In the span of three weeks, things went from bad, to worse and finally downright terrible for the CU Buffs football team.
Losing to CSU and Sacramento, teams that Colorado was favored to beat, signaled a tough road ahead. Coach Jon Embree and staff hoped that a (rare) win on the road against Fresno State would turn things around for his team.
Colorado head coach Jon Embree watches a replay on the video board during the second half of the 28-30 loss to Sacramento State. This weekend the Buffs were routed by Fresno State 69-14. (CU Independent File/James Bradbury)
After all, if losing to a FCS school was the lowest of the low for a D1 FBS program, then things couldn’t possibly get much worse, could it?
If Fresno State’s 69-14 blowout is any indication, things have gotten worse.
The Bulldogs did what they wanted when they wanted against the Buffs Saturday. Whether it was on the ground or through the air, Fresno State found a way to score often and with ease.
Bulldog tailback Robbie Rouse rushed for over 144 yards in only nine carries with two touchdowns on the ground while catching two more passes for points. His performance set an all-time Fresno State rushing record.
An already young defense looked even younger against the Bulldog passing attack. Quarterback Derek Carr had a field day as well, passing for over 300 yards and five touchdowns with one interception in only one half of football. Isaiah Burse had three catches for 107 yards and one touchdown which came on a 97-yard pass from Carr.
It wasn’t until the second quarter that the Buffs scored, and by then it was a moot point as the Bulldogs had a commanding 55 point lead. Offensively, the Buffs only produced 14 points off a catch by Tyler McCulloch and a run by Josh Ford.
CU Quarterback Jordan Webb threw more touchdowns for the Bulldogs than he did the Buffs, as his two interceptions were both returned for touchdowns by Phillip Thomas.
Next up for the Buffs will be the Washington State Cougars at 2 p.m. next Saturday.
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Shay Knolle at Shay.knolle@colorado.edu.
Statistics courtesy ESPN.com
2 comments
We are a disgrace to college football and to the PAC 12. I’m embarrassed as a CU Alum and CU Fan. The entire CU Football team and athletic department should not be allowed back in the state of Colorado. As Donal Trump says “Your Fired” and I mean ALL of YOU.
I am a CU alum (’67 Bus Ad). In the time that I have followed the Buffs I have witnessed an incredible degree of incompetence with their football teams but nothing matches the dismal showing in Fresno. This followed two prior weekends of embarrassing results. The humiliation endured by Colorado fans should be sufficient for the university to possibly reconsider its intercollegiate football program.
Now that the team has scraped the bottom of the NCAA football heap, I have an idea as to how the CU athletic Department can redeem itself. Drop out of college “football” and replace it with another “football” – college soccer. With this attention, the NCAA would soon feel compelled to recognize the sport as it does with the other high profile sanctioned sports. Running a college soccer program requires a minute fraction of the budget of an NCAA football team and, if CU committed itself to this vastly underrated sport, I predict that a school with its stature and acclaim could quickly rise in the echelon of schools who compete inter-scholastically in soccer.
CU has long been recognized as one of the more progressive universities in the country. Inherent in the concept of “progressive” is the notion of “standing outside the box”. The headline capturing decision of dropping its conventional “football” program and replacing it with a new “football” (the only “real” football) program could have a major impact on men’s intercollegiate athletics. Other universities who fall off the radar with their costly, also-ran losing football programs may be motivated to follow the CU example. The result would be a win-win for all involved, not to mention, the opportunity for talented high school soccer players to be recognized and recipients to the type of coveted scholarships that are currently available for college football and basketball standouts.