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A Chip and A Chair
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Last weekend, two of the more storied rivalries in college football were renewed … and no one outside of the two states involved noticed or cared.
Last weekend, Washington and Washington State squared off in the 117th Apple Cup, while Oregon and Oregon State took to the field for the 129th time in the Civil War … and no one outside of the Pacific Northwest noticed or cared.
It wasn’t a surprise to anyone who follows college football that Oregon dominated Oregon State, 41-7, or that Washington had little trouble dispatching Washington State, 59-24.
So much for the storied rivalries.
Instead, it’s “Welcome to college football, 2025”.
Just three years removed from these Pac-12 rivalry games being not only contested, but meaningful, they are now just the latest examples of how deep the chasm in college football has become between those programs who are relevant, and those who are not.
Oregon and Washington are in position to vie for the Big Ten title, and perhaps a national championship.
Oregon State and Washington State, meanwhile, have been banished to the college football equivalent of Siberia. The steep decline suffered by the Beavers and Cougars in just two years is a cautionary tale for all of the schools in the Power Four conferences who are on the hot seat for relegation at the end of the decade.
And yes, we are talking about dear ol’ CU.
The Buffs went 9-4 last season, but, in the world of “What have you done for me lately?” of college football, CU is again living on the edge of relevance. Yes, Colorado dominates the television ratings compared to other Big 12 schools, but the Coach Prime factor will only last as long as Deion Sanders is in Boulder … and winning games.
Colorado had every opportunity to defeat No. 25 BYU, but lost, 24-21. Instead of moving forward with a victory which would have served as notice to the Big 12 that CU is on par the rest of the conference, the Buffs lost their eighth straight game to a ranked team under Coach Prime (CU’s one and only victory over a ranked team in the last three seasons came in Coach Prime’s first game, the 2023 season opener against TCU).
The Buffs raced out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter against the Cougars, but, as they did in losses against Georgia Tech and Houston, were worn down by a mobile quarterback. BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier completed 19-of-27 passes for 179 yards, but also contributed 98 yards rushing on 15 carries.
While the Houston loss was a debacle from the opening gun, the Buffs woulda/coulda/shoulda beaten both Georgia Tech and BYU. Instead of being a player in the Big 12, the Buffs are making teams like Georgia Tech and BYU look like contenders.
So, what are the primary issues Coach Prime now faces, as CU looks ahead to a schedule with its next three games – at TCU, Iowa State, and at Utah – in which the Buffs will be underdogs?
Talent
At 247 Sports, there is a compilation of “Team Talent“, looking at each roster in the FBS, and how those teams have been constructed.
In 2025, CU’s roster is ranked by 247 Sports as the 30th most talented in the nation. The significance is that CU is ranked 2nd in the Big 12, behind only the roster purchased by a billionaire at Texas Tech. Even with all of the bought-and-paid-for talent on the Red Raider roster, Texas Tech is only one spot ahead of CU nationally, coming in at No. 29.
That doesn’t mean that CU is far ahead of the rest of the conference in terms of talent. TCU (No. 32), Arizona State (No. 33), Baylor (No. 35), are right behind Texas Tech and Colorado. with five more conference teams in the Top 50.
What it does mean is that CU can be – and should be – competitive in every Big 12 game it plays.
Full stop.
So what about …
Coaching
Over the past four decades, I have watched as many college football games as anyone I know, but that doesn’t mean I consider myself to be in position to comment on the abilities, or lack thereof, of a particular coach or coordinator.
That being said, there does seem to be consensus that there are coaching issues within the CU coaching staff.
Offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur has been under the gun since he arrived in Boulder. Criticism has gotten so bad that, after CU’s 37-20 win over Wyoming, Coach Prime felt compelled to note in during his press conference:
“I don’t hear anybody talking about Pat tonight. But when we execute, it’s a beautiful thing; when we don’t, he’s going to be blamed”.
The Buff offense was clicking early against BYU, with 168 yards of total offense and two touchdown in CU’s first three drives against the Cougars.
After that? Not so much.
Other than a 75-yard touchdown drive in the third quarter, the Buffs didn’t have a single drive go for over 20 yards in their other seven possessions.
Where does the blame fall for CU’s lack of consistent production on offense?
Coaching? Game planning? In game adjustments?
All of the above?
On the other side of the ball, the Buffs have been equally disappointing. Defensive coordinator Robert Livingston received a raise over the off-season in an attempt to keep him from joining the coaching staff of the New Orleans Saints, but he has seen the bloom come off of his rose this September.
The Buffs can’t handle a running quarterback, and seem to have no inclination to game plan to stop one. BYU had 208 rushing yards, a total which is, unfortunately, right about what CU has given up on average this season … with BYU’s quarterback accounting for almost half of that total.
But, is it all on the coordinators?
Coach Prime has brought in two Hall of Famers – Warren Sapp and Marshall Faulk – to bring star power to the coaching staff, but the units Sapp and Faulk coach – defensive line and the running backs – have been two of the most disappointing rooms on the team.
But … while there is talent on the team, and there are quality coaches in the Champions Center, there is a third element in play in trying to establish CU’s success this fall and beyond.
An element which is just as difficult to evaluate, but may be just as important for the team going forward …
Leadership
The first two seasons of the Coach Prime era at Colorado, Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter, and to a lesser extent, Shilo Sanders and a few others, were the leaders of team. The posturing, strutting, and trash talking aside, the team took on the personality and bravado of Shedeur, together with the work ethic of Travis.
This fall, for the first time as a head coach, Coach Prime doesn’t have Shedeur Sanders as his quarterback.
And, from the outside looking in, the team appears to be drifting.
Other than All-American candidate Jordan Seaton, there appear to be few clear leaders on the team. Quarterback Kaidon Salter might grow into that role, but he is now two weeks into his affirmed status as the starting quarterback instead of five. Defensive back DJ McKinney was supposed to be the leader of the defense, but he has – at least on the field – been quiet.
Where are the leaders?
With shuttling defensive linemen, no go-to wide receiver, a running back room again devoid of a bell cow, and linebackers who are still too busy learning how to play Power Four conference football to lead, there doesn’t appear, at least from the outside, to be any true vocal leaders on this team.
And that can be an issue in the fourth quarter of a close game.
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The consolation in CU’s loss to BYU – if you really want to see it – is that there is no reason to believe that the 2025 Colorado football team won’t be competitive in almost every game they play the remainder of the season. The talent is there, the game plan – at least in the first quarter – is there, and there is still time for leaders to emerge.
Colorado, with the 24-21 loss to No. 25 BYU, is now 4-8 in one score games under Coach Prime (0-2 this season). You could certainly play the “What if” game on several plays in both the Georgia Tech and BYU losses, but good teams make their own luck, and Georgia Tech and BYU are good teams.
The Buffs can still surprise this season. There is enough talent and depth to avoid the seven-game losing streak the team suffered in Year One of the Coach Prime era.
With the right game plan, and, perhaps, a little leadership to get the team over the hump in the fourth quarter, CU will win its share of its remaining seven games.
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I play in a friendly poker game once a month. It’s a $20 buy in, and, even if you lose all your chips, you still get cards and continue to play as a “poor boy” until you win a hand and get some chips back.
It’s not like that in the real world. Some of the guys in our game also play at casinos, and talk about being down to your final chips before you walk away busted. As long as you have “a chip and a chair”, though, you still have a chance at a big comeback.
Well, CU has plenty of blue chip players, and the team and their coaches still seven more opportunities to prove their detractors wrong.
They still have a chip and a chair …
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8 Replies to “A Chip and a Chair”
As both a Buff fan and a NY Giants fan, I’ve had Pat Shurmur as a drag on teams for whom I cheer collegiately and professionally. I’m not a fan of his play-calling. However, last night vs TCU was not on him. It is on Salter. I do not care about his magical 2023 season with Liberty. Frankly, I’m not sure 2023 Salter would recognize 2025 Salter. He has played like a different player altogether. He is “the little girl with the curl”. When he’s good, he’s very good but when he’s bad, he’s brutal.
Realizing they apparently spent lots of money to bring him to Boulder, I think they need now to realize that the kid they watched on tape is not the kid they have. Iowa State comes to Boulder this week, probably pissed off due to the Cincy upset. A loss would drop Buffs to 2-5 and would I hope prompt letting Lewis play as QB1.
What’s the old saw about bad teams find a way to lose games? How often do you see game winning score set up by “fumble” on punt when the punted ball hits a defensive player on the back and off the carom it bounces right to a guy on the team that punted? You cannot make this stuff up.
I do wonder is the lack of a passing game is on Salter or the receivers. Don’t think putting Juju in now would help. Salters running is the most effective part of his game. The Branden Lewis comment was spot on.
The fact is that the staff is touted for their NFL connections, and not their previous success coaching NCAA FB. To me, who has watched as much NFL as anyone I know, they look like an NFL team playing on Saturdays, good/bad or otherwise.
Why do they not play zone more often. They continue to insist on playing predominantly man coverage. Against running QB’s this often leads to disaster. Their DB’s are running into each other and picks in the red zone. The Defensive Coordinator needs to figure this out.
I saw a ton of comments other places about how the team doesn’t seem to like each other and particularly doesn’t seem like like Salter. I know the WR have no reason to (he won’t throw them the ball, after all).
That’s probably all bullshit from guys just watching sidelines on TV, but it’s still exactly your main point.
I will take a rare moment to defend Shurmur though. He’s completely changed the offensive game plan to focus on Salter and the wrinkle of the extra Offensive Lineman running across the formation pre snap was awesome and effective. CU wins the game if that flag isn’t thrown for holding on the long Salter run followed by over of the dumbest sacks I’ve ever seen.
And then on the flip side, when he’s called on to execute a true pass play with no wrinkles or scrambles.. Salter just can’t do it. He channels his inner Brenden Lewis, freezes, and refuses to throw the ball. No amount of janky clock management mistakes or timeout clutching can overcome a completely inability to execute a two minute offense. That’s on Salter. Shurmur put the team in the position to win.
So f it. Put in juju. Yolo.
I think the leadership comes down to the lack of continuity. A large chunk of the team gets cycled out each year, with the strategy of building through the portal, instead of recruiting. I hope that will continue to change. If you get more guys like Seaton, that could help this situation. Perhaps JuJu could become a key leader, though after this season, will he stay? I also think that the loss of Hill-Green was big. I felt like he could have easily become the leader of the defense. I hope playing 2nd string at Alabama was worth the move. Lastly, if Prime went into some of the homes of recruits, I bet he would get a lot of them to come to Boulder (just sayin’).
Hill-Green came to my mind as well. The D needs a leader. I would pick an edge, but they rotate so much. Byard may fall into that role now that he is consistently playing. Also, we need a Dline to consistently flash. Oatis puzzles me, as when he has been on the field a few times he has absolutely blown up plays. Also, I hope Walker flashes this year. Both he and Wade had great 2nd halves of the season.
That game had the setup for what could have been an ugly night for the Buffs. Facing a tough running team, with a mobile qb and a stout defense. It wasn’t. For the most part, they seem to be in that win close, lose close phase. Once again, there is a lot to be encouraged about.
TCU should be another good, tough game. The big 12 is fun. Lots of parity, so far.
Go Buffs