Deion Sanders and Colorado need to “shake it off” to finish the season

Your correspondent was sitting at the Kansas City airport waiting to board a flight back to Denver after witnessing the Jayhawks’ loss to the Buffaloes the day before. Dominant is one way to put it. This old jock from Denver TV is quite active on social media. Buffs fans love to talk about their beloved Bison.

The talk focused on how puzzling it was to truly create a memorable season given the opportunity presented to Coach Prime’s team: winning impressively and the door opens to win the Big 12 Championship in which Move up the playoff rankings and secure a first-round bye. For a program that won a single game two years ago, won four last season and is now the talk of college football?

Wow. Such scenarios don’t happen often. The Buffs controlled their fate and rolled onto their stomachs as they received the blows. Kansas NEVER punted in the game. Scored a goal on every attempt. The tackling was terrible. Especially Shilo Sanders, who got picked up a few times and couldn’t finish. Kansas controlled the clock and kept Colorado’s rushing offense on the floor.

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“A winner,” Jayhawk said after the game. “We (KU) simply had more intensity from the start.” What? Colorado went into the game against Kansas in Missouri with ALL the prerequisites and didn’t bother to provide the necessary intensity? What the hell is going on here?

Thoughts go out to Gerry DiNardo. The 72-year-old analyst, now a television studio analyst, was offensive coordinator under McCartney, including the 1990 national championship. The likeable guy later coached Vanderbilt, LSU and Indiana. He is a respected voice in college football. DiNardo was a long-time All-American at Notre Dame and, like most, formed his opinions on the current state of college football via the money and transfer portal NIL. “One of the most difficult things for head coaches today will be building the sustainable culture necessary to rise to the challenge in the big moment.”

No one has used the transfer portal more than the University of Colorado since Coach Prime showed up two years ago. It helped bring far more talent to the Flatirons base and far more spectators to Folsom Field. No question. But what was evident in the disappointing defeat? How will a transfer-oriented team present itself in the big games?

That was a big game. The Buffs seemed lethargic from the start. I remember telling the people sitting in the press box that players in defense had been substituted. Most jogged indifferently on the sidelines. There was no fire in the Buffs’ belly. In a game of this magnitude? A head scratcher.

There will be a new twist in college football. Experience in big games is invaluable. Colorado and most other major programs will change their rosters pretty drastically every year. It will be a real challenge to predict how all these annual newcomers will fit together when it’s time to shine.

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Sanders after the game. “We read about how great we were and didn’t come out to play Colorado football.” Amen Coach. Now the question is, “How will the Buffs respond?”

Oklahoma State has been chaos all year. Disappointing season. Believe me, there’s nothing Cowboys head coach Mike Gundy would love more than to make Colorado’s feel-good story of newfound relevance even wetter. Gundy isn’t a big fan of the “Prime” earthquake and its fundamental shaking in the college football world.

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Without question, the Buffs still have a lot of work to do moving forward. But they had an open goal to storm through to continue to bond and play well when the stakes are high. Under the leadership of the defense, the gate was closed. They clearly lagged behind. The season finale and then a bowl game that Prime promised superfan Peggy Coppom? While one wonders how the Buffs will react to disappointment, perhaps that could be a good argument for coming off strong with two wins and finishing 10-3.

“Let’s make Peggy proud.” Who knows, maybe this might ease the pain of letting Arrowhead down for Colorado’s big dream season.