam Series) Oregon–Oregon State (Civil War Series) Sacramento State–UC Davis (Causeway Classic) South Florida–UCF (War on I-4) Texas–Texas A&M (Lone Star Showdown) Texas State–UTSA (I-35 Rivalry) UCLA–USC (SoCal BMW Crosstown Cup) Virginia–Virginia Tech (Commonwealth Clash)
Defunct trophy/ point competitions	Duke–North Carolina (Carlyle Cup) Kansas–Missouri (Border Showdown Series)
Overall rivalries	BYU–Utah Canisius–Niagara (Battle of the Bridge) Cincinnati–Louisville Cincinnati–Memphis Cincinnati–Xavier Colorado State–Wyoming (Border War) Dartmouth–New Hampshire Duke–North Carolina Duke–North Carolina–NC State–Wake Forest (Tobacco Road) Florida–Kentucky Fordham–Manhattan (Battle of the Bronx) Fordham–St. John's George Mason–VCU Hofstra–Stony Brook (Battle of Long Island) Houston–Rice Houston–SMU Illinois–Indiana Illinois–Iowa Indiana–Kentucky Indiana–Purdue Iowa–Iowa State Kansas–Kansas State (Sunflower Showdown) Kansas–Missouri (Border War) Kentucky–Louisville Kentucky–Tennessee Lamar–McNeese (Battle of the Border) Louisville–Memphis North Carolina–NC State North Carolina–Wake Forest North Carolina A&T–North Carolina Central North Carolina A&T–Winston-Salem State NC State–Wake Forest Norfolk State–Old Dominion Old Dominion–William & Mary Oregon–Oregon State Pittsburgh–West Virgnia (Backyard Brawl) Princeton–Rutgers Tennessee–Vanderbilt UCLA–USC UConn–UMass