If you squint really hard, I mean really, really hard, you can find some positive numbers coming out of CU’s 55-23 humbling loss to No. 20 Texas in the 2020 Alamo Bowl.
After spotting the Longhorns an early 14-0 lead, the Buffs actually controlled the game for the final 20 minutes of the first half. The Colorado defense, tasked with slowing down four-year starting quarterback Sam Ehlinger, did just that. The final six drives of the first half for Texas went like this:
Three plays, minus -1 yards … Punt;
Four plays, four yards … Missed field goal (after CU gave Texas the ball at the Buff 32-yard line after an interception);
Three plays, minus -2 yards … Punt;
Three plays, 7 yards … Punt;
Six plays, 58 yards … Field goal; and
One play, 6 yards … End of half.
The Buff defense, playing without four starters, (Brian Howell of the Daily Camera tweeted out that he counted 49 scholarship players suited for the game, including seven players who had never played in a game in 2020) did give the offense a chance to make a game of it, but the offense struggled mightily under starter Sam Noyer. Backup Brendon Lewis came in to direct CU’s lone scoring drive of the first half, keeping the game close, at 17-10, at halftime.
Sam Ehlinger did not play in the second half, handing over the reins to backup Casey Thompson. Based on how the Buff defense had played in the second quarter, there was hope for an upset.
Not so much.
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