1 week Ago By Pat Rooney
The championship march continues for the Colorado football team. But Utah no doubt offered a stern reminder to the Buffaloes. Winning is great, but in November nothing can be taken for granted.
Colorado once again won going away on Saturday, outlasting Utah 49-24 in a game that was never really close, but also wasn’t truly comfortable for the Buffs until the latter stages of the fourth quarter. This is uncharted territory for the Buffs, as Saturday’s victory keeps CU in line for a berth in the Big 12 title game and a run at the College Football Playoff with games remaining at Kansas and at home against Oklahoma State. The margin for error in November always thins.
That gets magnified even more so when a playoff berth hangs in the balance. It was far from a perfect game for the Buffs, as a struggling Utah squad and its overmatched offense didn’t make things easy for CU all day. Think about all of this when considering just how far the CU program has come as the second season under Deion Sanders barrels toward a potentially exhilarating conclusion.
The rapidly improving offensive line took a small step backwards, albeit against the toughest defensive front they will see all season. The Buffs committed three turnovers, including another botched snap and a completely uncharacteristic interception by Shedeur Sanders on the first play of the game. CU went 3-for-11 on third down and had nearly double the penalty yards as Utah.
Those are the sort of traits that have marked many multiple-touchdown losses for the Buffs over the years. Not this season. The defense was superb, holding Utah to 31 rushing yards on 30 attempts and forcing four turnovers.
The CU sack exchange continued, with the Buffs recording four. And, in the end, the Buffs won by 25 points and scored a season-high 49 points. Not bad at all for a sub-par game, a fact coach Sanders alluded to during his postgame press conference.
“Wasn’t a great game, but a good game,” Sanders said. “Putting up 49 points and didn’t play your best game, I think that speaks a lot about the program and where we are. We’ve got to tighten some things up and get some things together, but you see we’re trending in the right direction.
” Smoothing out imperfections in November while still racking up wins is far preferable to running out the clock on the season, a fate that has befallen the Buffs and their fans in far too many dreary autumns. No doubt, cleaning up those few problem areas will be critical for the Buffs to attain their November-December goals. Yet on the other hand, style points in November don’t necessarily matter.
Wins do, and Saturday’s victory keeps the Buffs in the driver’s seat in the Big 12. With Utah dispatched, the Buffs continue their weekly tour through de facto elimination games next week at Kansas in the final true road game of the season. Conquer the Jayhawks, and all that will remain between the Buffs and a Big 12 title game berth is a win against Oklahoma State, currently winless in Big 12 play.
As unstoppable as Shedeur Sanders and fellow Heisman Trophy candidate Travis Hunter are, as much as the Buffs have improved on the interior on both sides of the ball, anyone who has watched this team since August would say the Buffs haven’t yet put it all together. That includes Coach Prime. “We haven’t even put it all together yet,” Sanders said.
“We haven’t even played our best game. That should be, in itself, scary.” Scary? Maybe for Kansas and Oklahoma State.
For Buffs fans, it’s more like euphoria. The 2024 season already is one to remember. And yet just maybe the best still is yet to come.
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