Buffalo Bulls

In 1894, UB established an athletics association and fourteen UB Medical students formed the first UB football team. The Schools football team survived like this until 1903. For all but two of those years UB was without any coach. In 1897, C. W. Dibble coached UB to a perfect 7-0-0 record and in 1903, Ray Turnbull led the UB team to a 3-3 record. After the 1903 season, UB would not again put a team on the field until 1915.

In 1915, UB re-established the football program and instituted men's basketball. Both teams were named the 'Bisons' and used as their logo a caricature of a male American bison, often outfitted in a UB jersey. Art Powell would take over in 1916 and coach the team for six seasons, he stayed on at the University to coach Basketball team until 1943.

In 1931, the University changed its mascot to the Bull in order to distinguish UB from several professional teams in the Queen City who also went by the name "Bisons".

Dick Offenhamer brought in UB's most successful era when from 1955 to 1965, he would coach UB to an impressive 58-37-5 record. In 1958, the football team won the Lambert Cup, emblematic of supremacy in Eastern U.S. small-college football. That led to the team's first bowl invitation, to the Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, Florida against Florida State University. But the Bulls would be allowed to participate only if back-up defensive end Mike Wilson and starting halfback Willie Evans, who were black, did not play. The team stood behind the two, and refused the bowl offer.

Following the departure of Offenhamer in 1965, UB would last only five more years before suspending football in 1970. There was some success under coach Doc Urich, who led UB to an 18-12 record over three years, but declining performance and financial issues would cause UB to suspend its football program. The final blow was the student bodies vote to stop funding athletics.

In 1977 UB would re-introduce football and spend the next 20 years going from division three to the Bowl Subdivision. On November 21, 2008, the Buffalo Bulls won their first outright MAC Eastern Division Championship, sealing the win with a thrilling 2-OT victory over Bowling Green, 40-34. After winning the Conference title against undefeated Ball State They would, 50 years after the schools last invite, play UConn in the Schools first Bowl game.