Fatigued Buffs fall to Kansas State in icy finale

Colorado quarterback Kaidon Salter concluded a disappointing season with the Buffaloes on Saturday against the Kansas State Wildcats. (Photo by Brody Rector/Sko Buffs Sports)

MANHATTAN, Kan. — Snow blanketed Bill Snyder Family Stadium before kickoff, a fleeting moment of unpredictability for the Colorado Buffaloes. 

Their season's final game ended like most, with coach Deion Sanders staring blankly in a quiet room. He finished the worst of his three years at CU on Saturday, as his team lost 24-14 to the Kansas State Wildcats.

The defeat was formulaic in many ways. No penalties, a tied score at halftime, even a win in total yardage, but the result felt inevitable. The Buffs (3-9, 1-8 Big 12) couldn’t finish early drives and were ground down defensively. 

Colorado’s changes from last offseason hang heavy over the newborn break, as added talent continued proving its ineffectiveness against a motivated KSU (6-6, 5-4 Big 12).

The most notable newcomer, quarterback Kaidon Salter, was his usual topsy-turvy self. He finished with a 56% completion rate that didn’t mislead and one inexplicable interception.

Some questions from August will go unanswered, but the Buffaloes’ failure to put an organized product on turf was loud and clear. 

“This fanbase, the school, [Athletic Director] Rick [George], everybody deserves much better than this,” Sanders said postgame. “They expected much better than this, I expected much better than this, and we’re going to give them much better than this, starting tomorrow.”

Wide receiver Omarion Miller remained a bright spot, carrying Colorado’s air attack against the Wildcats. He grabbed seven of 12 targets for 120 yards, surpassing 800 for the season.

No other pass-catcher registered three or more catches on Saturday, largely out of answers without second-leading receiver Joseph Williams.

Colorado’s first half demonstrated heart but contained many on-brand miscues. The Buffs reached plus-territory on their first five drives but only scored on one of them.

After a methodical opening Wildcat touchdown, kicker Alejandro Mata’s 39-yard field goal was blocked. Flurries subsided after a quick first quarter, but not before the first of two CU turnovers on downs that half.

CU got by on inside runs throughout the first 30 minutes, as running back Dallan Hayden’s tough sledding produced 62 yards on 10 carries. 

It created consistent third-and-shorts but didn’t pay in full until the first half’s waning seconds. Miller took a screen pass 38 yards that set up running back Micah Welch to finally punctuate a drive and even the score at 7.

Yet what helped the Buffs at first hurt them in the second. KSU neutralized Hayden for just four yards on five attempts, including another fourth-down stuff. And while not abandoning the run, Salter was forced into more third-and-longs.

K-State strapped up and fed standout sophomore Joe Jackson, who emerged in the second half to finish with 142 yards on 26 carries. He scored all three Wildcat touchdowns, giving them a lead they didn’t surrender with four minutes left in the third quarter. 

All the while, Colorado’s offense reached one last dead end. More Miller time led to another Welch punch-in to trim KSU’s lead to 17-14, but on the lone second-half Buffs drive that eclipsed 34 yards.

The Cats whittled away time on their ensuing possession. They stamped bowl eligibility on Jackson’s longest score, a 17-yard death knell on the Buffaloes' miserable season.

A five-game losing streak and second-to-last-place Big 12 finish muddies all. The future of a program, knowing it was in a transitional phase yet hoping to remain viable, will change in short order. 

And by his choice or others’, Coach Prime anticipates a full-scale teardown.

“I see everything being different,” Sanders said. “Even me.”