A week after letting go of its run game in a loss at Oklahoma State, Colorado refused to let go of it on Saturday night. The Buffaloes ran 43 times and threw only 21 passes, riding that commitment to a 27-24 overtime victory over Kansas State on Halloween.
After halftime, Colorado ran 27 times for 132 yards. In the fourth quarter, the Buffaloes did not attempt a single pass, rushing 14 times for 58 yards. Then in overtime, they handed off four straight times before quarterback Isaac Wilson faked one more run and threw the winning touchdown.
The approach was a sharp reversal from the previous week in Stillwater, Oklahoma, where Colorado ran just nine times for minus-1 yard in the second half and watched the game get away. This time, the biggest run of the day came with the score tied 7-7 in the third quarter, when JaQuail Smith broke free for a 47-yard touchdown.
Coach Deion Sanders said Wilson noticed the difference and came to him during the game. "He said, 'Coach, the running game is phenomenal. I don't really have to do much,'" Sanders said. "I said, 'That's the point. That's what we've been trying to do every game, every week.'"
Wilson viewed the performance as a return to form. In Colorado's only other FBS win this season, a 14-13 victory at Georgia Tech in the opener, the Buffaloes ran 49 times. Letting Smith and Richard Young "eat like that really shows that we have a run game, and we did that against Georgia Tech, and we're bringing it back," Wilson said. "Yeah, coaches really preached pounding the rock, so that's what we were going to do."
Much of the plan came down to the big bodies up front. Colorado spent much of the afternoon in 13 personnel, with three tight ends on the field, and tight end Charlie Williams said the group understood what that meant before kickoff. "So we know we're going to run the ball. We know that we're a big part of this offense," Williams said. "We're kind of the Swiss Army Knife."
On defense, lineman Yamil Talib picked a good day for his best game. He had two of Colorado's five sacks, both in the first half, and finished with eight tackles. His first sack, on third down, closed out the second of three straight three-and-outs to open the game. Linebacker Gideon Lampron said Talib had been "hurt for a decent amount of the season" and credited him for stepping up in a conference game. Sanders called Talib "a kid that does not complain, wants to win, comes from a great family of football." Kansas State, which had won all four of its games when it reached 200 rushing yards, finished with 121 and is now 0-4 when falling short of that mark.
Kansas State's quarterback for most of the afternoon was a Colorado kid. Blake Barnett, the second-year passer from Erie, replaced Dillon Duff late in the first quarter and went 18-of-28 for 224 yards and three touchdowns, including the tying score with two seconds left in regulation. Colorado safety Randon Fontenette said he did not realize Barnett was a local product. "I didn't know that. He's going to be a good quarterback," Fontenette said. "I mean, the game slowed down for him as the game went on."
After Barnett's late touchdown, Colorado called timeout as Kansas State lined up to go for two points and the win. Following the stoppage, the Wildcats opted to kick the extra point instead. "We waited for them to set it up and show us, and we took the timeout so we could see it," Sanders said. "We just wanted to see it." Sanders said he was not surprised Kansas State coach Collin Klein settled for the tie, "because the coach is just like me. He's trying to win a game."
In overtime, Boo Carter broke up Barnett's third-down pass in the end zone, forcing the Wildcats to settle for a field goal. Makari Vickers had seven tackles and forced a fumble on a punt return in the first quarter, though Kansas State recovered. Lampron said the Buffaloes played for teammate Julian Lewis, who was hospitalized this week. "It's more than just for us," Lampron said.
