Isaiah Oliver on a punt return in the second quarter, his 68-yard return for a touchdown late sealed the game for the Buffaloes.
Photo by: Tony Harman
Brooks: Oliver’s Pair Of Punt Returns Help Buffs Polish An Ugly Night
November 04, 2016 | Football, B.G. Brooks
Sophomore's 42-, 68-yard returns highlight CU's special teams performance
BOULDER – For a very long time Thursday night at Folsom Field, this is what it looked like: First team to keep its composure wins.
The Colorado Buffaloes had trouble keeping their composure, finding their rhythm offensively and at times getting out of their own way. But here's the good part: the Buffs won anyway, overcoming themselves and eventually UCLA, 20-10.
And after giving the customary and by now expected pats on the back to Jim Leavitt's defense, the Buffs can thank their special teams – specifically a blossoming young punt returner named Isaiah Oliver – for helping them wade through the muck of a cool November night instead of being sucked under.
CU committed a season-high 12 penalties – costing the Buffs 128 yards – while UCLA was flagged 13 times for 96 yards. The night's math: 25 total penalties, 224 yards. Factor in five turnovers (four by the Buffs) and you're left with a night of football that might have had FS1's national audience opting for election coverage.
At times it was that ugly. And at times it was as chippy as it was sloppy.
"Yeah, it was very frustrating seeing all the flags going on the field," CU guard Tim Lynott Jr. said. "That is very disappointing to see but we're going to get it fixed and make sure we don't do that ever again."
Eight of CU's flags came from unsportsmanlike/personal foul calls, which didn't sit well with coach Mike MacIntyre. His first three CU teams were lacking in more than a few areas, but self-discipline wasn't among them.
Yet the Buffs frequently veered in that direction Thursday night, not resembling a team – at least offensively – that has climbed into the top 25 (No. 21 this week) after a decade's absence and for the most part played like it belonged there.
UCLA coach Jim Mora believed "the officials did a good job of getting it under control. I thought Mike (MacIntyre) and myself brought our teams together and said, 'Let's just play football.' They're emotional young men and this is an emotional game . . . I commend both sides, once it got to that point, for pulling it back.
"Colorado is a heck of a football team, Mike's done a great job. And I certainly wouldn't let (the penalties) be the story."
Not the whole story anyway. Oliver's big punt return effort on special teams, as well as Chris Graham hitting two of three field goals (he had one blocked) and two PATs shared CU's top storylines with the defense.
In all, Oliver returned five punts for 124 yards, setting up Graham for an eventual 21-yard field goal with a 42-yard return in the third quarter and scoring on the 68-yarder in the fourth quarter. The 42-yard return helped the Buffs pull to a 10-10 tie, the 68-yarder offered them separation with just under 51/2 minutes to play.
Mora blamed Oliver's long return on a called rugby punt that "we didn't rugby . . . we kicked it down the middle with no hang (time) and if you do that against a good punt returner that's what's going to happen."
Oliver, a sophomore who also competes for CU as a decathlete, only began returning punts when Jay MacIntyre suffered a concussion against Arizona State. Entering Thursday night's game, Oliver had returned four punts for 20 yards, with a long return of 12 yards.
Mike MacIntyre said Oliver "wasn't really good at catching (punts) early. We kept working with him and working with him."
What the CU staff didn't have to work on was Oliver's explosiveness and athleticism. "We've seen that," MacIntyre said. "He just needs to be consistent at catching the ball."
Ever humble, Oliver said his fourth-quarter scoring return provided "pretty much a feeling of relief because we knew as a team we felt like we couldn't stop UCLA's offense for the rest of the game.
"We knew if we could get one more touchdown or a few more points that we could pretty much solidify the game. So that's what we were looking to do."
MacIntyre called Oliver's scoring return "a huge, huge play . . . the punt returns were big (and) our punt team did an excellent job. I think our punt return team did better than their punt return team. That was the difference in the game."
With Graham connecting on two of his field goal attempts, the low kick that was blocked could be forgiven. It won't be forgotten but it will be worked on. Count on it. Also, freshman Davis Price, said MacIntyre, will return next week from his bout with mononucleosis.
MacIntyre said Graham "did a good job tonight," but added, "He kicked the one low there at the end and it got blocked. He made some others. He did well on his extra points, he did well on his kickoffs."
But in the special teams' category, it was Oliver who came up really special. "We didn't expect (points) to happen on a punt return but however you can get it in the end zone, we're happy with that," he said.
Happy didn't come easy, said quarterback Sefo Liufau. On a night that was ugly, chippy and could have spiraled further in that direction, Liufau said after Oliver's scoring return "was probably the first time I smiled all night, to be honest."
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU
The Colorado Buffaloes had trouble keeping their composure, finding their rhythm offensively and at times getting out of their own way. But here's the good part: the Buffs won anyway, overcoming themselves and eventually UCLA, 20-10.
And after giving the customary and by now expected pats on the back to Jim Leavitt's defense, the Buffs can thank their special teams – specifically a blossoming young punt returner named Isaiah Oliver – for helping them wade through the muck of a cool November night instead of being sucked under.
CU committed a season-high 12 penalties – costing the Buffs 128 yards – while UCLA was flagged 13 times for 96 yards. The night's math: 25 total penalties, 224 yards. Factor in five turnovers (four by the Buffs) and you're left with a night of football that might have had FS1's national audience opting for election coverage.
At times it was that ugly. And at times it was as chippy as it was sloppy.
"Yeah, it was very frustrating seeing all the flags going on the field," CU guard Tim Lynott Jr. said. "That is very disappointing to see but we're going to get it fixed and make sure we don't do that ever again."
Eight of CU's flags came from unsportsmanlike/personal foul calls, which didn't sit well with coach Mike MacIntyre. His first three CU teams were lacking in more than a few areas, but self-discipline wasn't among them.
Yet the Buffs frequently veered in that direction Thursday night, not resembling a team – at least offensively – that has climbed into the top 25 (No. 21 this week) after a decade's absence and for the most part played like it belonged there.
UCLA coach Jim Mora believed "the officials did a good job of getting it under control. I thought Mike (MacIntyre) and myself brought our teams together and said, 'Let's just play football.' They're emotional young men and this is an emotional game . . . I commend both sides, once it got to that point, for pulling it back.
"Colorado is a heck of a football team, Mike's done a great job. And I certainly wouldn't let (the penalties) be the story."
Not the whole story anyway. Oliver's big punt return effort on special teams, as well as Chris Graham hitting two of three field goals (he had one blocked) and two PATs shared CU's top storylines with the defense.
In all, Oliver returned five punts for 124 yards, setting up Graham for an eventual 21-yard field goal with a 42-yard return in the third quarter and scoring on the 68-yarder in the fourth quarter. The 42-yard return helped the Buffs pull to a 10-10 tie, the 68-yarder offered them separation with just under 51/2 minutes to play.
Mora blamed Oliver's long return on a called rugby punt that "we didn't rugby . . . we kicked it down the middle with no hang (time) and if you do that against a good punt returner that's what's going to happen."
Oliver, a sophomore who also competes for CU as a decathlete, only began returning punts when Jay MacIntyre suffered a concussion against Arizona State. Entering Thursday night's game, Oliver had returned four punts for 20 yards, with a long return of 12 yards.
Mike MacIntyre said Oliver "wasn't really good at catching (punts) early. We kept working with him and working with him."
What the CU staff didn't have to work on was Oliver's explosiveness and athleticism. "We've seen that," MacIntyre said. "He just needs to be consistent at catching the ball."
Ever humble, Oliver said his fourth-quarter scoring return provided "pretty much a feeling of relief because we knew as a team we felt like we couldn't stop UCLA's offense for the rest of the game.
"We knew if we could get one more touchdown or a few more points that we could pretty much solidify the game. So that's what we were looking to do."
MacIntyre called Oliver's scoring return "a huge, huge play . . . the punt returns were big (and) our punt team did an excellent job. I think our punt return team did better than their punt return team. That was the difference in the game."
With Graham connecting on two of his field goal attempts, the low kick that was blocked could be forgiven. It won't be forgotten but it will be worked on. Count on it. Also, freshman Davis Price, said MacIntyre, will return next week from his bout with mononucleosis.
MacIntyre said Graham "did a good job tonight," but added, "He kicked the one low there at the end and it got blocked. He made some others. He did well on his extra points, he did well on his kickoffs."
But in the special teams' category, it was Oliver who came up really special. "We didn't expect (points) to happen on a punt return but however you can get it in the end zone, we're happy with that," he said.
Happy didn't come easy, said quarterback Sefo Liufau. On a night that was ugly, chippy and could have spiraled further in that direction, Liufau said after Oliver's scoring return "was probably the first time I smiled all night, to be honest."
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU
Players Mentioned
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