In the face of adversity, Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes didn’t flinch. They punched back.
For the first time in a long time, the Buffs (1-0) were able to out-physical a team in the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (0-1) on the road by a score of 14-13. A game with plenty of mistakes from both sides ultimately ended with Colorado making plays when they needed to.
“We beat a really, really good team and a really, really good coaching staff,” Sanders said. “But our guys were resilient. I'm proud of them.”
While it was a low-scoring affair in Atlanta, the final two minutes of action made up for the sloppy play earlier in the game. After the Yellow Jackets kicked a field goal to go up 13-7, with 1:40 left to play, it seemed the Buffs had missed their opportunity for a victory.
Yet, with no timeouts and 75 yards to go, quarterback Julian “Juju” Lewis led the Buffs downfield in the two-minute drill, doubling his passing yards on the night. Making it to the red zone with time ticking down, he connected with tight end Charlie Williams along the left sideline for the go-ahead score.
With the Buffs leading 14-13 with under 40 seconds left, all they needed was a defensive stop. However, Georgia Tech QB Alberto Mendoza had a different idea. Poised and in control, he would throw a 35-yard dart down the middle to help set up the Yellow Jackets in field goal range.
GT drained out the clock, took their final timeout, and sent out Aidan Birr for the potential game-winner.
In that moment, Colorado needed someone to make a play. Defensive back Boo Carter answered a prayer, jumped the snap count perfectly and came screaming off the edge, untouched, to block the kick.
“I had to dive for the for the second one because the first one, I ain't dive, I tipped it,” Carter said. “I just had to die for this one, perfect timing.”
With no time left, players rushed to the end zone to celebrate and rub in the loss to GT’s student section. CU never gave up.
While the ending sequence is where the bulk of the action occurred, there were still plenty of notable stats from throughout the game that shaped the outcome.
Colorado quarterback Julian Lewis struggled to move the ball through the air up until the final drive. He finished 14/27 for 124 yards and a touchdown pass.
Although he was rusty in his homecoming to Georgia, the final drive left plenty of optimism for Coach Prime and the offense.
“The kid is still young, man. He's still growing,” Sanders said. “That's why I don't get up here and clap with my feet and my hands, because I want you guys to give him time.”
Even with a poor passing game, the Buffs were able to move the ball.
Colorado totaled 183 rushing yards in Brennan Marion’s play-calling debut, which is the second-highest rushing total in the Coach Prime era at CU. The run-first mindset that was conveyed throughout camp was alive in full force, and the offensive line took over the game.
Colorado had five running backs touch the ball: Micah Welch (60 yards, one rushing TD), Damian Henderson Jr (65), JaQuil Smith (42), DeKalon Taylor (24) and Richard Young (10).
Defensively, the Buffaloes did everything right to keep them alive in the matchup. Coordinator Chris Marge dialed up the pressure in his first game back as a playcaller and put his unit in positions to succeed.
Colorado was able to limit Mendoza, but not stop him from completing 17-of-23 passes for 237 yards. Notably, they didn’t give up a touchdown on defense, keeping the Buffs within one score all night.
Most impressively, CU dominated in the trenches against a team that outplayed them a year ago. GT’s rushing attack of Justice Haynes and Malachi Hosley was kept to just 51 yards rushing on the night.
GT’s running game had 320 yards and three touchdowns against the Buffs a year ago, showing drastic improvement in the run defense. On the interior, Dylan Manuel was a force in the run game, setting up opportunities for the third-and-long pass rush.
In his Black and Gold debut, edge Lamont Lester Jr. also recorded three sacks, taking advantage of every snap he had to get after Mendoza.
“I think they did a great job up front, and I'm proud of them. Every last one of them, and we rotated several detackles, and we had a couple sacks too,” Sanders said. “Three sacks. That's awesome, man. That's awesome.”
While the victory was a huge success for Sanders’ team, there are still some question marks at special teams. The Buffs had a field goal blocked, gave up a 100-yard touchdown, and had struggles fielding kicks in the return game.
Although the “Wefense” is an area that needs improvement for the Buffs, Sanders believes the mistakes will be fixed.
“The young man played the butts off, made some mistakes on special teams, which you can't,” Sanders said. “That's straight effort, because you have the correct personnel. [We] go over and over and over and over and I do that myself. But they made it happen, so hats off to them.”
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