Joe Lunardi has Colorado on the bubble in his first 2026 March Madness Bracketology

After last night's win over California Baptist, Tad Boyle has Colorado basketball off to its best start in 75 years.

The Buffs are 8-0, and have moved up to No. 39 in the NET Rankings. Two of their six wins have come against Quad 2 competition: last night against California Baptist at home and the neutral court win over Washington an MTE.

While Colorado hasn't faced a murderer's row schedule thus far, a No. 39 NET ranking is nothing to sneeze at, and would likely be enough to put them in the NCAA Tournament field if the season ended today.

At least, you would think. According to ESPN's Joe Lunardi, college basketball's foremost bracketology expert, the Buffaloes are still currently on the wrong side of the bubble.

Lunardi has the Buffs in his "Next Four Out" group in his debut bracketology for the 2025-26 season. Colorado is the sixth-team left out of the field, behind Villanova, Creighton, VCU, Miami (FL), and Santa Clara. TCU is the last team in as things stand right now.

Joe Lunardi has Colorado as 'Next Four Out' in first Bracketology

Colorado's resume may not look overly impressive, but 8-0 is 8-0. Those eight wins include three wins over opponents ranked inside KenPom's Top 100 - Providence (73), San Francisco (91), and Washington (57).

The good news for Boyle is there are plenty of opportunities for resume boosting games on the upcoming schedule, particularly when Big 12 play begins in January.

The Buffs have two more Top 100 opponents in non-conference play, starting with Colorado State (67) on Saturday on the road. That will be a measuring stick game for Boyle to see how good his team actually is. Colorado will also face Stanford (83) at home in a couple of weeks.

Big 12 play will ultimately tell the tale for this young Buffs squad. Colorado got off to a 6-2 start through eight games last year, but finished with a disappointing 14-21 record that included a 3-17 mark in conference play.