Deion Sanders walks off the field in Colorado’s 53-7 blowout loss to Utah at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025. (Tyler Phillips/CU Independent)
The Colorado Buffaloes football team plays at Folsom Field for the final time in 2025, taking on the No. 25 Arizona State Sun Devils. Colorado’s disappointing 3–7 campaign has been marked by quarterback inconsistency, with three quarterbacks earning starts through the first 10 games.
The hope is that freshman Julian “JuJu” Lewis’ strong performance against West Virginia two weeks ago, in which he threw for 299 yards and a touchdown in his first collegiate start, signals what’s ahead. Lewis looked poised throughout his debut and grew more comfortable as the game progressed, leading touchdown drives in the second and third quarters and connecting with Omarion Miller for 131 receiving yards, the star receiver’s best game of the season. Despite the loss to West Virginia, the potential return of key offensive linemen against Arizona State could set the stage for an even stronger outing from the freshman this weekend.
“Winning, quarterback developing, offensive line doing their job, defense standing stout. Not only do you want to win, but you’re evaluating,” said head coach Deion Sanders in response to how he envisions finishing the season strong.
The Sun Devils returned to the AP top 25 this week after winning consecutive games without star quarterback Sam Leavitt. In Leavitt’s absence, backup quarterback Jeff Sims, playing in his sixth year of college football at his third different school has been a revelation. Against Iowa State two weeks ago, Sims passed for 177 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 229 yards on 29 carries for two more touchdowns. Then, against West Virginia last week, Sims led the Sun Devils to a second straight victory off his 287 total yards and three touchdown passes.
Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham had high praise for Sims during his press conference this week. “I said, I think it was last, 18 months ago, that I think our team has two NFL quarterbacks. And I think some people laughed at me or thought I was a little bit crazy. Still believe that.” Dillingham said.
Buffs fans might remember Sims from when he started for the University of Nebraska two seasons ago on Sept. 9, 2023, when the Cornhuskers lost to Colorado at Folsom Field, 36-14, and Sims was held to just 106 passing yards. The sixth year senior quarterback, Sims, will collide head-to-head with the freshman signal caller, Lewis, on Saturday.
Storylines to watch for on Saturday:
Key players for both teams coming off the injury report- Against West Virginia, the Colorado offensive line allowed seven sacks, greatly hurting the Buffs’ offensive output down the stretch. On the bright side, both star left tackle Jordan Seaton and right tackle Larry Johnson III missed the West Virginia game due to minor injuries and have been upgraded to questionable on Colorado’s injury report. Seaton and Johnson have been the backbone of a much-improved Colorado offensive line in 2025 and having the duo back would help secure the Colorado pass protection.
On the Arizona State side, the Sun Devils upgraded receiver Jordyn Tyson to questionable for the game Saturday, after he missed the past three games due to a hamstring injury. Before going down, Tyson led Arizona State with 628 receiving yards and eight touchdowns through seven games. The receiver is expected to be picked in the first round of the NFL draft next spring and would be a huge boost to the Sun Devils’ offense if available.
Tyson began his career at Colorado, where he produced 470 receiving yards and four touchdowns as a freshman in 2022, before transferring to Arizona State.
Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver, Dre’Lon Miller, playing in the game against the University of Arizona at Folsom Field on Saturday, Nov. 1st, 2025. (Aspen Doust/CU Independent)
Dre’Lon Miller finishing the season strong– Two weeks ago, do-it-all wide receiver–running back combo Dre’Lon Miller saw a season high in touches with 14, including four receptions and 10 rushes, against West Virginia. Miller’s combined yardage output of 79 tied his previous season high from the Buffs’ game against Brigham Young University. Miller, a sophomore and former four-star recruit, had high expectations coming into the season after a strong freshman campaign despite limited playing time. In a feature role this season, Miller has been largely disappointing, having yet to match his yardage total of 287 from his freshman season.
Now that Julian Lewis has proven to be capable of leading a potent offense, Miller has the capacity to fill two potential roles within the Buffs’ offense. As a strong after-the-catch runner, Miller fits in well as a slot receiver to support outside receivers Omarion Miller and Joseph Williams. Additionally, Miller can bolster the Colorado running back room, which has no clear front-runner despite ample opportunities given to Micah Welch and Dallan Hayden to establish themselves. After leading the Buffs in rushing yards last week and still contributing to the passing attack, expect Miller to operate within an expanded workload on Saturday.
Colorado will take on Arizona State at Folsom Field at 6 p.m. MT on Saturday, Nov. 22. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN2.
Contact CU Independent Sports Editor Charlie Hewitt at charles.hewitt@colorado.edu.
