Colorado's Sanders a centerpiece of pass-crazy Big 12 as league play gets into full swing

Published Sep. 24, 2024 1:39 p.m. ET

Associated Press

Shedeur Sanders put his stamp on Colorado's return to the Big 12 while energizing the league's reputation for prolific passers.

Sanders threw for 341 yards in an overtime win over Baylor on Saturday. His 58-yard touchdown pass started the Buffaloes’ comeback from a 14-point deficit late in the second quarter, and his 43-yard Hail Mary TD to LaJohntay Wester as time ran out in regulation forced overtime.

“I’ll do whatever it takes to win," Sanders said.

The Big 12 has two of the nation's top five passers in yards per game, and five of the top 17. Sanders, TCU's Josh Hoover and Arizona's Noah Fifita have thrown for more than 400 yards in a game. Colorado and Arizona moved over from the Pac-12 this season, along with Arizona State and No. 10 Utah.

Considering how some Big 12 secondaries are struggling, those air-raid performances could easily continue as league play gets into full swing,

Texas Tech leads the nation in passing attempts and TCU, Colorado and No. 20 Oklahoma State are in the top six. Hoover, Sanders and Texas Tech's Behren Morton are among the top six nationally in completions, all surpassing 25 per game.

The Big 12 has had more than two dozen 4,000-yard single-season passing performances, more than any other major college conference. But none have occurred in the league since Oklahoma's Kyler Murray in 2018. Sanders and Hoover are on pace to join that club.

UCF coach Gus Malzahn, who recruited Sanders out of high school when Malzahn was at Auburn, is scheduled to face Sanders on Saturday in Orlando, Florida.

“You’ve got to put pressure on him, there’s no doubt," Malzahn said. "You can just tell he’s a veteran guy. You can tell he stays calm. You can tell he’s a smart guy, too.”

Porous defenses

Defenses around the league should be nervous.

Oklahoma State and Texas Tech allow more than 280 passing yards each game, ranking near the bottom nationally. Arizona State and West Virginia have given up a league-high nine TD passes each, and the Mountaineers' 15.6 yards allowed per completion is dead last among the Power 4 conferences.

In addition, five Big 12 teams have new defensive coordinators this season. Baylor's Dave Aranda took over defensive play-calling duties and the Bears had given up two TDs and 227 passing yards.

Then Sanders went off.

“We struggled to contain him when he was running around, and we struggled to make a play when the ball was in the air,” Aranda said.

Risk and reward

High-flying offenses often need tuneups, and there's plenty that needs fixing.

Sanders was sacked eight times Saturday and opponents have 16 against the Buffaloes this season, tied for the most in the nation.

Hoover, a sophomore, is averaging 346 yards per game over his first 10 starts dating to last season, including three 400-yard performances. But in TCU's 66-42 loss to SMU, he had two interceptions and lost two fumbles that led to touchdowns.

“We’ve got to go back and figure out how you can do better, and I’m the guy at the top of the list,” Hoover said.

Oklahoma State's Alan Bowman was pulled after a miserable first half in a 22-19 loss to Utah.

“I think he got uncomfortable, then he started moving his feet around a little bit and it just snowballed,” Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said.

After backup Garret Rangel also struggled, Bowman returned in the fourth quarter and threw for two touchdowns and two 2-point conversions.

Veteran Jefferson

Arkansas transfer KJ Jefferson is already having a big impact at UCF, which is the conference’s top scoring team at nearly 46 points per game.

Jefferson led UCF from 21 points down in the third quarter in their last game to beat TCU 35-34 in their league opener. Jefferson threw two of his three TD passes in the second half despite being banged up.

“He didn’t flinch. He was real positive and he’s a tough guy,” Malzahn said. “He willed us to win in that second half. That’s what veteran quarterbacks do.”

Jefferson’s average of 17.59 yards per completion ranks third in the Bowl Subdivision.

Slow starters

Two Big 12 quarterbacks with big preseason expectations have hit some stumbling blocks.

Utah’s Cam Rising threw for a career-high five TDs in the season opener, then hurt his right hand against Baylor the following week and hasn’t played since.

Jalon Daniels of Kansas threw his seventh interception of the season at West Virginia last week and has just four TD passes.

Lone Star talent

Looking for that next top-notch quarterback? Plenty can be found in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, where Bowman, Hoover, Sanders and Cincinnati’s Brendan Sorsby went to high school. Morton attended high school about 95 miles to the west.

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