Three takeaways from Colorado's win over Arizona State
The Colorado Buffaloes went down to the desert and took care of business against Arizona State for their fourth win of the season. It wasn't the game plan Deion Sanders and his staff were hoping for coming out the loss against USC. But nonetheless, it's a road win and nothing to be down about. Here are the takeaways from CU's first Pac-12 victory of the season.
Shedeur Sanders had time today
The Buffs QB lived up to his biblical name, which is 'field of light' or 'light of the almighty'. Sanders lit up the field in the fourth quarter on three scoring drives. The final drive for CU was HIM going into 'Brady Mode' by connecting with Javon Antonio for back-to-back receptions, setting up Alejandro Mata for a 43-yard game-winning field goal with 12 second left.
Sanders is the difference maker for Colorado's offense. It's great to have weapons, but without "Grown" leading the attack, this team wouldn't be as dangerous. Imagine if CU got Tyler Brown back on the offensive line and the unit started to gel going into November. The Buffs might be bowl bound with a renewed outlook.
Buffaloes defense was ready to go
It wasn't looking good early with a couple blown assignments, but CU's defense made adjustments and found stops down the stretch. LaVonta Bentely worked himself into back-to-back sacks during a crucial drive with ASU threatening. The Clemson transfer has come on strong over the past two games. He led the Buffs with 11 total tackles. As a whole, CU racked up five sacks and eight tackles for loss.
Nobody will win an award for playing inspired, but holding Cameron Skattebo to 60 total yards is a great accomplishment. The do-it-all ASU standout was held in check and made the Sun Devils' offense scramble to find playmakers. This was also Colorado's first game without forcing a turnover.
What about the win total?
You won't hear much about the oddsmakers misjudging Deion Sander's team prior to the season. We all knew the 3.5 win total was low. It was the reason why the Buffaloes were fielding a record number of bets before the opener at TCU. Now that we're halfway through the season and Colorado has surpassed what was expected for them, let's have an honest conversation about where the Buffaloes stand going into the final six game of the regular season. They'll likely pick up a win at home next week vs. Stanford. It will put them one away from being bowl eligible for the first time in seven years.
There is a section of naysayers who don't believe the Buffs can get six wins. However, they're the same group of outliers who said Colorado would have a single win before the season. Don't hate what you don't know. Remember, it's better to be educated than look like a fool.
