BOULDER — All those questions folks had about Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes?
(Checks notes … )
Asked and answered in Saturday’s 48-21 thumping of UCF.
Improved run game? A very efficient 128 yards on 29 carries (4.4 average) with 10 first downs on the ground.
Improved pass protection? Two sacks allowed.
Improved run defense? The nation’s leading rushing team at 375 yards per game finished with a very pedestrian 177 on 44 carries.
Improved turnover margin? Four forced turnovers leading to 14 points while giving it up just once (and that one the Colorado defense negated by collecting an end zone interception).
Big 12 contenders? Just ask every other conference coach who took note of Saturday’s game and whispered to themselves, “Uh oh …”
Indeed.
The Buffs are a good team. Along with having two of arguably the top 20 players in the nation — one of whom is arguably THE best — they have a legitimate, play-well-in-all-three-phases team.
Not to take away from quarterback Shedeur Sanders and two-way star Travis Hunter. They are the marquee players for good reason.
Sanders continues to carve up defenses with throws most quarterbacks only dream of completing. He reads and dissects defenses with precision, has an uncanny ability to escape pressure and possesses an almost preternatural penchant for big plays at the perfect moment.
Saturday’s numbers: 28-for-35, 290 yards, 3 touchdowns.
Hunter, meanwhile, just continues to make his case for being the most outstanding player in college football. His line Saturday: nine catches for 89 yards and a touchdown, two tackles, a pass breakup and an interception — his second game this year with a TD reception and an interception. For the season, he has 46 catches for 561 yards and six touchdowns on offense, with 16 tackles (two for loss), three pass breakups, two interceptions and a forced fumble on defense.
(Rumors that Hunter flew the plane home Saturday night are completely unfounded.)
But the Buffs are far more than the Dynamic Duo.
A host of CU defenders answered the bell Saturday. Safety Cam’Ron Silmon-Craig had five tackles, a pass breakup and a 95-yard fumble return for a score. Linebacker Nikhai Hill-Green, who seized the starting job a couple of weeks ago, continues to be a beast in the middle, finishing with nine tackles (two for loss). Redshirt freshman Taje McCoy recorded two sacks. CU edge rushers Samuel Okunlola, BJ Green II and Arden Walkerforced everything inside, where the big fellas finished the job.
And, speaking of big fellas, the offensive line bounced back with a vengeance. A starting lineup that consisted of tackles Jordan Seaton and Phillip Houston, guards Kareem Harden and Tyler Brown and center Hank Zilinskas opened holes for the run game and gave Sanders a solid pocket from which to work. That run game included nice efforts from backs Dallan Hayden, Micah Welch and Isaiah Augustave, each of whom delivered big gains at critical moments.
Simply, everyone contributed. The Buffs played complementary football, leading to arguably the best overall effort in the Coach Prime era.
“It’s one of the first times that we came out and played a collective game offensively, defensively, as well as special teams,” he said. “I’m proud of them.”
Coach Prime also has reason to be proud of a coaching staff that has steadily produced improvement this year.
O-line boss Phil Loadholt pushed his charges to be at their best and they responded. Offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur is pushing all the right buttons.
And, defensive coordinator Robert Livingston continues to devise schemes that put his best players in position to make plays — and his halftime adjustments are on the verge of becoming legendary.
In five games, no opponent has scored more than seven points after halftime.
Certainly there’s plenty of season left. Lots of things can happen to a 4-1 team.
But this is now a team playing with confidence, a swagger that says they believe in themselves and their teammates. That kind of confidence builds on itself and produces more big moments, more clutch plays at critical times — and more momentum.
Now, Colorado gets a nice break, one of two bye weeks. The Buffs will have time to heal some bumps and bruises, get healthy and prepare for an Oct. 12 visit from No. 23 Kansas State, who routed No. 20 Oklahoma State on Saturday, 42-20.
The Buffs will likely be underdogs in that one.
But the Buffs won’t care.
Colorado has a team that continues to improve, continues to grow and continues to gain confidence. In a Big 12 Conference that seems intent upon redefining parity, the Buffs are proving they belong on the list of contenders.
Questions? No doubt there will be more. That’s the nature of the media beast.
But, as Coach Prime noted with a grin, “We’re not mad about it. We’re not upset about it. We know who we are.”
No doubt — and if the Buffs continue playing like they did Saturday, the rest of the Big 12 will find out soon enough.
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Story by Neill Woelk, Contributing Editor for CUBuffs.com. Content courtesy of the University of Colorado at Boulder.