Colorado awarded multiple week one Big 12 honors

Lamont Lester Jr. earned weekly honors in his first game with the Buffaloes. (Photo by Aspen Doust/Sko Buffs Sports)

The Colorado Buffaloes (1-0, 0-0 Big 12) earned multiple honors after its 14-13 win over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in week one. 

On the individual front, Lamont Lester Jr. won Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week, and Boo Carter won Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week. Both of them made their Colorado debuts after transferring from the Monmouth Hawks and Tennessee Volunteers, respectively. The conference also named Colorado the Defensive Line of the Week. 

The Buffaloes limited Georgia Tech to just 51 rushing yards on 30 attempts, their fewest rushing yards in a game since No. 1 Georgia held the Yellow Jackets to 40 in 2022. The defense did not surrender a touchdown, either, as the Yellow Jackets’ sole touchdown came on a 100-yard kick return from Rahkeem Smith. 

Lester recorded three sacks for 22 yards of loss on just 12 passing-play snaps. His three sacks were the most from a Colorado player in a single game since Nate Landman had three in 2020. All three of his sacks helped force Yellow Jacket punts, and he was credited with a shared tackle for loss on a third-down stop in the fourth quarter. He was also Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded edge in week one, with a 99.9 rating out of 100. 

"A lot of these guys are great players where they came from," Colorado head coach Deion Sanders said of Lester in his postgame press conference. "That's why we got them. Football is football to me. I don't give a darn who's out there on the other side."

Carter registered two tackles and made the game-winning block on Aiden Birr’s field goal attempt. He also recovered a fumble by Georgia Tech wide receiver Jordan Allen in the first quarter that set up an eight-play Colorado drive to the 1-yard line.

"I did one in practice before, so it's just the mental prep," Carter said of the block. "I timed it pretty well."

Colorado didn’t come away with any Big 12 weekly awards in 2025, so this trifecta lays the foundation for improvement from a 3-9 record a year ago. The Buffaloes host the Weber State Wildcats in week two on Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled from Folsom Field at 1:30 p.m MT (ESPN+).