Nov. 14th – at Stanford – “We’re Still Learning”

For the second consecutive week, the Buffs built a large lead, only to have to hold on for dear life in the final minutes, defeating Stanford in Palo Alto, 35-32. Three consecutive touchdown drives by the CU offense built a 35-16 lead in the first minute of the fourth quarter, but the Cardinal posted two touchdowns – and two two-point conversions – in the fourth quarter to make it close.

Quarterback Sam Noyer had another strong outing, passing for 255 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for 36 yards and two more scores. Running back Jarek Broussard had his second consecutive 100-yard game, with 27 carries for 121 yards. The receivers were led by Dimitri Stanley, who had six catches for 126 yards and a touchdown.

The Colorado offense was dominant … until the fourth quarter. Finishing with 432 yards of total offense (to 397 for Stanford), the Buffs were out-gained in the fourth quarter, to 155 yards to 29.

“This team is learning how to play in difficult circumstances,” said CU head coach Karl Dorrell, who improved to 2-0 at Colorado. “That can be a great experience for them to continue to build on so that when we’re in a championship type of game, we can say we’ve been there, we know how to gut it out and find a way to win.”

Just outside the field of play in Stanford Stadium, a little history was made on Saturday.

Along the sidelines, Stanford head coach David Shaw faced off against Colorado head coach Karl Dorrell. With the hiring of Dorrell, the University of Colorado joined Stanford as the only Pac-12 coaches to have had three African-American head coaches (Stanford: Dennis Green; Tyrone Whittingham; David Shaw … Colorado: Jon Embree; Mel Tucker; Karl Dorrell).

Inside the lines, the Buffs made a little bit of history themselves, holding on for a 35-32 victory over the Cardinal.

USC needs a last minute score to defeat Arizona, 34-30 … CU’s game against Arizona State already in doubt: “This is bad. Really, really bad” … Herm Edwards tests positive … **With Cal at Arizona State and Utah at UCLA canceled; Pac-12 schedules Cal at UCLA for Sunday** …

CU at Stanford: What you Need To Know … Dorrell: “I think they should feel confident that they can win and win a lot of games” … With starters reinstated, Stanford now favored by nine over CU … Neill Woelk’s Five Keys to the Game … No fans to be allowed to CU’s remaining home games …

Stanford must know: Why the Tree? … CU No. 2 in the nation in scoring; No. 1 in turnover margin … CU uniform combo lucky (last time used in Lincoln) … Memory lane: video highlights of Laviska’s 4th-down run v. Stanford last season …

The Buffs don’t know which of three Cardinal quarterbacks will start … The Stanford defense held up well against Oregon (for a half) … The kicking game (and CU’s red zone defense, forcing field goal attempts), could be the key stat to track on Saturday …

Stanford has lost five straight games, dating back to its loss to CU last November … Who will the Cardinal start at QB? Will a ground attack work against a (usually) strong Cardinal defense? … And, most importantly, who will win the game Saturday (1:30 p.m., MT, ESPN2) …