Colorado Looks to Keep Rolling vs. NC State

BOULDER—The Colorado Buffaloes face another, welcoming in perennial NCAA Tournament team NC State on Thursday (7 p.m. MT). It will be the first of two Power 5 matches this week, closing the weekend against Purdue on Sunday (Noon).

The Buffs started gaining some notoriety this week, receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches poll, as well as goalkeeper Jordan Nytes earning Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Week and Top Drawer Soccer Player of the Week. Ally Clark was also a College Soccer News Team of the Week honoree.

Colorado (3-1-0) is fresh off its 2-0 upset win over then No. 14 Michigan State on Sunday. CU is in the midst of a three-game stretch against Power 5 opponents. CU hasn't played three Power 5 schools in the non-conference season since the 2021 season, taking on No. 1 Florida State and playing at No. 6 TCU and at Purdue. The last time CU played three consecutive Power 5 matches was the 2016 traveling to Kansas and Missouri and hosting Michigan State

"We knew this would be a huge stretch for us," head coach Danny Sanchez noted. "We took care of business in the first one, but we know it doesn't get any easier. NC State is an NCAA Tournament team. They are very well-coached and very experienced. They've had some good results early in the year so we expect a similar type of match on Thursday."

One difference for CU this season, compared to those previous years is that the Buffs remain at home. This week will close out a six-game homestand for the team, where in the past they have had to travel to these Power 5 matches.

"There's two ways to look at it," Sanchez continued. "It's great to be at home but sometimes being on the road is ok, as well, in the sense that you can change the routine up a little and you can bond a little more. But it's nice to be at home with the start of school and everything else that everyone has going on. The crowds have been fantastic so far, especially on Sunday [vs. Michigan State]. We're hoping that we get another huge crowd Thursday night against NC State."

The Buffs opened the season with a 3-0 win over Northern Colorado but then struggled to get the offense going in the team's 1-0 loss to Marquette, despite outplaying the Golden Eagles for the majority of the contest. The offense picked things back up last weekend, headlined by Clark totaling two of CU's four goals.

"Scoring goals is a tough thing to do," Sanchez continued. "I thought we created a lot of opportunities against Colorado College, but we didn't put enough in. We maximized our opportunities against Michigan State and that's more of what we're going to see the rest of the year. We have to create opportunities. We have to win set pieces. We have to finish. We feel that we have the personnel within our team to do that."

The Buffs have been competing behind the scenes, pushing each other in training day in and day out. The results are now starting to show on the field. Four of the team's 14 newcomers have found the scoresheet and five different players have accounted for the team's seven goals through the first four games.

"We have a lot of competitors here," Sanchez explained. "We have a lot of new players that are still trying to find their spot. There are a lot of people still fighting for spots, fighting for minutes and fighting for roles. We continue to train at a high level. Today's training session was very competitive and we expect that to continue as we build through the season.

NC State (1-0-2) was off last weekend, having last played to a 1-1 draw against Rutgers. The Pack opened the season with a 1-1 draw against Utah and went on the road for its 2-1 win at Charlotte. NC State returns eight starters and 18 total players from last season's NCAA Tournament squad.

Brad Thompson will have the call on Thursday night on CUBuffs.com/WatchSoc.

Fans are encouraged to bring shelf-safe food and toys for donation. The donations will benefit the PorchLight Family Justice Center. Fans who donate will receive discounted tickets to a future CU soccer game.

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Players Mentioned

Ally Clark

Jordan Nytes