Offensive lineman Kaiwi Krabb walks off the field after Colorado’s final possession late in their 31-17 loss to Colorado State. (James Bradbury/CU Independent)
The Colorado Buffaloes fell to the Colorado State Rams 31-17 in the Rocky Mountain Showdown Friday night in Denver. The Buffs had the lead through the third quarter, but gave it up early in the fourth and never got back on track.
Takeaways
- Too many missed opportunities. When you have a first and goal, you have to get seven points — or, at the very least, three. At the 7:03 mark in the second quarter, CU had 211 yards to CSU’s 43, but only had a 10-0 lead. It could have easily been 17-0 or 24-0 had Colorado gotten the points when they were available.
- CU has to find a way to stop the run, or at least slow it down. This was easily the most glaring flaw for Colorado Friday night. Yes, Alabama transfer running back Dee Hart has loads of talent, but even backup Treyous Jarrells ran wild through the Buffaloes’ defensive holes. The defensive line and linebacking cores are relatively young and lack any standout returners. Tackling should be a major point of emphasis in the upcoming practices.
- No P-Rich? No problem. Though talked about constantly during the off-season, Richardson’s departure did not seem to have a huge impact on the game. The wide receiver combination of veteran Nelson Spruce, true freshman Shay Fields and the explosive D.D. Goodson was excellent Friday night. Sefo Liufau looked comfortable in the pocket for most of the game.
- The secondary is the best defensive group for the Buffs. We knew this coming into the season, and the Showdown confirmed it. Some signs of weakness were shown, with multiple pass-interference penalties and a dropped deep pass. But overall the cornerbacks — senior Greg Henderson and junior Ken Crawley — looked great alongside sophomore safeties Tedric Thompson and Chidobe Awuzie. Colorado only gave up 134 passing yards for the game.
Colorado plays the University of Massachusetts in Foxboro next Saturday.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Jared Funk-Breay at Jared.FunkBreay@colorado.edu.
