Deion Sanders and Colorado need to ‘shake it out’ to finish the season

Your correspondent was sitting at the Kansas City airport the day before, waiting to fly back to Denver, and witnessed the Jayhawks’ rout of the Buffaloes. Dominant is one way of putting it. This old Denver TV sportsman is quite active on social media. Buffs fans love to talk about their beloved bison.

The conversation turned to how confusing it was, considering the opportunity Coach Prime’s team had to truly create a season to remember: Winning impressively opens the door to winning the Big 12 championship, to rise in the play-off rankings and secure a first-round bye. . For a program that won one game two years ago, four last season, and now the talk is college football?

Wow. Scenarios like this don’t happen often. The Buffs controlled their fate and rolled onto their bellies as they were battered. Kansas has NEVER made a run in the game. Scored every time it tried. The approach was terrible. Especially Shilo Sanders, who was taken for a ride a few times and couldn’t finish. Kansas controlled the clock and grounded Colorado’s rushing attack.

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One winning Jayhawk said after the game. “We (KU)) just had more intensity from the start.” What? Colorado came into the game against Kansas in Missouri with EVERYTHING to play for and didn’t bother to bring the necessary intensity? What’s going on here?

My thoughts go to Gerry DiNardo. The 72-year-old analyst is now a television studio analyst and was offensive coordinator under McCartney, including the 1990 national championship. The attractive man went on to coach Vanderbilt, LSU and Indiana. He is a respected voice in college football. DiNardo, long ago an All American at Notre Dame, like most people, has an opinion on the current state of college football with the NIL money and transfer portal. “One of the hardest things for head coaches today will be building the sustainable culture necessary to seize the right opportunities when the big moment comes.”

No one has used the transfer portal better than the University of Colorado since Coach Prime emerged two years ago. It has brought a lot more talent to the base of the Flatirons and a lot more spectators to Folsom Field. No question. But what was there in the disappointing loss? How will a transfer-driven team emerge in the big games?

This was a big game. The Buffs seemed lethargic from the start. I remember commenting to the people in the press box about players being substituted in defence. Most jogged indifferently along the sidelines. There was no fire in the Buffs’ bellies. In a game of this magnitude? A head scratcher.

It’s going to be a new twist in college football. Experience in big games is invaluable. Colorado and most other major programs will, quite dramatically, transfer their rosters every year. It will be a real challenge to predict how all these annual newcomers will work together when it’s time to shine.

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Sanders after the game. “We learned how great we are and didn’t come out and play football in Colorado.” Amen coach. Now the question arises: “How will the Buffs respond?”

Oklahoma State has been a mess all year. Disappointing season. Trust me, there’s nothing Cowboys head coach Mike Gundy would love more than throwing more wet blankets on Colorado’s feel-good story of newfound relevance. Gundy is not a big fan of the “Prime” earthquake and its fundamental upheaval in the college football world.

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Without a doubt, the Buffs still have a lot of playing to do moving forward. But they had an open gate through which they could charge and continue to grow together and play well when the stakes were high. While the defense is leading, the gate is closed. They fell far short. The season finale and then a bowl game Prime promised to superfan Peggy Coppom? While they wonder how the Buffs will respond to disappointment, that might be a good rallying cry to finish strong with two wins and finish 10-3.

“Let’s make Peggy proud.” Who knows, maybe that will ease the pain of Arrowhead being left behind for Colorado’s big dream season.