No. 11 Utah arrives in Boulder with momentum, depth and a defense that has kept opponents from getting comfortable all season.
The Utes are 5-0 for the first time since 2015, they are 2-0 in Big 12 play, and every win has come by at least 14 points. Three of those victories have been by 33 points or more.
That run has caught the attention of Colorado coach Deion Sanders.
"It's gonna be a daunting task," Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders said Tuesday. "Offensively, they get after it.
Defensively, they get after it. Probably the best team we're gonna face this season."
Utah has also found a difference-maker in Wayshawn Parker, who has turned into a weekly headache for defenses. The running back followed a 174-yard game against Iowa State with 171 yards against Kansas, piling up 345 yards on only 34 carries in those two outings. For the season, Parker has 499 rushing yards and is tied for fourth in the nation with 11 total touchdowns, including seven on the ground and four as a receiver.
Morgan Scalley said Utah is paying close attention to Parker’s workload, especially with how frequently he is touching the ball.
"I think if it's Wayshawn, Wayshawn, Wayshawn, it's easy for people to load the box," Scalley said. "The other thing are the hits that running backs take over and over and over again. It is a car crash every tackle for the most part, and so just making sure, player-load wise, you're doing everything you can to keep him healthy."
Utah’s offense has had more than one way to hurt teams. Quarterback Devon Dampier has thrown for 1,134 yards and 12 touchdowns, with just two interceptions, and he has added 206 rushing yards and three more scores.
Colorado comes in at 2-3 overall and 0-2 in the Big 12 after a bye and a three-game losing streak. The Buffaloes are likely to turn again to Isaac Wilson, the former Utah quarterback who is expected to start for the second straight game.
Wilson’s familiarity with the Utes adds a wrinkle, though Sanders treated it with his usual loose touch.
"make sure you throw the ball to the guys on our team,"
Sanders joked to Wilson.
"See, we can joke like that because Isaac is one of those kids that -- Isaac is Isaac," Sanders said. "He ain't taking that to heart.
He's not gonna cry and have a pity party. That's the balance of our relationship.
We can get down like that. Then, when he does something (in practice he says), 'Yeah, what you got to say now?'
That's how Isaac gets down with me."
Wilson got the start over struggling Julian Lewis and finished with 290 passing yards and one touchdown in a 29-7 home loss to then-No. 12 Texas Tech on Oct. 3, but he also threw three interceptions.
At Utah, he passed for 1,510 yards, 10 touchdowns and 11 interceptions while starting seven of nine games played in 2024. He appeared in only one game last season, against Colorado, and did not complete his lone pass attempt.
Scalley brushed aside the storyline of Wilson facing his former team, while noting his arm strength and understanding of the game. He also pointed out that Colorado has former Utah cornerback Jason Stokes Jr.
"He's definitely done a great job of being developed at Colorado, and (Wilson's) going to know, obviously, some things, terminology-wise, and Stokes as well," Scalley said. "Jason Stokes is going to know some things (about the offense), but at the same time, we have a feel for his strengths and weaknesses. I think at the end of the day, it's still a team game."
If Colorado is going to challenge Utah, Wilson will likely need help from Joseph Williams, who has been one of the Buffaloes' top targets with 32 catches for 454 yards and five touchdowns.
In Other News...
Yukiko Ikedo Gives Colorado A Needed Singles Boost At Regionals
Rain pushed the ITA Mountain Regional Championship qualifier indoors at the University of Utah, but Yukiko Ikedo kept Colorado moving in the right direction. The Buffaloes player won two singles matches to reach the main draw, giving the program a timely lift as it continues its push to put players into both the singles and doubles national fields.
Ikedos run included a tight finish in the qualifier before she punched her ticket through to the next stage, and now the focus shifts to the main draw and a first-round meeting with a Nevada opponent. For Colorado, having one more player still alive in the regional bracket matters, especially with national qualification still very much in play. [Read more 🡒]
Colorado May Be Missing A Key Receiving Hope Again Vs Utah
Colorados receiving group may have to keep waiting on Danny Scudero to get fully right after the bye week, with the wideout still dealing with a foot injury. Deion Sanders said Scudero remains hampered by the issue, and the expectation heading into Utah is that Colorado will have to line up without him again.
It has been a slow start either way for Scudero, whose role never quite took off before the injury added another hurdle. Through the first five games, he has only five catches for 24 yards, and Sanders did not sound certain about a quick turnaround, saying he does not know if Scudero will be back this week and expects his status to remain in question. [Read more 🡒]
Colorado Opens Tough Road Swing With Big 12 Momentum At Stake
No. 25 Colorado heads into a difficult Big 12 road swing Wednesday night at Hilton Coliseum, where the Buffs will face Iowa State with momentum and conference positioning both on the line. Colorado has been playing with the kind of edge that makes October road matches meaningful, and this one arrives after a hard-fought result that showed how much this team can lean on its depth when the pressure rises.
Iowa State brings its own challenges under Christy Johnson-Lynch, with junior libero Rachel Van Gorp and junior setter Ava Martin helping steady the Cyclones in the back row and in transition. For Colorado, the task is clear enough: handle the environment, stay sharp away from home and keep building on the recent stretch that has put the Buffs in a strong spot as the Big 12 race tightens. [Read more 🡒]