Initial observations from Colorado’s 48-21 victory over the Central Florida Golden Knights in the Buffs’ first Big 12 road game under head coach Deion Sanders.
Strike a pose: All-everything CU junior Travis Hunter entered the day with the fifth-best cumulative Heisman Trophy odds, according to Vegas Insider, trailing Miami QB Cam Ward, Alabama QB Jalen Milroe, Tennessee QB Nico Iamaleava and Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel. Sensing a theme? Yes, college football’s highest honor has gone to a quarterback seven of the past eight years. But at some point the best player in the game — Hunter is assuredly that — has to be the guy. His Heisman campaign was only burnished in Orlando, where he did his 100-plus snaps thing once again with nine catches for 89 yards and one TD, two tackles, one pass breakup and one diving interception. The latter was punctuated by a familiar stiff-arm pose. Get those bets in while you can. The odds will never be better.
Getting defensive: It’s official: The Buffs are no longer pushovers on defense. If the first four games under new defensive coordinator Robert Livingston hinted at it, this fifth game against the top rushing attack in FBS cemented it. The Golden Knights came into Saturday averaging 375.7 rush yards per game. They had 43 at halftime. Starting with UCF’s first possession, which started on the CU 29-yard line and ended with zero points, little came easy. Were there hiccups? Sure. But this is no longer a team that gets blown off the ball, and often one that keeps the ball in front of it at all times. With this offense, that’s a recipe for success.
Getting complementary: One sign of a good team? Having each other’s backs. When one guy — or unit — falls, another is there to pick them up. Things could’ve got ugly early after QB Shedeur Sanders threw an interception on the Buffs’ first drive of the game. UCF started with the ball on the Buffs’ 29-yard line, marched to the 5 over nine plays and had third-and-goal with at least three points seemingly assured. Instead, cornerback Preston Hodge read receiver Trent Whittemore like a book, mirroring his route to the corner of the end zone and leaping over him to secure an interception. That, friends, is what’s known as complementary football.
On a run: Why is offensive balance important? For sopping wet days like Saturday. Early on, it looked as if the pass first, second and third Buffs flew to Orlando. But after a three-and-INT drive, CU started pounding the rock, racking up 70 yards on 15 carries in the first half, and Shedeur Sanders settled in. Freshman Micah Welch gashed UCF for a 15-yard touchdown and 7-0 lead. He added another TD on CU’s first possession of the second half. Then Isaiah Augustave busted loose for 21- and 19-yard gains on CU’s putaway drive in the third quarter. All told, CU ran for 10 first downs and passed for 13 others. It’s hard enough covering CU’s array of pass-catchers. Throw in a run game that consistently gains positive yards (29 carries, 128 yards), and it’s near impossible.
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Extra Point
Raise the ceiling: Tell me again: Why were the Golden Knights 14-point favorites (13.5 at kickoff) heading into this one? Outside of a shaky opening drive, this game was pretty much all Buffs from the jump. The defense flew to the ball and limited big plays. The offense got chunks on the ground and through the air while limiting negative plays (translation: only two sacks allowed). And the special teams hiccups that hurt CU last week vs. Baylor never materialized. The things that limited CU’s ceiling last year — blocking and tackling — are no longer the major problems they once were. Coach Deion Sanders’ Buffs have never played a more complete game than they did Saturday. And suddenly, CU is 4-1 and looks like a legit Big 12 contender. With a week off to prepare for 23rd-ranked Kansas State’s visit to Folsom Field, October just got very interesting.
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