No. 23 CU 52, Oklahoma State 0

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November 29th – Boulder            No. 23 Colorado 52, Oklahoma State 0

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The Buffs responded to their humbling 37-21 loss to Kansas the weekend before with a 52-0 rout of Oklahoma State. In their final games at Folsom Field, quarterback Shedeur Sanders and wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter went out in style. Sanders went 34-for-41 for 438 yards and five touchdowns, with three of those scoring passes going to Hunter. Hunter polished off his Heisman trophy campaign with ten catches for 116 yards, together with an interception on the game’s first drive, setting the tone for the rout.

The Colorado defense was dominant from start to finish. Oklahoma State limped to a 3-9, 0-9 finish with 147 yards of total offense. The Cowboys had all of 61 yards of total offense before the game’s final drive. The Cowboys held the ball for final 8:54 of the fourth quarter, running 16 plays, but still failed to score. CU backup defenders gave ground, but made two stops inside the ten-yard line in the final minute to preserve the shutout.

LaJohntay Wester had his best game of the season, with 11 catches for 175 yards and two touchdowns. The Buff offense struggled during the second quarter, with the Buffs finishing the first two quarters with 179 yards, including 19 carries for 8 yards, thanks to five sacks of Shedeur Sanders (most were on Sanders, not on the offensive line). The offense had their way with the Oklahoma State defense in the second half, finishing with 471 yards of total offense.

“That was a phenomenal finish defensively,” Coach Prime said. “That’s indicative of who we are in how we play the game of football.  Both coordinators, Rob (Livingston) and Pat Shurmur, these guys are so darn good. They’ve been so consistent through the year. They’ve exceeded all expectations. We’ve exceeded all expectations, and I’m really happy where we are. We certainly wanted to take that one extra step last week, and we fell short. But look how we rebounded. Look how we wiped our tears and got back up, got on the horse and yelled, giddy up. And I’m proud of our young men.”

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Game Story … With the bad taste of the 37-21 loss to Kansas still fresh in their mouths, the Buffs couldn’t have wished for a better start to the game against Oklahoma State. The Cowboys lost yardage on the first play, OSU quarterback Maealiuaki Smith was sacked by Arden Walker on second down, with Travis Hunter intercepting Smith on third down.

Taking over at the Oklahoma State 24-yard line, the Buffs quickly scored. A 14-yard pass from quarterback Shedeur Sanders to Will Sheppard was followed by two runs by running back Micah Welch, the second being a one-yard scoring run. Three minutes into the game, the Buffs were ahead to stay, 7-0.

After the CU defense forced another three-and-out, the Buff offense took over at their 35-yard line. Some 11 penalty-filled plays later, the Buffs were on the board again. The drive started out conventionally, with passes of eight yards and six yards from Sanders to LaJohntay Wester helping to move the ball near midfield, with a 17-yard run by Sanders giving CU a first down at the OSU 27. A sack and a holding penalty left the Buffs with a third-and-26, but the Cowboys bailed the Buffs out with a defensive holding penalty. Sanders was then sacked again … and was then bailed out again by a defensive holding penalty. Finally, on third down at the ten, Sanders hit LaJohntay Wester for a score. Colorado 14, Oklahoma State 0.

Two plays later, the Buffs had the ball right back. An eight-yard completion from Maealiuaki Smith to Brennan Presley turned into a fumble, forced by Carter Stoutmire and recovered by Shilo Sanders at the Oklahoma State 28-yard line.

A little over a minute of game clock later, the Buffs were on the board again. A 15-yard completion from Sanders to Drelon Miller put the Buffs in the red zone, with Sanders then connecting with Travis Hunter for an 11-yard touchdown. With two minutes still remaining in the first quarter, the rout was on. 21-0, Colorado.

The remainder of the first half was a slog, with neither team willing – or apparently able – to generate any offense.

The drives of the second quarter:

• OSU – five plays, 12 yards, punt … with the Cowboys picking up their first first down of the game late in the first quarter;
• CU – four plays, 25 yards, punt … with the Buffs’ only first down coming on a personal foul;
• OSU – three plays, four yards, punt;
• CU – three plays, one yard, punt;
• OSU – three plays, minus-two yards; punt, including a sack of Smith by Keaten Wade and Chidozie Nwankwo;
• CU – three plays, minus-15 yards; punt, including a sack of Shedeur Sanders;
• OSU – three plays, three yards, punt;
• CU – seven plays, 27 yards, turnover on downs. This drive actually included a chunk play, with Sanders completing a 39 yards to wide receiver Isaiah Hardge to the OSU ten-yard line. With a first-and-goal at the ten, the Buffs went … sack of Shedeur; sack of Shedeur; sack of Shedeur … with an incompletion pass on fourth-and-goal from the OSU 34-yard line;
• OSU – three plays, minus-nine yards; punt;
• CU – three plays; three yards; punt;
• OSU – three plays, minus-two yards, punt; and
• CU – four plays, 50 yards, with the Buffs getting big gains in the final 20 seconds of the half, including a 12-yard run by Micah Welch an 11-yard run by Charlie Offerdahl … to get CU out of negative yards rushing for the half.

— Second quarter stats, Oklahoma State: five full possessions; 15 plays; minus-11 total yards;

— Second quarter stats, Colorado: five possessions; 20 plays; 76 yards (50 coming in the final 20 seconds).

Yikes.

Halftime score: No. 23 Colorado 21, Oklahoma State 0

With a forgettable second quarter in the books, the Buffs came out in the second half to take care of business and put the game away. On CU’s first possession, the Buff offense faced a third-and-four, and the potential of yet another three-and-out. Instead of turning the ball over, quarterback Shedeur Sanders hit LaJohntay Wester for 69-yard touchdown. Less than a minute into the second half, CU was on the board again. Colorado 28, Oklahoma State 0.

Oklahoma State’s offense opened the second half the same way it did the first … with a turnover. After running back Ollie Gordon (who was inexplicably not used during the game, with only two carries for two yards in the first half) picked up a first down with a seven-yard run, a fumbled snap by quarterback Maealiuaki Smith was recovered by defensive tackle Chidozie Nwankwo, with the Buffs taking over at the Oklahoma State 20-yard line.

Two runs by Isaiah Hardge, going for eight yards, and two passes from Shedeur Sanders to Travis Hunter, the first for nine yards and a first-and-goal, the second going for eight yards and a touchdown, made the game officially a rout. Less than five minutes into the second half, the game was over – Colorado 35, Oklahoma State 0.

The Cowboys did manage to push the ball into CU territory for the first time all afternoon on its next possession, but an incomplete pass on fourth-and-one at the Buff 43-yard line turned the ball over on downs.

CU’s ensuing drive opened well … a 12-yard pass from Sanders to running back Micah Welch … a 12-yard run by Welch … a 14-yard completion to Will Sheppard … and a 13-yard completion to Travis Hunter. Set up with a first-and-goal at the OSU six-yard line, the Buffs went backwards, with an offensive pass interference penalty and another sack of Shedeur Sanders forcing a field goal attempt. Kicker Alejandro Mata was good, connecting from 33 yards out, making it 38-0 game late in the third quarter.

After the Buff defense forced its eighth three-and-out of the game, the CU offense again marched easily down the field. Two completions from Sanders to Wester, for 12 and 33 yards, put the ball in the red zone, but, on the final play of the third quarter, a Sanders offering was tipped, intercepted by OSU linebacker Jeff Roberson at the Cowboy eight-yard line.

No matter. On second down of OSU’s possession, Cowboy quarterback Maealiuaki Smith was intercepted by cornerback DJ McKinney, with the former Cowboy returning the pick 13 yards for another Colorado touchdown. CU 45, Oklahoma State 0.

Oklahoma State brought in seventh year (and early season starter) quarterback Alan Bowman for OSU’s next drive, but Bowman was sacked by BJ Green, with the Buff defense picking up another three-and-out.

On their final drive of their careers at Folsom Field, Sanders and Hunter were again unstoppable. A 31-yard completion from Sanders-to-Hunter was followed shortly thereafter by a 23-yard touchdown, with Sanders throwing his fourth touchdown pass of the game, with Hunter picking up touchdown No. 3.

After the backups for both teams traded three-and-outs, the Oklahoma State offense took over at its nine-yard line with 8:46 left to play in the game. Quarterback Alan Bowman led the Cowboys on a 16-play, 86-yard drive, doubling OSU’s offensive production for the day, but the Cowboys were again unable to score. OSU ran four plays in the CU red zone in the final minutes, but were stopped for no gain on a run at the CU five yard line as time expired.

Final score: No. 23 Colorado 52, Oklahoma State 0

“That’s what the plan was last week, to jump on them early, to try to make them understand who we are and who they are,” Coach Prime said of the rout. “It didn’t happen that way. We made note of that, and we focused on that all through the meetings, as well as all through practice sessions and our pregame speech. We made note of all that so that we could have our business early on, because when we score early and the defense gord three and out, then it’s hard to deal with us.”

The game was the last for two dozen seniors, most of whom had been around for both of the first two years of the Coach Prime era, turning a 1-11 program into a 9-3 team with a bright future.

“They’re the ones who changed the game for us”, Coach Prime said of his seniors. “They’re the ones that impacted this wonderful learning institution. They’re the ones that are responsible for the recruits that you’re seeing commit. They’re the ones that are responsible for the way that game was played, the way it panned out. They’re the ones who put us on the map. They’re the ones who have the multitude of these camera men and women and wonderful reporters in this room right now, and I just told them that to their face. So some of them, like Cam, that’s been with me since he was a junior in high school, that stuff is tough, just talking with him here and there. BJ played for me when he was seven and eight years old in Dallas, and I could just keep going on and on and on. Shoot, I don’t want to think about it too much, because I get emotional. But I don’t just coach these young men. I love these young men like their family, and I just want to I just want them to soar, not just from the football aspect, but as young men in life.”

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Game Notes … 

— The win gave the Buffs a 25-20-1 lead in the all-time series against Oklahoma State (14-8 in games played in Boulder);

— It was CU’s first shutout since beating Arizona 34-0 on October 16, 2021.  It was CU’s largest shutout win since a 58-0 win over Minnesota on Sept. 21, 1991 the largest win since a 52-point win over Northeast Louisiana (66-14) on September 16, 1995, and the CU’s largest conference win since defeating Kansas State 64-3 on Nov. 17, 1990;

— Colorado’s largest margins of victory in a conference game since 1940 … 61: 64-3 vs. Kansas State, Nov. 17, 1990 52: 52-0 vs. Iowa State, Oct. 20, 1956 52: 52-0 vs. Oklahoma State, 2024;

— Colorado had six double-digit wins in conference play in 2024. It tied the school record and was just the fourth time CU had done that (also in 1989, 1994 and 2001);

— CU clinched at least a share of the Big 12 Regular Season Championship (the league doesn’t recognize regular season champions since the return of the championship game in 2017), but it is still the first time CU accomplished a non-divisional regular season title since 1991;

— CU finished with a 9-3 regular season record, the 15th time in school history with nine-plus wins, the first time since 2016 and just the second times in the last 22 seasons. CU also finished with a 7-2 league record, the eighth time CU has won 7-plus conference games, also first since 2016 and just the second time in the last 22 seasons;

— Going from 4-8 last year to 9-3 (to date), marked just the 7th time in Colorado football history, going back to the 1890s, that the program had seen a year-over-year improvement of at least five wins.

— Travis Hunter …

— 10 receptions, 116 yards, three touchdowns, one interception against Oklahoma State. Hunter played 112 snaps in the game, with 68 Offensive, 46 Defensive – sitting out much of the fourth quarter after his third touchdown.

— Hunter became the first player with three touchdowns and an interception in a game since at least 1996 in college football.  The Oklahoma State game was the fourth of the 2024 season scoring a touchdown and collecting an interception;

— Hunter’s three touchdown receptions tied the school record set six times previously, including once himself, bookending the regular season after having three against North Dakota State.  Hunter became the first player in CU history to have three receiving touchdowns in a game twice in a season;

— The 116 yards receiving marked Hunter’s seventh 100-yard receiving game of the season, already the school record, and  the 10th of his career, third most in CU history. The Oklahoma State game was his fifth multi-receiving touchdown game of the season, already the school record and sixth of his career, matching the CU career record;

— Hunter’s regular season numbers: 92 receptions for 1,152 yards and 14 touchdowns, 15 total touchdowns, four interceptions, 11 pass breakups. His 14 touchdown receptions set a new CU record by two, breaking Nelson Spruce’s school record of 12 set in 2014. Hunter’s 15 total touchdowns, coming on an average of 19.2 yards per touchdown on the season, set a new CU record with a minimum of 15 touchdowns scored. The 92 receptions was the second-most in school history behind Spruce’s total of 106, also in 2014. His 1,152 yards receiving was the fifth most in school history;

— Travis Hunter (92) and LaJohntay Wester (70) combined for 162 catches for the season, the most by a duo in Colorado history;

— At the conclusion of the game, Hunter was presented with the Buffalo Heart Award.

Shedeur Sanders …

— 34-of-41, 82.9%, for 438 yards, five touchdowns, one interceptions, his fourth 400-yard passing game of his career, second of the 2024 season. It was also his seventh career 300-yard passing game, already a CU record, and the 12th of his CU career;

— Sanders went over 80% passing for the fourth time in 2024, his eighth game over 70% and 12th over 60% … all CU records;

— Sanders set a new single season record for passing yards, with 3,936, passing the record of 3,527 set by Koy Detmer in 1996. He also set a new record for completions, with 338, passing the record of 325 set by Sefo Liufau in 2014.

— More single season records for Sanders … passing touchdowns (35) and touchdowns responsible for (39). His completion percentage of 74.4% broke his own single season record of 69.3%, set in 2023;

— Before the game, it was announced that Sanders was named the recipient of the 2024 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, presented by AO Smith, given to the nation’s top quarterback who best exemplifies character, scholastic and athletic achievement, the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation.

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Colorado vs Oklahoma State pic.twitter.com/qwtnkjJ0cX

— Colorado Buffaloes Football (@CUBuffsFootball) December 4, 2024

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