Travis Hunter, left, and Jimmy Horn Jr. celebrate Hunter making a touchdown during the University of Colorado vs. North Dakota State game at Folsom Field on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. (Clementine Miller/CU Independent)
Saturday, The University of Colorado beat the University of Central Florida 48-21 in a face-off that had the Buffs walking away with their largest win of the Deion Sanders era.
Going into the game, doubts about the Buffaloes ability to face off with the number one ranked rushing offense in the nation led to the pregame line favoring UCF by 13.5 points. This, on top of the hurricane weather conditions, gave UCF an advantage and Colorado seemed to be walking into a lost cause.
The first possession of the game saw UCF’s Deshawn Pace intercept a pass from quarterback Shedeur Sanders on 3rd and 20. But the favor was quickly returned by Colorado. Cornerback Preston Hodge intercepted UCF KJ Jefferson in the endzone. Even with no points on the scoreboard, UCF fans were hit with the realization that Colorado wasn’t going down without a fight.
The back-and-forth between the teams didn’t seem to be settling anytime soon after 3 back to back point scoring possessions. Colorado took their opportunity to be the first on the board, after a drive that led to a passing touchdown by Travis Hunter. The celebrations were cut short by a 75 yard touchdown pass to UCF’s RJ Harvey. This brought the score to 7-7.
The next possession for Colorado started with penalties and runs being stopped before the line of scrimmage until completions to Will Sheppard and Jimmy Horn Jr. gave the Buffs enough momentum for an 8 play, 75+ yard drive that ended with a throw on third and 15 to Sheppard into the end zone.
Without time to respond within the first quarter, UCF aimed to re-even the score, but were unsuccessful in the first drive of quarter 2. Although UCF seemed to be struggling to build any momentum, Colorado was showing them exactly what the Buffs were capable of with another 15 yard rushing touchdown by Dallan Hayden.
The next possession for the Knights was one of triumph for the team, keeping them in the race for victory. After an explosive display of ability for RJ Harvey, UCF scored a touchdown by their quarterback KJ Jefferson- leaving the score 21-14, with the Buffs leading.
The next 3 drives were uneventful and Colorado eventually broke the drought with a 36 yard field goal. UCF continued to struggle to make plays before the end of the half, and after a Taje McCoy sack and another 46 yard field goal for the Colorado Buffs, the halftime score was 27-14 with CU dominating.
The highlight reel of the game continued for the 3rd quarter. UCF moved the ball on the first possession of the ball, but were cut short and missed a 55 yard field goal. With the chance to improve their lead, a chippy and controversial play to Will Sheppard, left the Buffs with a first down at the 1 yard line, which was followed by a rushing touchdown by freshman Micah Welch.
The Colorado offense, however, was not alone in their domination during this game; with a promising start to UCF’s possession being short lived after an impossible interception by Travis Hunter, who followed the electrifying play with the Heisman Trophy pose, signifying his well-deserved contention for the prestigious award.
UCF, however, was not out of the fight yet. Their next drive ended in a much-needed touchdown for UCF, bringing the game to a 13 point difference with Colorado leading 34-21 against a rallying UCF team. Colorado running back Isaiah Augustave started showing up for the Buffs in the next drive, running the ball for two first downs back-to-back.
With the help of Sander’s first down run and a rush at first and Goal, LaJohntay Wester made another mark on the field with a touchdown for the Buffs, widening the lead gap to 41-21. The quarter ended with another interception for the UCF Knights and their hopes of pulling off a win were fleeting with the final quarter approaching.
The fourth quarter started rocky for the Buffs: a sack on Shedeur Sanders was followed by a sack on KJ Jefferson. Then, a run by the Knights stopped at the 1 yard line in another matchup between RJ Harvey and Travis Hunter.
Both teams seemed to be struggling to make any moves on the field, but Colorado’s Cam’Rom Silmon-Craig managed to recover a fumble by KJ Jefferson, and turned the pick into a touchdown for the Buffs, improving the lead to 48-21. With UCF out of time to overcome the 27-point deficit, the game was over, resulting in a dramatic upset victory for Colorado.
After the game Shedeur Sanders went live on instagram with Travis Hunter joining in on the streamed celebration.
“We gotta keep working, we’re grinding man, don’t let them tell you what you can’t do, keep going,” Hunter said.
This game is just one example of the mental grit of the Buffs, with the one consensus being that their work isn’t finished yet and their bye week will be spent both celebrating and continuing the season’s 4-1 success.
Echoing the sentiments from Hunter, Coach Deion Sanders praised all aspects of the team’s performance.
“We protected, and we were able to run the ball, we were able to stop the run on several occasions… but this is one of the first times that offensively, defensively, as well as special teams we came all at the same time, collectively,” Sanders said.
The Buffs are going into their bye week victorious and fired up. The pieces of the team that have lacked are coming together on both sides of the ball. They will return October 12 to play Kansas State at Folsom Field.
Contact CU Independent staff writer Julie Torten Rabinowitz at julie.tortenrabinowitz@colorado.edu
