University at Buffalo football coach Jeff Quinn has been down this road before. He helped install the no-huddle spread offense at Central Michigan, revamping a team built on methodical, grind-it-out football. He helped do likewise at Cincinnati, where the Bearcats were transformed into one of the top teams in the nation.

"In 2004, when we left Grand Valley to go to Central Michigan, they were traditional huddle up, slow pace," Quinn said. "They were looking for 350-pound linemen and they were gap blocking, they were slow to the line, they were slow to move and we really had to kick it into gear and it took us a little time to get every single player to understand what we need every single play."

The overhaul on the offensive line has been less extensive at UB, which ran some spread (although rarely the no-huddle) under Turner Gill.

"When we came in here, these guys were doing a little bit of that," Quinn said. "We had personnel that was a little more equipped from an offensive standpoint."

Familiarity doesn't necessary make for an easy transition to a no-huddle attack. In a huddle offense, linemen are accustomed to gathering themselves after play, catching their breath and proceeding to the next play at a measured pace. The no-huddle affords no such luxuries.

"It's pretty tough," said senior guard Peter Bittner. "You have to make your reads a lot faster. You're right on the line and all you get is a quick call from the quarterback and just get down in a two-point stance and go. Whereas in a huddle you get to think about the call on the jog up and as you're jogging up you see defenses. Luckily we have a lot of experience on our offensive line so we're able to identify fronts real fast and get the play going."

"It's more mental than physical," Quinn said. "We did a great job this summer and a lot of them bought into changing their body compositions so they're in better shape, that they can get to the line of scrimmage and rep out plays at a higher volume and a higher pace and with more intensity."

The Bulls play on the offensive line probably graded out to a "C" in Thursday night's season-opening 31-0 victory over Rhode Island. The passing game quarterbacked by Jerry Davis worked efficiently, and sometimes with spectacular results. Davis had four completions of more than 30 yards in a 302-yard day, and only one of those major gains was attributable to a long run after the catch. For the most part he had time to throw against a Rams defense inclined to bring pressure against the spread.

The running game was another matter. The line generated little thrust and UB totaled just 108 yards on 28 attempts, a 3.2 average. Only one run went as far as 12 yards, and that was an end-around by Terrel Jackson.

"It's going to take a little bit of time," Quinn said. "We have the ability to slow it down if we need to. We have the ability to pick it up if we need to. I'd like to go fast. I'd like to make sure those defensive coordinators and players are going to defend us the width and the length of the field in a high-paced offense. It takes a little bit of time and I think as we grow and we develop and we move through the season they'll become more confident and more consistent in what they're doing."

bdicesare@buffnews.comnull