Buffs & Bears Have Had Some Wild Ones
September 25, 2026 | Football
Through the years, Colorado and Baylor have had some wild games, even before the two became members of the Big 12 Conference in 1996 (and again in 2024).
Most recently when they renewed the rivalry in 2024 when the Buffs returned to the conference after spending 13 years in the Pac-12. LaJohntay Wester caught a 43-yard Hail Mary pass from Shedeur Sanders in the end zone as time ran out to force overtime, where the Buffs scored first and then the defense held the Bears scoreless for a 38-31 win. Wild? Sure. But you ain't seen – or recall – nothing yet.
CU leads the series by a 10-7 count, the teams combining for 836 points, or just over 49 per game. The last five games alone have produced 328 of those points (almost 66 per). But the first wild one took place in Boulder in 1973 with the craziest in Waco in 1992.
The Sept. 29, 1973, game was the home opener for the Buffs. Having lost the season opener at LSU (17-6) before winning at Wisconsin (28-25). CU was ranked 10th in the preseason but had dropped out after the 1-1 start.
Colorado sprinted to a 21-0 lead at the end of the first quarter, was ahead 35-6 at halftime and built it to 49-6 at the end of three before the Bears cut the final margin to 52-28. CU gained 494 yards on just 63 plays – just under 8 per, and had five of its seven touchdowns cover 196 yards:
The schools met only twice until the '92 game, Baylor defeating the Buffs in the next-to-last Bluebonnet Bowl, 21-9 in 1986, and the returned a blocked field goal late in the game for a 16-14 win in Boulder in 1991, a loss that ended both CU's 11-game overall winning streak and a 15-game run at Folsom Field.
Yes, the Buffs were not too thrilled and wanted a measure of revenge.
The Buffs won the 1992 opener displaying its new passing attack, defeating CSU, 37-17. The heir apparent to Darian Hagan, Kordell Stewart had a record-setting debut, throwing for 409 yards and four touchdowns with Michael Westbrook hauling in seven passes for 130 yards and two scores.
Next up for the 12th-ranked Buffs on Sept. 12 – a trip to Waco to face Baylor, who had been upset in its opener, losing at home to Louisiana Tech, 10-9. The Bears scored on their first possession, a 33-yard field goal for its only lead of the game.
Then the Buffs and Stewart let loose.
Colorado scored 33 unanswered points, starting with a 7-yard TD pass from Stewart to Christian Fauria with a minute left in the first quarter. Nearly six minutes into the second, Patrick Blottiaux nailed a 50-yard field goal for a 10-3 CU lead. Stewart threw TD passes to Charles Johnson (35 yards) and Westbrook (52 yards), with a safety and a Lamont Warren 1-yard TD run wedged in-between and CU seemed to have an insurmountable 33-3 lead.
Stewart had one of the Buffs' most memorable halves in history, completing 16-of-17 passes for 251 yards and three TD's (an astronomical passer rating of 276.4). He completed his first 13 passes before his only incompletion, when he was called for intentional grounding. Late in the half, he suffered a sprained ankle and did not return to the game, replaced by Illinois transfer Duke Tobin in the second half.
The Bears were intent on making things interesting, cutting the lead to 33-10 at halftime after an 80-yard TD pass. CU managed just a 28-yard Blottiaux field goal in-between two Baylor scores and all of a sudden, CU led just 36-24 entering the fourth quarter.
But Baylor would get no closer. Lamont Warren had touchdown runs of 4 and 14 yards and Tobin connected with Donnell Leomiti on a 39-yard scoring pass and when the smoke finally cleared, CU left the home of Dr Pepper with a 57-38 win.
The final numbers were, well, wild. Westbrook was the favorite target of both quarterbacks, hauling in 11 passes for 186 yards and the TD; Tobin had completed 10-of-15 throws for 154 yards and a score. The 57 points by Colorado were the most allowed by Baylor at home since 1914, with the 95 combined points the most-ever at the time in Floyd Casey Stadium (zooming by the old high of 77). CU outgained BU, 535-345, with a 26-11 edge in first downs. The Bears quarterback, J.J. Joe, completed just 6-of-20 passes, but for 262 yards, the 43.7 yards per completion a Southwest Conference and NCAA record – against a CU secondary that for the year allowed just 133 yards per game – third-best in the nation -- and featured Jim Thorpe Award winner, Deon Figures.
The irony of the day? There was a Baylor student who was happy with the outcome. Marc McCartney, the son of CU head coach Bill McCartney, was interning as a videographer with Waco's KWTX-TV.
Most recently when they renewed the rivalry in 2024 when the Buffs returned to the conference after spending 13 years in the Pac-12. LaJohntay Wester caught a 43-yard Hail Mary pass from Shedeur Sanders in the end zone as time ran out to force overtime, where the Buffs scored first and then the defense held the Bears scoreless for a 38-31 win. Wild? Sure. But you ain't seen – or recall – nothing yet.
CU leads the series by a 10-7 count, the teams combining for 836 points, or just over 49 per game. The last five games alone have produced 328 of those points (almost 66 per). But the first wild one took place in Boulder in 1973 with the craziest in Waco in 1992.
The Sept. 29, 1973, game was the home opener for the Buffs. Having lost the season opener at LSU (17-6) before winning at Wisconsin (28-25). CU was ranked 10th in the preseason but had dropped out after the 1-1 start.
Colorado sprinted to a 21-0 lead at the end of the first quarter, was ahead 35-6 at halftime and built it to 49-6 at the end of three before the Bears cut the final margin to 52-28. CU gained 494 yards on just 63 plays – just under 8 per, and had five of its seven touchdowns cover 196 yards:
- 42-yard pass from Clyde Crutchmer to Steve Haggerty;
- 23-yard pass from Crutcher to J.V. Cain;
- 39-yard interception return by Ed Schoen;
- 43-yard run by Bo Matthews; and
- 49-yard pass from David Williams to Dave Logan.
The schools met only twice until the '92 game, Baylor defeating the Buffs in the next-to-last Bluebonnet Bowl, 21-9 in 1986, and the returned a blocked field goal late in the game for a 16-14 win in Boulder in 1991, a loss that ended both CU's 11-game overall winning streak and a 15-game run at Folsom Field.
Yes, the Buffs were not too thrilled and wanted a measure of revenge.
The Buffs won the 1992 opener displaying its new passing attack, defeating CSU, 37-17. The heir apparent to Darian Hagan, Kordell Stewart had a record-setting debut, throwing for 409 yards and four touchdowns with Michael Westbrook hauling in seven passes for 130 yards and two scores.
Next up for the 12th-ranked Buffs on Sept. 12 – a trip to Waco to face Baylor, who had been upset in its opener, losing at home to Louisiana Tech, 10-9. The Bears scored on their first possession, a 33-yard field goal for its only lead of the game.
Then the Buffs and Stewart let loose.
Colorado scored 33 unanswered points, starting with a 7-yard TD pass from Stewart to Christian Fauria with a minute left in the first quarter. Nearly six minutes into the second, Patrick Blottiaux nailed a 50-yard field goal for a 10-3 CU lead. Stewart threw TD passes to Charles Johnson (35 yards) and Westbrook (52 yards), with a safety and a Lamont Warren 1-yard TD run wedged in-between and CU seemed to have an insurmountable 33-3 lead.
Stewart had one of the Buffs' most memorable halves in history, completing 16-of-17 passes for 251 yards and three TD's (an astronomical passer rating of 276.4). He completed his first 13 passes before his only incompletion, when he was called for intentional grounding. Late in the half, he suffered a sprained ankle and did not return to the game, replaced by Illinois transfer Duke Tobin in the second half.
The Bears were intent on making things interesting, cutting the lead to 33-10 at halftime after an 80-yard TD pass. CU managed just a 28-yard Blottiaux field goal in-between two Baylor scores and all of a sudden, CU led just 36-24 entering the fourth quarter.
But Baylor would get no closer. Lamont Warren had touchdown runs of 4 and 14 yards and Tobin connected with Donnell Leomiti on a 39-yard scoring pass and when the smoke finally cleared, CU left the home of Dr Pepper with a 57-38 win.
The final numbers were, well, wild. Westbrook was the favorite target of both quarterbacks, hauling in 11 passes for 186 yards and the TD; Tobin had completed 10-of-15 throws for 154 yards and a score. The 57 points by Colorado were the most allowed by Baylor at home since 1914, with the 95 combined points the most-ever at the time in Floyd Casey Stadium (zooming by the old high of 77). CU outgained BU, 535-345, with a 26-11 edge in first downs. The Bears quarterback, J.J. Joe, completed just 6-of-20 passes, but for 262 yards, the 43.7 yards per completion a Southwest Conference and NCAA record – against a CU secondary that for the year allowed just 133 yards per game – third-best in the nation -- and featured Jim Thorpe Award winner, Deon Figures.
The irony of the day? There was a Baylor student who was happy with the outcome. Marc McCartney, the son of CU head coach Bill McCartney, was interning as a videographer with Waco's KWTX-TV.
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