Colorado heads into Saturday’s meeting with Kansas State needing answers on both sides of the ball, and the Buffs’ best path forward might start by getting the ball into the hands of a few players who have already shown they can change the game.
Richard Young is the clearest one to watch. Deion Sanders said Tuesday that Young would see “a lot more of the ball” this week, and the timing makes sense.
The Alabama transfer, once ESPN’s No. 1 running back recruit, has just 16 carries for 49 yards and has not touched the ball since the Oct. 3 loss to Texas Tech. Colorado also has Micah Welch out, which opens the door for more work.
Young’s most productive outing in a CU uniform came at Baylor, where he ran eight times for 31 yards. Kansas State has been vulnerable on the ground in conference play, allowing 204.8 rushing yards per game in four Big 12 games and 271 at Cincinnati.
The Buffs may also lean harder on DeAndre Moore Jr., who is trending the right way. He has 10 catches for 176 yards over the last two games and has found the end zone in both.
For the season, his 28 receptions for 418 yards rank second on the team behind Joseph Williams. That could matter against a Kansas State defense that leads the Big 12 in pass defense, even if one receiver has already lit it up.
Houston’s Patrick Overmyer caught four touchdown passes from Conner Weigman in Manhattan on Oct. 10, all of them from inside the 10.
Up front, Santana Hopper remains a problem for opponents. He leads the Big 12 with 11.5 tackles for loss and added a sack at Oklahoma State.
Lamont Lester Jr. is tied with Hopper for the league lead at 0.83 sacks per game, and both should have chances to pressure a Kansas State offense that was repeatedly disrupted by Arizona State. With Jacob Knuth at quarterback last week, the Wildcats allowed 10 tackles for loss.
Kansas State brings a defense with some eye-catching numbers, but the fine print matters. The Wildcats are giving up 147.1 passing yards per game, best in the Big 12, and only 21.1 points.
Three games against non-Power Four opponents help those totals. Against league competition, opponents have averaged 192.5 passing yards per game.
That leaves room for Williams, who ranks third in the Big 12 with 91.9 receiving yards per game. JaQuail Smith is still Colorado’s leading rusher with 298 yards at 4.7 per carry.
Kansas State has only one interception, the fewest in the conference, which lines up well for a Colorado offense that already owns the Big 12 lead with 10 interceptions thrown by opponents.
The Wildcats’ offense looks far different depending on who is under center. With Avery Johnson, they rolled for 295 rushing yards against Washington State, including 78 from Johnson himself.
Without him, that ground game shrank to 84 yards on 32 carries in Tempe. Rodney Fields Jr., the Oklahoma State transfer who leads Kansas State’s running backs with 422 rushing yards, has averaged 4.0 per carry since the first two games.
Collin Klein said Monday he still doesn’t know exactly “who’s going to take the first snap.” That could mean second-year quarterback Blake Barnett, from Erie High School, who has attempted only five passes, all in the opener.
Linebacker Gideon Lampron summed up the approach simply: “They like to run their quarterbacks.” Kansas State also went 0-for-4 on fourth down last week.
Jaron Tibbs has become the Wildcats’ most reliable receiver. The fourth-year wideout leads Kansas State with 34 catches and has scored in each of the past three games.
He was targeted 13 times at Arizona State. He’ll face a Colorado secondary that just gave up 410 passing yards and four touchdowns at Oklahoma State, along with six completions of 25 yards or more.
On the edge, Wendell Gregory is another name to know. He ranks third in the Big 12 with 10.5 tackles for loss, just behind Hopper, and has 3.5 sacks.
He recorded a sack at Arizona State. Colorado, meanwhile, has allowed 15 sacks, tied for 12th in the league, including four in Stillwater.
Special teams could quietly matter too. Klein said his group won “over 50 yards of hidden yardage” at Arizona State.
Simon McClannan punted six times in that game and averaged 47.8 yards, while his season mark of 47.1 is third in the Big 12. Luis Rodriguez is perfect on field goals, going 11-for-11, and 20-for-20 on extra points.
Colorado’s Elliott Arnold is 5-for-8 on field goals, and Damon Greaves leads the conference with 34 punts at 45.3 yards.
There’s some history attached to this one as well. Colorado leads the series 45-22-1, but Kansas State has taken the last two meetings, 31-28 in Boulder in 2024 and 24-14 in Manhattan last season.
The Wildcats are 6-28 all-time in Boulder. Kansas State also has six Colorado natives on its roster, including Barnett and first-year lineman Oliver Miller of Centennial, a Cherry Creek product who has filled in at tight end.
Penalties are another contrast: Kansas State has 27, fewest in the Big 12, while Colorado has 66, most in the league.
Kickoff is noon MT on TNT.
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