The Colorado Buffaloes suffered their first loss of the season against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, 27-20. The defense came out firing, but the offense could not take advantage of the opportunities given to them.
The Buffaloes will next face the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens, who are coming off a 35-17 win against the Delaware State Hornets. The Buffaloes showed bursts of potential but must turn things around in week 2.
The Colorado Buffaloes are 24.5-point favorites on Daftkings Sportsbook aganst the Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens.
The Colorado Buffaloes' defense stepped up big time to start the game against the Yellow Jackets. The team took advantage of Georgia Tech's mistakes, with linebacker Martavius French recovering two fumbles. However, the offense was unable to capitalize off of the Yellow Jackets turnovers outside of one touchdown.
The team limited the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets to 13 completions for 143 yards. Returning cornerback DJ McKinney also caught an interception.
There are still areas that must be cleaned up as well, moving forward. The Buffaloes did well in preventing running back Jamal Haynes from gaining momentum. Haynes had 16 carries for 65 yards.
Where the defense does need to improve is stopping the quarterback from scrambling out of the pocket and taking it himself. King rushed for 156 yards and three touchdowns, and was a big factor in Georgia Tech winning. This is something that the defense needs to fix quickly.
It was quarterback Kaidon Salter’s first start with the Colorado Buffaloes, and while he finished the game with 159 passing yards and one touchdown, some improvements need to be made.
"I think we had success running the ball at times as well, but we missed a few plays that we should have hit. I think you all saw that, but overall, man, you got to give them credit," Colorado coach Deion Sanders said after the game.
"They coached a heck of a game. They played a half a heck of a game. The quarterback started off horribly, but he picked it right back up and did his thing. Man, so hats off to him. He led his team to a victory."
Salter must adjust to playing in larger stadiums moving forward. While Salter has experience as a starting quarterback, he could be seen covering his ears in his own stadium to listen to his play caller. With the first game out of the way, this is a big thing for Salter and the team to work on.
The Colorado quarterback showed that once he gets going, Salter can make strong plays. In the fourth quarter, Salter helped lead the offense downfield to tie the game.
The Fightin’ Blue Hens are 1-0, looking to stay undefeated in week two. Delaware is led by quarterback Nick Minicucci, who passed for 251 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for 44 yards and one touchdown, something the Buffaloes' defense must watch out for.
Wide receivers Jake Thaw and Kyre Duplessis are going to be two big-time targets for Colorado to watch out for. Thaw had seven receptions for 92 yards and one touchdown, and Duplessis had seven receptions for 89 yards and one touchdown.
The Colorado Buffaloes have a fighting chance with their second game at Folsom Field, but they must take advantage of the opportunities given to them. The team also has to improve on clock management. While it cannot be said for sure that the final score would have changed, having two timeouts on the final drive and not using either did lead to the clock winding down on the team.
Despite the week one loss, the Buffaloes open up as favorites, and Colorado has a chance turn the season around quickly with a win.
The Colorado Buffaloes and the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens will kick off on Sept. 6 at 1:30 p.m. MT.
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