Colorado
Utah
Fast Five: Keys For Buffs Vs. Utah
November 15, 2024 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — On the surface, Saturday's Colorado-Utah matchup tracks closely with the preseason predictions by the "experts."
One team has a three-game win streak, is ranked in the nation's top 20 and can earn a Big 12 championship game berth by winning its final three games.
The other is mired in a five-game losing streak, is battling to become even bowl eligible and is virtually guaranteed to finish closer to the bottom of the league standings than the top.
But to get the full picture, you have to flip the expert predictions.
The team with the outstanding numbers is Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders' Colorado Buffaloes, the same squad picked to finish 11th in the league in the preseason media poll. The Buffs (7-2 overall, 5-1 Big 12) are ranked 18th in the nation, have a three-game win streak, are currently in second place in the Big 12 standings and control their own destiny when it comes to earning a conference title game berth — and a spot in the College Football Playoffs.
Meanwhile, preseason conference favorite Utah is struggling in every sense of the word. After winning their first four games and reaching No. 10 in the AP national poll, the Utes (4-5 1-5) have been hammered by injuries, have lost five in a row and are guaranteed to finish with a losing conference record for the first time since 2017.
But all those numbers mean just one thing to Coach Prime's Buffs: the Utes are a dangerous team that can't be taken lightly. If the Buffs are going to stretch their win streak to four — which would be the best in the Coach Prime era — they'll have to be at their best.
That brings us to our weekly Fast Five:
1. Control the tempo offensively. Despite their record, the Utes might have the best defense the Buffs have seen this year. Utah is giving up just 17.1 points per game — best in the Big 12 — and the most anyone has scored on the Utes is a relatively measly 27, by Arizona State.
It's a typical Kyle Whittingham defense. Nothing fancy, just a strong front seven that plays the run well (132.4 yards per game) and a dependable secondary (175 yards passing per game).
Utah doesn't have a particularly strong pass rush, with just 16 sacks this season. But they don't have to use extra defenders to get pressure on the pocket, meaning they can produce blanket coverage on the back end.
The Buffs will have to produce at least the threat of a run game, then give quarterback Shedeur Sanders time to work in the pocket. If they can accomplish that, it will give CU's receivers time to get open, work the field for quick gains and keep the chains moving.
2. Control the Utah run game. This is far from a typical Whittingham team when it comes to their rushing attack. Utah is just 11th in the league in yards per game on the ground (150) and unlike past seasons, they don't have the threat of a big passing game to keep defenses honest.
The Buffs need to stifle that ground game early, put the Utes behind the sticks and force them to throw.
Colorado has been solid against the run over the last three games. The Buffs gave up just 113 yards on the ground in last weekend's win over Texas Tech as the front seven — led by linebackers Nikhai Hill-Green and LaVonta Bentley and linemen Chidozie Nwankwo and Amari McNeill — has become a force.
If the Buffs can stop Utah on first and second down, it will force the Utes to throw. That brings us to …
3. Put pressure on Utes QB Brandon Rose. The Utah sophomore became Utah's third different starter in his starting debut last week in the 22-21 loss to BYU. He had a decent day — 12-for-21, 112 yards, two touchdowns and an interception — but there's no doubt the Utah coaching staff doesn't want to put too much on his plate.
The Buffs need to force feed him from the get-go. If Colorado can put the Utes in constant third-and-long situations, it will open the door for takeaways and sacks.
CU leads the Big 12 in sacks with 29, including 24 in the last five games. They should have the opportunity to increase that total against the Utes.
4. Eliminate the unforced errors. We're talking penalties here, especially the kind that are easily avoided — taunting, late hits, etc.
Colorado leads the Big 12 in penalties this year with 70. That's 10 more than any other team in the conference. In the last two weeks, a couple of those penalties have almost become very costly.
CU can't afford to keep attracting those yellow flags. The margin for error will be getting increasingly smaller as the stakes get larger. There's no need to tempt fate with unnecessary, unforced errors.
5. Continue the playoff mentality. As Coach Prime said a couple of weeks ago, "Every game is a playoff. It's a single elimination tournament, and we plan on approaching all of them with passion, with purpose, with consistency, with focus, and that dog-like attitude."
The Buffs have built a deep well of confidence with that attitude. They are making big plays at crucial moments on both sides of the ball, they are playing with controlled abandon and they now believe they belong in the realm of the nation's big boys.
If they continue to play with that approach, they will be one step closer to a conference title game berth by Saturday night.
