Colorado’s electric season ends with a whimper after lopsided loss to BYU in Alamo Bowl

BYU and Colorado both finished in a four-way tie for first place in the Big 12 standings, but neither team had the tiebreaker advantage to reach the Big 12 title game. That, among other factors, led Cougars quarterback Kedon Slovis to describe the Alamo Bowl matchup against the Buffaloes as “the people’s” Big 12 championship game. And while BYU lost to Big 12-champ Arizona State, fans can still celebrate the Cougars as “the people’s champion” after a dominant performance against Colorado on Saturday night.

BYU’s 36-14 win strengthened the Cougars’ postmortem argument for a College Football Playoff bid. It also marked a sobering conclusion to Colorado’s season, especially given the hype surrounding the team leading into the weekend.

Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders played in the bowl game and stayed on the field well into the second half. Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter also suited up, playing both wide receiver and cornerback for nearly every snap while the game was still competitive. While the Colorado stars were praised for not opting out, neither Sanders nor Hunter will be satisfied with how their college careers ended.

Sanders finished with 208 yards on 16-of-23 passing, throwing two touchdowns and two interceptions. Hunter added 106 receiving yards and a touchdown on four catches.

Despite the loss, there were still highlights for Colorado. Hunter delivered a memorable 58-yard run after the catch in the first half and added a touchdown reception in the third quarter. 

BYU looked a lot like the Cougars team that roared to a 9-0 start. They applied relentless pressure on defense, force mistakes and capitalized on good field position with timely plays on offense. BYU rendered the high-octane Buffs offense ineffective and built…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/colorados-electric-season-ends-with-a-whimper-after-lopsided-loss-to-byu-in-alamo-bowl/

Author : Chip Patterson

Publish date : 2024-12-29 05:09:00

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