No. 31 – 2007: CU 65, Nebraska 51 / Player No. 31: Sal Aunese


Posts Tagged ‘Dusty Sprague’

2007- In a game between two teams vying for bowl-eligibility, Buffs rally from a 35-24 halftime deficit to take down Nebraska, 65-51, before 51,403 frigid fans at Folsom (with game video) … Player No. 31: Quarterback Sal Aunese (1987-88) – with multiple videos …

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West Virginia running back Noel Devine rushed for a career-high 220 yards, including a 77-yard touchdown on the Mountaineers’ second play from scrimmage, leading West Virginia to a 35-24 win over Colorado in Morgantown. Cody Hawkins had 292 yards passing and two touchdowns for Colorado, but also threw three inteceptions. Running back Rodney Stewart had 105 yards rushing for the Buffs, and tight end Riar Geer had a career-best 113 yards receiving, but a combination of missed opportunities and missed assignments doomed Colorado to a 1-3 record in non-conference play.

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Colorado evened its season record at 6-6, and its Big 12 mark at 4-4, with a record-setting 65-51 win over Nebraska. The Buffs put up the third highest point total ever against the Cornhuskers over the course of almost four hours before a frigid Folsom Field crowd of 51,403.

With the win (combined with a loss by Kansas State to Fresno State), the Buffs earned a bowl berth in the second season of the Dan Hawkins’ era, while simultaneously helping to seal the fate of Nebraska head coach Bill Callahan, who was dismissed by interim athletic director Tom Osborne the day after the game.

Given that the Nebraska defense came into the game ranked near the bottom nationally in most defensive categories, including rushing defense (114th out of 120 teams), total defense (111th), and scoring defense (105th), combined with a Colorado defensive unit which had surrendered 31 points to Iowa State in the second half of the Buffs’ previous game, predicting a shootout for the season finale was not difficult. The 116 points and 1,128 yards of combined offense, however, was more than anyone could have reasonably foreseen.

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— October 27th – at Texas Tech           Colorado 31, Texas Tech 26 — Senior cornerback Terrence Wheatley tied a school record with three interceptions in a game, leading the Buffs to a 31-26 win over Texas Tech in Lubbock. Linebacker Jordon Dizon picked off a fourth pass from Red Raider quarterback Graham Harrell, returning his interception 42 yards for a touchdown, as Colorado improved its chances of going bowling with its fifth win of the season. The Buffs’ game plan against the potent offense of Texas Tech was clear from …

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— October 6th – at Baylor           Colorado 43, Baylor 23 — Dan Hawkins earned his first road win as Colorado head coach as the Buffs took care of business with a 43-23 road win against Baylor. Snapping a two game losing streak against the Bears, the Buffs had many stars, including freshman running back Demetrius Sumler, who had two touchdowns rushing and one receiving, freshman quarterback Cody Hawkins, who passed for 293 yards and two touchdowns, and senior running back Hugh Charles, who posted his third …

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— September 29th – Boulder        Colorado 27, No. 3 Oklahoma 24 — Kevin Eberhart connected on his second game-winning field goal of the month, hitting from 45 yards out with no time remaining to give Colorado a 27-24 upset win over No. 3 Oklahoma. A homecoming crowd of 50,031 witnessed the Buffs rally from 17 points down (the fourth largest comeback in CU history) to pull off the upset. Oklahoma, which had been averaging 61.5 points and 562 yards per game, was held to just 24 points and 230 yards by …

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  Preseason – 2007 A preview of the 2007 Colorado Buffaloes – the strengths and weaknesses of the roster; the schedule; and the competition in the Big 12. The Colorado Buffaloes enter the second season of the Dan Hawkins era confronting a problem the program hasn’t faced in over twenty years – low expectations. Coming off a 2-10 campaign in 2006, the Buffs are not expected to make much of an impact on the national stage in 2007. This lack of faith runs contrary to the preseason prognostications coming on …

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  — September 30th – at Missouri              No. 25 Missouri 28, Colorado 13 — Missouri quarterback Chase Daniel threw for four touchdowns, leading No. 25 Missouri to a 28-13 win over Colorado.  On the afternoon, Daniel connected on 23 of 35 passes for 253 yards.  The win put the Tigers at 5-0 for the first time since 1981, with the loss dropping the Buffs to 0-5 for the first time since 1980. At the outset, it appeared that the newly ranked Tigers wanted to make a statement that they belonged in …

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  — Preseason, 2006 – A New Coach, but Unchanged Expectations — The Colorado Buffaloes entered the 2006 season with four Big 12 North division titles in the past five seasons. Sustained excellence is usually reason enough to expect national respect for a football program. After all, in Division 1-A football, only two other teams could lay claim to earning that many rings since 2001. One was USC, which had won the Pac-10 four years in a row, and had played for the national championship the previous three. The other …

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— October 22nd – Boulder           Colorado 44, Kansas 13 — Joel Klatt passed for four touchdowns, becoming the Colorado all-time touchdown pass leader in the process, leading the Buffs to a 44-13 win over Kansas. Klatt ended the evening with 42 career touchdown passes, two more than Koy Detmer posted in his four years in Boulder (1992-96) While Klatt was setting records, it was the Colorado defense and special teams which turned a close game against the Jayhawks into a rout. Colorado scored on its second possession of the game, taking over on …

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— September  3, 2005 – Boulder           Colorado 31, Colorado State 28 — For the fourth year in a row, the “Rocky Mountain Showdown” between Colorado and Colorado State came down to the final minute of play. For the third year in a row, the Buffs prevailed. Colorado opened its 2005 campaign by defeating the Rams, 31-28, before a sweltering Folsom Field record crowd of 54,972. Mason Crosby connected from 47 yards out with four seconds remaining to give the Buffs the victory. Unlike 2003 and 2004, when the Buffs watched double digit …

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— Preseason – 2005 — Despite winning the Big 12 North Division title three of the previous four years, and despite having 17 starters returning, the Colorado Buffaloes entered the 2005 season in search of national recognition. The titles of the past and the promise of the future were offset by a lack of overall success. After all, it was argued, the Buffs finished only 8-5 overall in 2004, had played in a lackluster division, and had backed into the 2004 title with a 4-4 conference record when Iowa State failed …

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