Colorado secures bowl berth in year two under Deion Sanders.

Colorado will bowl in Year 2 under coach Deion Sanders.

The Buffaloes won their sixth game and earned bowl eligibility late Saturday night, defeating Cincinnati 34-23 at home, putting them on track to be a Big 12 contender next month.

Shedeur Sanders set a school record by completing his first 15 passes of the game, throwing for 323 yards, and scoring three touchdowns to lead the Buffaloes. The win ensures that the star quarterback’s second season in Boulder concludes with the program’s first bowl game since 2020.

“It’s cute, it really is. Because we really want that, but that’s not all we’re after,” said Deion Sanders. “That’s one of the hurdles that we’re jumping over and going over.

Deion Sanders’ impact on Colorado’s football program:

“That’s a tremendous hurdle that we’re happy, we’re excited, but that’s not the end goal for us. That’s the beginning, but we are thankful and appreciative that the hard work is going noticed.”

Shedeur Sanders stated that he battled the sickness all week and had only one day of practice before facing the Bearcats. He went 25 for 30 that night, connecting with two-way sensation Travis Hunter nine times for 153 yards and two scores. Afterwards, his father asked aloud why he is “not even mentioned” in the Heisman Trophy competition.

“It just really doesn’t matter; it’s just weird for me,” says Sanders. “It just seems amusing to me. I just don’t believe it’s wise; it’s hilarious for us since Shedeur doesn’t care. Shelter wishes to be drafted into the gorgeous city. Wants to win. This is what he thinks about. He ain’t thinking about Heisman, man.”

“Now, Travis is the best college football player in the country. We all know that. Why are we even deliberating over that? What are we doing? Like, when does that change? So what’s the criteria? Somebody needs to say what’s the criteria of that prestigious award.

Because we’re looking at the best high school football player that — there hasn’t been a Travis Hunter ever. Ever. And I’m sitting up here saying that.

For the second consecutive week, Colorado was able to balance out its offense attack with a 100-yard running performance. Isaiah Augustave – an Arkansas transfer – paced the Buffaloes with 93 of their 123 yards in what Deion Sanders called a “conscious effort” to run the ball more.

Colorado’s Journey to Securing a Bowl Berth

The Buffs scored on five of their first six offensive drives to roll to a 31-14 lead and held off a fourth-quarter rally by Cincinnati (5-3, 3-2) in a battle of Big 12 contenders that have surprised after being picked to finish 11th and 14th, respectively, in the league’s preseason media poll.

Colorado hadn’t accumulated six victories since 2016 and hadn’t appeared in a bowl game since the end of the shortened 2020 season at the end of the pandemic-reduced Pac-12 schedule.

The Buffaloes had been one of only two conference teams that accepted to play in a bowl game that winter, losing 55-23 to Texas in the Valero Alamo Bowl to close their 2020 season at 4-2.

“We arent approaching the season looking at this schedule like, ‘Hey, we’re only gonna win six games,’” Sanders said. “That isnt what happened. The truth is, we did. It just trusts our process that we’re using, and we’re not even hitting our peak. Nowhere close.”

Coming off a 4-8 first season and another summer of roster building through the transfer portal, Sanders puts Colorado in line to at least be relevant in Big 12 Conference championship conversation.

The only two undefeated teams in the Big 12 are BYU (8-0, 5-0) and Iowa State (7-0, 4-0). Kansas State is third at 7-1, 4-1, and Colorado is fourth. Kansas State won at Boulder on Oct. 12, 31-28, but Colorado does not play BYU or Iowa State in the regular season.

The Buffaloes next have a bye week, but will wrap up their schedule against Texas Tech, Utah, Kansas, and Oklahoma State. All four of the remaining opponents on Colorado’s schedule lost Saturday.

This team is focused on one game at a time and isn’t thinking about College Football Playoff run, Deion Sanders said, then directed a plea to reporters and coaches who vote in the weekly polls. Five Associated Press Top 25 teams losing Saturday could potentially clear the way for Colorado to enter the rankings.

“We don’t even want to be ranked. Don’t rank us, please,” he said. “We don’t like that. We’d rather be at the back, in the dark, just chilling in the cut. We good, we cool, we straight. So don’t feel pressure to rank us.”

He plans on giving the game ball to Peggy Coppom, 99 years old and known as a superfan from Colorado who has attended the games since the 1940s. Sanders had promised her that he would take “Miss Peggy” to a bowl game as a birthday present on her 100th birthday.

Coppom was unable to attend the Cincinnati game while dealing with COVID-19, Sanders said, but Colorado athletic director Rick George called her from the locker room after the victory.

“We told her she’s going to a bowl,” Sanders said. “Now we want to make sure she goes to the best possible bowl that she could possibly go to. That means a lot to us, that really does. She was so appreciative and thankful. She means so much to this program, so we’re glad we could honor her in that.”.

“we’re gonna simply charter a private plane to get her over there comfortably, yeah, you can promise that we won’t put Peggy on some cattle-class plane