The Colorado Buffaloes head into Friday night with their season hanging in the balance. After falling to the Arizona State Sun Devils in Week 10, Colorado needs three wins over its final three games to lock up bowl eligibility, and the first hurdle is a daunting one: No. 14 Houston.
The matchup comes with the Buffaloes installed as heavy underdogs, and ESPN Analytics gives Colorado just a 17 percent chance to win. Still, if the Buffs are going to spring the upset, it figures to start with the players who have carried them most often this season.
On offense, that means wide receiver Joseph Williams. He has been Colorado’s most reliable weapon, piling up 58 catches for 853 yards and six touchdowns on the year.
He was just as dangerous against Arizona State, finishing with seven receptions for 121 yards and a touchdown in the loss. If Colorado can get one of its running backs going to give the offense another layer, Williams could be enough to keep the Buffaloes in the fight.
The challenge, though, is Houston’s offense. The Cougars bring one of the conference’s most productive units into the game, and it runs through quarterback Conner Weigman.
He has put together a quietly elite season, throwing for 2,280 yards and 22 touchdowns against only two interceptions while completing 170 of 257 passes. He’s also been a threat in the red zone on the ground, adding 279 rushing yards and seven scores on 73 carries.
As a team, Houston is averaging 470.2 yards per game, which ranks third in the Big 12, and 35.4 points per game, good for fifth in the league. That puts a heavy burden on Colorado’s defense, which will need a far sharper performance than usual to slow the Cougars down.
For the Buffaloes, the key is pressure. Their pass rush will have to do the heavy lifting, because the secondary has not shown it can consistently handle passing attacks on its own, especially with safety Naeten Mitchell back on the injury report. Santana Hopper, Lamont Lester Jr., Toby Anene and Yamil Talib will be the names tasked with getting to Weigman and disrupting Houston’s rhythm.
If Weigman gets comfortable, Colorado could be in for a long night. But if the Buffaloes can rattle him early and feed off the energy at Folsom Field, they still have a path to making this one competitive.
In Other News...
Colorado Faces Another Tough Home Test Against A Surging Houston Offense
Houston heads into another Big 12 road test with momentum and a quarterback playing cleaner football than he did a year ago. The No. 17 Cougars have built a 7-2 record and sit 4-2 in conference play, and Connor Weigman has been a big part of that rise with sharper passing numbers and fewer interceptions as the season has worn on.
Colorado, meanwhile, is trying to steady itself at 3-6 overall and 1-5 in league play, which makes this matchup feel like another measuring stick for a Houston team trying to stay in the conference race. The Cougars have already shown they can travel with confidence, but this one still carries the kind of challenge that can expose a team if the offense is a step off its usual pace. [Read more 🡒]
Colorado Recruiting Buzz Suddenly Centers On Deion Sanders Future
LiMarcus Jones gave Colorado a brief scare this week when he backed off his pledge to the Buffaloes, only to recommit within 24 hours. The quick turnaround kept the spotlight on a class that has continued to show public support for Deion Sanders, with several 2027 recruits, including Andre Adams and Dewey Young, using the Play for Prime hashtag as the Buffaloes try to keep momentum around the program.
Even with that buzz, the recruiting picture around Colorados next game has been quieter than the online chatter suggests. No recruits are expected to visit for the Houston matchup, and Jones has indicated that the staff around Sanders is expected to stay in place after the season, a detail that matters as much to future prospects as any social media post. [Read more 🡒]
Colorado Suddenly Has A Special Teams Problem Before Houston
Colorados special teams picture got a lot murkier heading into its meeting with Houston after starting kicker Elliot Arnold was downgraded from questionable to doubtful following an injury suffered against Arizona State. The Buffaloes had already been managing the situation after the roughing-the-kicker hit, and now they are bracing for a game in which field position and routine kicking work could matter just as much as anything else on the field.
Daniel Gerlach has stepped in at placekicker, but Colorado is still sorting out who will handle kickoff duties, leaving one more layer of uncertainty for a unit that needs to be steady against the Cougars. For a team trying to keep its special teams from becoming a liability, the timing is less than ideal, especially with Houston waiting and every hidden-yardage play likely to loom large. [Read more 🡒]