False Summits

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False Summits

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My father was an avid hiker and camper, so I spent many a summer weekend during my youth exploring the mountains just north of Yellowstone National Park, and, later, after my father moved to the Denver area, in the Colorado Rockies.

Some fantastic trips, to be sure, but there are also memories which are less than pleasant.

When I was around middle school age, my brother, two years older and (at that time) taller, loved to make life on the trail a living Hell for his younger sibling.

My father and brother were much better hikers than I was, and it was often tough for me to keep up. Hikes became marches, and the “Are we they yet?” mantra was my constant cry.

I learned, though, that once we got past the seemingly endless trek through the woods, and we got above tree line, that there was reason for renewed hope.

When I could see the summit of the mountain we were climbing, and I could see the finish line, I could then will myself to the top. Fifty steps, rest. Fifty steps, rest.

One switchback at a time.

If I could see the final destination, I felt I could get there.

My brother, always well in front of me, would (suspiciously) wait up, encouraging me as we got closer to the top. He would wait for me to share in the triumph … and them mock me once I got to the top, only to find that the “top” of the mountain wasn’t really the top, but just a ridge on the way to the final destination.

I learned at a young age that a “false summit” was a very real thing … and a very real reason for disappointment.

A crude, if accurate, depiction of a false summit … 

If you have been a CU fan for the past decade or so, or even for the past year or so, you know where I am going with this.

A potential false summit was faced by the Buff Nation at halftime of the Arizona game, and another stares us in the face, even after such a huge win.

The 34-7 victory by the Buffs, who were a three-point underdog, was as magnificent as it was enjoyable.

How big a deal was the win?

Coupled with the 48-21 win over Central Florida (a game in which the Buffs were double-digit underdog), Colorado has now won back-to-back road games by 27-plus points for the first time in 37 years, since 1987 when the Buffs beat Iowa State 42-10 and Kansas State 41-0.

Want more? CU is the first Big 12 team to accomplish back-to-back road wins by 27 or more points since Oklahoma pulled the trick … in 2015.  The Buffs have also won three straight road games for the first time since the end of the 2001 and start of the 2002 seasons.

But if you weren’t nervous at halftime, even with the Buffs ahead, 28-7, you haven’t been a Buff fan for long, or at least have a very short memory.

Almost exactly a year ago, CU, in its first season under Coach Prime, was also 4-2. The Buffs were playing at home against 1-4 Stanford. An easy win would give CU a 5-2 record, with a clear path to a winning season and a bowl bid.

When CU raced out to a 29-0 halftime lead, Buff fans were checking bowl dates, discussing travel plans for the holidays.

Instead, the fifth victory, so clearly in view, proved to be a false summit. The Cardinal raced back from a four-touchdown deficit, ultimately beating the Buffs in overtime, 46-43.

A 4-2 record, so close to being 5-2, turned into 4-3, which turned into 4-4, then 4-5 … with CU ultimately finishing with a six-game losing streak to close out a 4-8 campaign.

So, when the Buffs raced out to a 28-7 halftime lead against Arizona, you could be forgiven for having a sense of deja vu.

Would the Buffs again succumb? Would Arizona find its way back into the game, and give the Buff Nation an ulcer, wondering if the 2023 collapse would be repeated in 2024?

Apparently, the CU coaching staff also remembered the Stanford game.

“We were in a similar situation to this last year and we got our butts kicked in the second half,” Coach Prime said after the Arizona game. “We harped on them that we got to finish, finish, finish.”

And finish they did.

The offense came to play. The Buffs scored touchdowns on four of their six first half possessions, with the other two possessions ending in a fumble at the Arizona 22-yard line and an interception at the Arizona 25-yard line. The much maligned offensive line allowed only one sack (on the second play of the game), and paved the way for 148 rushing yards.

The defense also came to play. That would be a defense that recorded seven sacks against a team that had given up just six in the previous six games combined. That would be a defense that held Arizona to just 3-for-11 on third-down conversion attempts, and just 245 yards of total offense. A defense that made Arizona star receiver Tetairoa McMillan a non-factor, limiting him to just 38 yards on five catches (even with CU star cornerback Travis Hunter kept out of the game in the second half for precautionary reasons).

One false summit cleared.

The Buffs are now 5-2, with a 3-1 record in Big 12 play. With no ranked teams on the horizon, and three home games in the final five contests, a winning season and a bowl bid seem to be all but assured.

But, it says here … beware of false summits.

I’ve said it before, but until win No. 6 becomes a reality, it bears repeating … we’ve had false summits in our sights before:

• Colorado was 5-4 in 2017, with three chances in November to pick up a sixth win and extend the momentum of the 10-4 2016 season … but the Buffs lost all three games;
• Colorado was 5-0 and nationally ranked in 2018, but somehow managed to lose its next seven games to miss out on a bowl, including an inexplicable 41-34 overtime loss at home to Oregon State, in a game in which the Buffs led, 31-3, in the third quarter;
• Colorado was 5-6 in 2019, and was riding the momentum of a two-game winning streak into the regular season finale against Utah … and lost 45-15.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m liking CU’s chances. Last season, the Buffs last five games included three straight game against ranked opponents, with the Buffs finishing on the road against Washington State and Utah … two venues which were houses of horrors for Buff teams as members of the Pac-12.

This year, the final five represent a much easier path to success … at least on paper.

CU’s next opponent is Cincinnati, which is also 5-2, 3-1 in Big 12 play. The Bearcats will come to Boulder having just knocked off 5-1 Arizona State (albeit with the Sun Devils playing without their starting quarterback). After a bye, the buffs are on the road against Texas Tech (which was 5-1 until Saturday, when the Red Raiders were mauled at home by Baylor, 59-35), at home against a Cam Rising-less Utah, on the road (at Arrowhead Stadium) against a 2-5 Kansas team, and finish at home against an Oklahoma State team which is currently 0-4 in Big 12 play.

There will be much speculation in the coming week about CU’s upcoming schedule, and the Buffs’ chances at not only a winning season, but competing for a Big 12 title game berth.

Resist the temptation. Until the Buffs get to six wins and a bowl berth, nothing is guaranteed.

Remember 2017, 2018, 2019, and last season.

Yes, this team has more talent and greater depth than any Buff team since 2016, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

In Hoosiers, Gene Hackman gives a great speech (see below) before Hickory takes the court for the state semi-finals:

“There’s a tradition in tournament play to not talk about the next step until you’ve climbed the one in front of you. I’m sure going to the state finals is beyond you wildest dreams, so let’s just keep it right there.”

The Buffs, and their fans, would be well advised to take that advice.

Let’s not talk eight or nine wins for these Buffs. Let’s not talk about bowl opportunities or Big 12 title berths.

For many of us, for much of the past two decades, such talk has been beyond our wildest dreams, so let’s just keep it right there.

For now, the only goal for the Buffs and the Buff Nation is to get Win No. 6, to get the bowl bid for Peggy before she turn 100 in mid-November.

Beware false summits.

Let’s make sure we make it to the top before we celebrate.

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This post, about the Arizona game, from the 2024 Season, is filed under Article.
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