This past weekend football fans in Colorado were lucky to see four rivalry teams face off at the collegiate and professional levels.
On Saturday, Coach Deion Sanders (Coach Prime) of the (previously) number 24 ranked Colorado Buffalos faced the Nebraska Cornhuskers in Boulder for CU’s home opener. The tickets for that game skyrocketed after Coach Prime led the Buffs to their first victory of the season in Dallas last week when they defeated the runner up in last seasons National Championship, Texas Christian University (TCU).
The cheapest tickets for Saturday’s game were more expensive than tickets to all the NFL games this weekend making Boulder one of the hottest spots in football this season.
The Buffs and Cornhuskers were all defense in the first quarter with a volley of stops. By the second quarter, the Buffs capitalized on a couple turnovers which led to a field goal and later a touchdown. Just before the half, CU hit a 32 yard field goal to take a 13 – 0 lead heading into the half. In the third quarter, Nebraska cut the lead to six but
CU responded with a touchdown with just less than seven minutes left in the third to take a 20 – 7 lead over Nebraska. CU added three more before the end of the third to take a 23 – 7 lead heading into the fourth.
The Buffs added 13 more points in the fourth quarter to defeat the Nebraska Cornhuskers 36 – 14.
Colorado will now face the Colorado State Rams on Saturday, Sept. 16, at an in state rivalry, the Rocky Mountain Showdown, a tradition that has been strong in Colorado for decades. The Buffs are favorites heading into Saturday’s game, which has become a primetime game virtually overnight. The truth is, everyone in the country is intrigued by Coach Prime’s turnaround of the CU Football Program, which has instantly made the Buffs a national favorite.
While the Buffs have set the tone for exciting football in Colorado, the Denver Broncos became the anti-fun-to-watch team in the state.
On Sunday the Denver Broncos hosted the Las Vegas Raiders for their season home opener and while Coach Prime embraced the long school rivalry that Colorado shared with Nebraska for decades, it seemed as though the Broncos new head coach Sean Payton took a much different approach downplaying the rivalry between the Broncos and the Raiders.
His sentiment spilled onto the field as the Broncos lacked any excitement other than coach Payton’s failed onside attempt that kicked off the game.
That particular decision set the tone for the game and while the Broncos led at the half their inability to score in the second half resulted in a loss at home to the Las Vegas Raiders 17 – 16. Next week the Broncos will be at home to host the Washington Commanders who defeated the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday 20 – 16.
