The rematch ended in the same result for Colorado Buffaloes as last year, a loss. It’s now three close-game losses for Deion Sanders, with the Buffs sitting at 2-3 after this gut-punch 24-21 defeat to BYU. What stings most is how it unraveled. CU jumped out to a 14-0 first-half lead before watching it slip away in the same frustrating fashion fans have seen too often. Another winnable game, another one that slipped through the cracks. Coach had to name culprits, plural, after cutting a frustrated figure in the post presser.

Coming from various CU sources, Coach Prime made it clear postgame where his frustrations were bubbling over. He didn’t sugarcoat anything, starting with his secondary: “We have to do a much better job in the back end.” When asked if he was happy with the defense overall, the answer was as short as it was sharp: “No… Next question.” Coach even turned the finger inward, admitting, “We have to be better as a staff, as a team, and I have to do better.” Wrapping it up, he pointed at missed chances: “We had opportunities, we just didn’t make it happen.”

Keeping it a buck here, after their lead shrank to 14-10 at halftime before the Cougars closed the game with big plays, including a 32-yard touchdown run by receiver Cody Hagen to help take a lead, it’s very evident. That sequence felt like the nail in the coffin, but what made it sting more was how the Buffaloes got there. For most of the night, Colorado looked like a team juggling fire—moments of promise followed quickly by mistakes that scorched any momentum.

BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier didn’t wow anyone with gaudy numbers, but he was sharp. More importantly, he punished Colorado with his legs with QB scrambles that kept drives alive and set up the Cougars’ ground game, which rolled to 208 yards on 36 attempts. Colorado’s response came in flashes with Kaidon Salter’s efficiency through the air, completing 11-of-16 passes for 119 yards and a touchdown. He also shouldered much of the ground attack, churning out 49 rushing yards on 17 tries with another score.

The Buffaloes weren’t shy about running the ball, finishing with 172 yards on the ground, but the rhythm never fully clicked. His interception on the final drive by BYU LB Isaiah Glasker could stain it, but they had already lost it by then. “Sometimes it felt like the moment was just too big for some of our athletes.” Partially, it even looked big for the coach, who himself preached all week about how his team just needed more “consistency,” panicked. Down by three with a little over six minutes to go, Colorado had the ball near midfield staring at a 4th-and-6. The offense lined up as if it were going to go for it, a bold move that could have swung the momentum back their way.

Instead, confusion reigned. The Buffaloes looked stuck between aggression and hesitation, and the moment fizzled out. What should have been a defining chance turned into a misstep. Now, Colorado stares down a brutal stretch of Big 12 play. They travel to face No. 25 TCU next week.

Deion Sander’s timeout gamble that went nowhere

Down 24-21 to the visiting Cougs, it looked like the Buffs were gearing up for a gutsy fourth-down try. Salter and the offense on the field, the play clock ticking down. Then came the curveball: a timeout.

What followed was the real head-scratcher. After burning that crucial stoppage late in the fourth quarter, Deion Sanders didn’t roll the dice. Instead, he sent out the punt team on 4th-and-6. That decision left fans scratching their heads. Why sacrifice a timeout if you’re not even going to go for it?

In truth, five yards further back on a punt after a delay of the game might have been the safer move. Instead, the Buffaloes gifted BYU the ball and, worse yet, the Cougars chewed up clock while pushing across midfield. The risk never matched the reward, and it cost CU dearly.