Buffs blown out, lose fourth straight to Oklahoma State
STILLWATER, Okla.— After 30 minutes, the Buffaloes were firing on all cylinders.
Colorado scored 24 first-half points, put together 279 yards of offense and quarterback Isaac Wilson was nearly perfect. Despite bending, the defense refused to break, forcing three red zone field goals.
In the next 30 minutes, the Buffs’ (2-5,0-4 Big 12) wheels came off.
CU was shut out, had 120 yards in the second half, and Wilson turned the ball over three costly times. The defense allowed 34 points and 286 yards. The result was a 57-24 blowout loss to the Oklahoma State Cowboys (5-2, 3-1) on its homecoming Saturday at Boone Pickens.
“This stuff hurts, man,” head coach Deion Sanders said after the game. “We couldn’t score in the second half, and we couldn’t stop them from scoring … we couldn’t keep up with our opposition.”
Overall, the Buffaloes gave up 598 total yards, including 410 passing yards, against OSU’s fifth-ranked passing offense. Quarterback Drew Mestemaker threw for 386 yards and four touchdowns.
The Buffaloes forced only two punts, including one three-and-out.
Wilson threw for 280 yards, 222 in the first half, and scored three touchdowns: two passing and one rushing. The Utah transfer threw the most to receiver Joseph Williams, racking up 135 yards on nine receptions.
Colorado also ran up penalties, with 11 for 84 yards. Eight of them were in the second half.
“We’re so disciplined in this and that … and every darn thing we do, but it seems as soon as we go on the field we’re not disciplined,” Sanders said. “I really don’t understand it.”
Two teams known for slow starts offensively came out of the tunnel hot.
Oklahoma State opened the game going 75 yards in three plays, capping the opening drive with a 47-yard touchdown. Mestemaker found receiver Miles Coleman wide open, with no Buffs defenders within 10 yards.
But Colorado answered with their second-longest drive of the season.
On its opening series, after losing five yards on second down, the Buffaloes converted on fourth-and-1, with Wilson pitching it out to JaQuail Smith for six yards. Smith finished with 39 rushing yards, the most of any Buff.
After the conversion, Wilson and the offense stepped on the gas.
Rolling out to his opposite side, Wilson found Williams for a 26-yard strike after two four-yard gains on first and second down.
Following a holding penalty, the Wilson-to-Williams connection continued, with Williams catching an 18-yard pass on first-and-20. Wilson and Damian Henderson II combined for three yards to get another first down before Wilson rushed nine more to put the Buffs four yards from paydirt.
Rolling out to his right, Wilson found Smith in the end zone for a touchdown. Wilson was a perfect 6-for-6 on the Buffaloes' first drive.
After giving up a touchdown in three plays, the Buffaloes forced Oklahoma State’s only three-and-out and the first of two punts on the ensuing drive.
Colorado took advantage.
The Buffaloes quickly stampeded into Cowboy territory, with a 23-yard dot to Williams run putting them at the 25-yard line. After no gain on the next two downs, Wilson evaded two OSU rushers and scampered for 13 yards.
After back-to-back negative plays, Wilson threaded the needle to DeAndre Moore Jr., throwing over a Cowboy defender's head for six points.
At the end of the first, the Buffaloes led 14-7 against one of the Big 12’s best squads. They had 111 yards through the air, with 45 on the ground
But the Cowboys wouldn’t wilt.
On the second quarter’s first drive, Oklahoma State settled for a field goal after Mestemaker was called for an untimely intentional grounding. Colorado followed up with a three-and-out, and Mestemaker and the Pokes capitalized.
In two plays, OSU was knocking on the door after a 52-yard Mestemaker moonshot to Justin Bowick. Mestemaker found Bowick again two plays later for the touchdown, retaking the lead 17-14. Bowick finished with 138 yards on five receptions.
The Buffaloes followed suit, also going three plays to get into goal-to-go range. The Wilson-to-Williams connection accounted for 66 yards before three tush-pushes punched Wilson into the end zone, with Colorado taking a 21-17 lead.
Colorado and Oklahoma State then traded field goals before the Cowboys ended the half with another 3 points, cutting Colorado’s lead to 24-23.
At the half, there was a shootout in Stillwater — until Colorado ran out of bullets.
On the first play of the second half, Oklahoma State stripped Wilson on a quarterback keeper in its territory.
“Coming out and fumbling in the second half, as a team, I don’t feel like we ever recovered,” Sanders said.
A roughing-the-passer penalty put OSU on Colorado’s 3-yard line, and Mestemaker found Enai White for a walk-in touchdown, Mestemaker’s third of the day. After a penalty-riddled subsequent Colorado drive, Oklahoma State went 78 yards in eight plays for another touchdown.
In a blink, the Buffaloes fell behind by two scores, and they never recovered. In the third quarter, Colorado had only 35 yards, after nearly 300 in the first half.
After Wilson’s first interception at the end of the third quarter, Oklahoma State kicked its fourth field goal of the day, extending its lead to 16.
Colorado responded with a three-and-out before Mestemaker threw his fourth and final touchdown of the day on a free play after the Buffaloes jumped offside.
Wilson threw his final interception on the next drive, and Oklahoma State kicked another field goal off the turnover.
It was all but over after the Buffaloes trailed 50-24 with seven minutes left. But Colorado couldn’t stop Oklahoma State’s second-stringers, who punched in another touchdown six minutes later to finalize the 57-24 rout.
Colorado returns to Boulder to face the Kansas State Wildcats on Halloween. Kickoff from Folsom Field is set for 12 p.m. MT (TNT).
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