Colorado football laid a glorious beatdown on Arizona. Big 12 title hopes are reasonable again
Colorado football came to Arizona Stadium to secure a win and keep their Big 12 Championship hopes alive.
Not only did they accomplish their objective, but they lived up to their mantra and had a dominant showing against the Wildcats.
Let’s take a look on the Buffs' clobbering of the Wildcats…
Colorado football was clinical in the first half against Arizona
It began pleasantly surprised as the Wildcats botched their onside kickoff attempt, giving the Buffs excellent field position. The first big play came in their opening drive. QB Shedeur Sanders connected a 46-yard pass to LeJohntay Wester on a 3rd and 15 play. RB Isiah Augustive then capped off the 5-play, 46-yard drive with a two-yard run to the end zone. Wester would finish with eight catches for 156 yards in the game.
After forcing Arizona to a three-and-out in their first drive, the Buffs marched down the field on a 9-play, 63-yard drive, ended by another touchdown. This time, the athleticism from Sanders threw an underhand pass to WR Drelon Miller for the 14-0 lead.
The Wildcats responded with a touchdown of their own on a 10-play, 75-yard drive, resulting in a touchdown to cut the Colorado lead in half before the end of the opening quarter.
But the Buffs orchestrated their clinical drive of their own. Sanders threw a touchdown pass to WR Will Sheppard, capping off an 11-play, 75-yard drive. With his second touchdown pass of the game, Sanders tied Joel Klatt for fourth most passing touchdowns in school history.
Arizona produced another solid drive down the field, leading to a field goal opportunity from 52 yards out, but it missed wide left.
Both teams ended the next couple of series on a head-scratcher. First, the Buffs conducted a short drive down to the Arizona 24-yard line, but the Wildcats forced Sanders to fumble, giving the home team the ball deep in their own territory. But CU responded with a strip sack fumble of their own two plays later, giving them another crack of paydirt before halftime.
Unfortunately, Sanders threw an interception, only for the Buffs defense to respond with a quick three-and-out. The Buffs would then generate a touchdown drive to close the eventful half, ending with a six-yard touchdown run from Sanders.
The Buffs cranked up the defense in the second half
Despite superstar utility man Travis Hunter being sidelined for the rest of the game, the Buffs didn't lose any momentum.
The Buffs cemented their win in the third quarter, courtesy of a four-minute, nine-play, 76-yard drive that ended with a field goal from PK Alejandro Mata.
Defensively, Colorado rebounded from a tough final thirty minutes last week with a solid second half this week. The defense limited the Wildcats to 102 yards of total offense, forced an interception, and allowed zero points.
The Buffs' rushing attack combined for 168 yards on 38 carries and two touchdowns (3.8 yards per carry). Colorado's 5-2 record is the best through seven games since 2018. Deion Sanders' nine career wins are the most a CU head coach has won through two seasons in some time—Gary Barnett was the last to accomplish the feat in 1999 and 2000. The Buffs' defense had seven sacks, the most in a single game since 2010 (Iowa State).
Colorado improved to 3-1 in the Big 12 Conference with the win.