Colorado was one of the few non-College Football Playoff teams to put its biggest stars on display during bowl season, but not even Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter could prevent an Alamo Bowl blowout. The Buffaloes limped their way to the end of the 2024 season with a 36-14 loss to Big 12 foe BYU in the bowl game, the first of the Deion Sanders era.
The offense sputtered and found it extremely difficult to stay on the field, while the much-improved defense surrendered its second-most points of the season in an all-around uncharacteristic game for the surging Buffaloes program.
Colorado now enters a period of uncertainty with two of the best players in program history departing for the NFL. Deion Sanders compiled a hefty amount of impact talent on the recruiting trail and through the transfer portal, but for the first time in his FBS coaching career, he enters the offseason without bona fide Heisman Trophy contenders.
Here is the national reaction to Colorado’s disappointing end to the season:
Let’s hope the #CUBuffs football team has a better showing tonight. ? Ralphie VI’s run at the Alamodome
It did not take long for the Alamo Bowl to get out of control with BYU storming its way to a 20-0 lead by halftime. The Cougars entirely stifled the typically explosive Colorado offense with three interceptions, a turnover on downs and four punts — one of which BYU’s Parker Kingston returned 64 yards for a touchdown. The Buffaloes also missed a field goal early in the blowout.
BYU had more rush yards on its first run of the game than Colorado had all game ?
First-year defensive coordinator Robert Livingston revitalized Colorado on his side of the ball this season, but that progress did not translate to the postseason when the Buffaloes surrendered 36 points. That was the second-highest point total for an opponent on the year behind only Kansas’ 37. BYU running back LJ Martin did most of the damage with 17 carries for 93 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but to Colorado’s credit, it largely held star quarterback Jake Retzlaff in check with two interceptions.
Just gonna say it: Colorado wasted money on that insurance policy. Would’ve had the same result opting out.
Sanders and Hunter elected to play in the Alamo Bowl rather than opt out to begin preparations for the NFL Draft, and they did so with Colorado securing what it said was record insurance coverage for the potential No. 1 and No. 2 overall picks. The program raised its disability coverage for its entire roster in the Alamo Bowl with Deion Sanders and athletic director Rick George claiming that it was the largest insurance policy in college football history.
What I find funny is that Colorado could have sat Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders, gotten beat by the same score and avoided any criticism. Instead, they played two supposed top-5 picks, still got boat-raced and now America is laughing at them.
Miami quarterback Cam Ward caused a stir when he sat the second half of the Pop-Tarts Bowl, but Sanders and Hunter remained in the Alamo Bowl for Colorado even when the score got out of hand. They became a rare duo in the sport’s modern era to suit up for an entire non-playoff bowl game as projected first-round picks.
I don’t think a team with «two Heisman candidates» does this.
Hunter racked up a game-high four catches and 106 yards with a touchdown and made four tackles on the other side of the ball, but his elite contributions were not enough to carry the Buffaloes to a competitive performance. The Heisman Trophy winner closed his remarkable college career with the most productive two-way season in recent history, leading the Big 12 in receptions (96) and touchdowns (15) while racking up four interceptions and 11 pass breakups as a cornerback.
Picking off Deion’s son and then hitting the Prime Time dance is tough and I don’t think it’s a violation of the honor code.
Only once in his two-year Colorado career prior to Saturday did Sanders throw more than one interception in a game. His two picks against BYU were emblematic of the Buffaloes’ uncharacteristic struggles, his 208 passing yards were a season low and his two touchdowns tied his fewest in a game since Sept. 7. Still, he finished his FBS career as the all-time career completion percentage leader (71.8%) and led the nation this year with a 74.0% mark.
Shedeur put on Giants cleats and his life started falling apart
Sanders showed off custom New York Giants cleats before the game in a nod to his status as the franchise’s potential early first-round selection. He projects to become the first or second quarterback off the draft board this spring, and the Giants will pick towards the top of the order in need of a signal-caller.
«We know where we going, baby,» Sanders said. «You’ll see them in the cleats later on this week.»
Colorado’s most recent bowl win remains the 2004 Houston Bowl over UTEP. This is the 2nd longest bowl win drought in the P4 after Indiana.
While the season ended in defeat, Colorado surged this year with its second nine-win campaign in the last two decades. The Buffaloes also reached just their third bowl game since 2007, with each of those postseason appearances coming in the Alamo Bowl. Sanders guided his program to its highest ranking since 2016 with a No. 16 spot in the CFP Top 25, placed the Buffaloes in Big 12 title contention and led them to the playoff conversation in the final weeks of the regular season.