Oct. 6th – Arizona State – Nothing to Say, A Lot to Prove

Laviska Shenault scored four touchdowns, with two scoring receptions and two scoring runs, leading No. 21 Colorado to a 28-21 win over Arizona State. For the game, Shenault had 13 receptions for 127 yards, to go with five carries for 13 yards.

Quarterback Steven Montez went 24-for-33 for 328 yards and two touchdowns, while Travon McMillian had 30 carries for 136 yards, becoming the first CU running back since Rashaan Salaam to post four 100-yard rushing games in the first five games of the season.

The game was tight throughout, with Arizona State taking 7-0, 14-7, and 21-14 leads, with the CU offense responding each time. Late i the third quarter, the Buffs took their first lead of the game on a Montez-to-Shenault three yard score. The Sun Devils appeared ready to respond, but cornerback Delrick Abrams, Jr., knocked away a Manny Wilkins pass on fourth-and-goal from the CU three yard line to preserve the lead.

“When you are the underdog you have to try and steal a possession and go for it even more”, said first-year head coach Herm Edwards of his decision to go for it on fourth-and-goal in the fourth quarter. “That is the logic behind it … If you do not you feel like you have nine minutes left—you hold them they punt, you can hopefully get the ball on the fifty and you get another shot. So it just didn’t work out.”

For the unbeaten Colorado Buffaloes, it was kind of a rough week.

Instead of being celebrated as being the only team in the Pac-12 to emerge from the month of September without a loss, it was a week of Buff-bashing for the No. 21 team in the nation.

Brad Crawford at 247Sports had this to say … College football’s worst unbeaten Power 5 team is Colorado, per ESPN’s analytics model. Ranked No. 53 this week in the FPI, there’s still a good chance the Buffaloes (4-0) fail to reach bowl season believe it or not. Colorado isn’t expected to win against Arizona State, USC, Washington, Arizona, Washington State, Utah or California the rest of the way. That would be a cataclysmic collapse for Mike MacIntyre and Co. This week’s game vs. Arizona State is the first loss.

Crawford was not alone:

Pac-12 parity … Conference games raise more questions about the hierarchy in the conference … Utah topples struggling Stanford … Washington 31-24 win over UCLA raises questions about both teams … Arizona needs two defensive touchdowns to defeat Cal, 24-17 …

CU closing in on a sellout for ASU game … Mike MacIntyre:”We have to be able to run the ball on them and they know that” … CU announces home-and-home with University of Houston … Laviska Shenault highlight video … Neill Woelk: Friday’s Fast Five … Buffalo Stampede video featuring CU alum Chris Fowler …

Laviska Shenault (receptions/receiving yards) and Steven Montez (completion percentage) lead the nation … CU leads the nation in one other (quirky) stat … CU v. ASU historical (overall good; head-to-head not so much) … Washington at UCLA trivia you must know …

Your “T.I.P.S.” for the Buffs and Sun Devils … ASU has the reigning Pac-12 Player-of-the-Week (Eno Benjamin: 312 yards rushing v. Oregon State), and an All-Pac-12 WR (N’Keal Harry), but the Buffs have some offensive fire-power of their own … A near-sellout is expected … Why the Buffs are going to win a close game this Saturday …

Jon Wilner: Buffs heading to San Francisco for Redbox Bowl … CBS Power Rankings: CU up to No. 17 … Other CU bowl projections: Holiday? Sun? Las Vegas? … Buffs in at No. 21 in Associated Press poll; at No. 22 in USA Today coaches’ poll …