College Football

Colorado looks to extend winning streak over Stanford to four in a row

Published Oct. 12, 2023 2:21 p.m. ET

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A win over Stanford (1-4) would move Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes (4-2) a step closer to bowl eligibility after the team went 1-11 last season. The Buffaloes haven’t won a bowl game since 2004.

Stanford, coming off a bye week, is looking to avoid its worst overall start since 2006, when the Cardinal began 0-9. They’ve lost three straight to Colorado by a combined 11 points. Their last win over the Buffaloes was in 2015 and featured San Francisco 49ers running back and Denver native Christian McCaffrey.

Key matchup

The Cardinal offense continues to search for ways to get the ball in the end zone. Stanford is ranked first in conference for field goals (11) and 12th for touchdowns (nine). The Cardinal's 19.2 points per game would be the lowest since 1996 (19 points per game), according to Pac-12 research. They face a Colorado defense that has allowed the most touchdowns in the Pac-12. The Buffaloes have seen opponents score 35-plus points in four of six games.

Players to watch 

Stanford's Justin Lamson, a dual-threat quarterback who made his first start against Oregon. He had 22 carries in the 42-6 loss to No. 8 Oregon, the most by a Pac-12 QB since Tyler Huntley had 25 for Utah versus West Virginia in 2017.

Colorado receiver Xavier Weaver has 507 yards receiving through six games. He’s the first Buffaloes player since 2019 to eclipse the 500-yards receiving mark for a season.

Facts & figures

The Cardinal are 1-17 in the past 18 league games. Stanford's last win was over Arizona State on Oct. 22, 2022. Stanford hasn’t won coming off a bye since 2018 and has allowed 40-plus points twice this season and seven times over the past two seasons.

Meanwhile, the Buffaloes are 3-0 against unranked teams this season. Colorado went 1-7 last season, and are 17-35 in conference home games since joining the Pac-12. Offensively, Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders leads the country in yards passing with 2,020 and Buffaloes kicker Alejandro Mata was named the league’s special teams player of the week. 

Sanders has nothing but respect for first-year Stanford coach Troy Taylor. "He’s doing a great job to me," Sanders said. "He’s doing his thing. They’re playing hard. They have fight in them."

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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