2024-10-27 13:35:03
A late field goal and turnover on downs before the half were instrumental in Colorado (6-2, 4-1 Big 12) getting by Cincinnati (5-3, 3-2 Big 12) to reach bowl eligibility for the first time since 2016 (not including the 2020 season).
Trailing 17-14 before the half, Cincinnati was stuffed on a fourth-down conversion, giving Colorado the ball near midfield with 30 seconds left. Shedeur Sanders connected with Travis Hunter for the second time to take a 10-point lead into the break.
Cincinnati cut Colorado’s lead to 31-23 late in the fourth quarter, but the Buffaloes put the game away with a 47-yard Alejandro Mata field goal with 1:39 left in regulation.
Hunter showed all abilities, catching nine passes for 153 yards and two touchdowns on offense with four pass breakups on defense. Sanders was 25-30 for 323 yards and the touchdown passes to Hunter. Sanders also scored a rushing touchdown. Isaiah Augustave had 91 yards on the ground, also scoring a touchdown.
Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby was 16-30 for 180 yards and two touchdowns. Corey Kiner was held to 32 yards at halftime, but finished the night with 94 yards on 17 rushes. Evan Pryor scored a rushing touchdown. Joe Royer and Tony Johnson had touchdown receptions.
Colorado kicker Alejandro Mata narrowly kicked a 47-yard field goal attempt over the crossbar to give the Buffaloes a 34-23 lead over Cincinnati with just 1:39 left in the game.
In just three plays after Cincinnati got to within a score of the Buffaloes, Colorado went from its 11-yard line to the Cincinnati 30. The drive began with a 34-yard pass from Shedeur Sanders to Travis Hunter who hauled in the pass despite a Cincinnati pass interference.
Hunter has had nine catches for 153 yards and two touchdowns.
Tight end Joe Royer caught a six-yard pass from Brendan Sorsby to bring Cincinnati to within a score against Colorado. With 3:51 left in regulation, Cincinnati went for a two-point conversion but failed.
With 7:30 left in the fourth quarter, Cincinnati will take over on offense again. Cincinnati forced a Colorado three-and-out and will take over at its 19-yard line down two scores.
Cincinnati got as far as the Colorado 11-yard line before a 32-yard field goal try by Nathan Hawks. Hawks converted the kick, leaving the Bearcats trailing the Buffaloes by a pair of scores with 9:20 left in regulation.
The Bearcats have a three-score deficit to conquer at Colorado with one quarter to go. Cincinnati has possession at its 17 to begin the final 15 minutes.
A three-and-out that netted negative yardage resulted in another Cincinnati punt. The Buffaloes take over again at their 33.
A seven-yard run by Isaiah Augustave has Colorado up by 17 against Cincinnati.
Brendan Sorsby threw behind receiver Jamoi Mayes and was nearly intercepted on third-and-two from the Cincinnati 33 by Travis Hunter. Instead, the Bearcats punted back to the Buffaloes who took over at their 38-yard line.
Colorado punted for the first time in the opening possession of the second half. The Buffaloes got down to the Cincinnati 44-yard line, but punted to end the possession. The Bearcats were pinned at their own six-yard line.
The Colorado Buffaloes forced a big swing by stopping Cincinnati on fourth down with 30 seconds before the break. The Buffaloes went 54 yards in just five plays and 28 seconds, ending with Travis Hunter’s second touchdown of the day.
Hunter has seven receptions in the first half for 113 yards. Quarterback Shedeur Sanders is 18-21 for 219 yards and two passing scores with another on the ground.
Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby is 5-10 for 85 yards and a touchdown throw to Tony Johnson. Evan Pryor has a rushing score for the Bearcats. Corey Kiner has been held to 32 yards on nine rushes.
Colorado’s Travis Hunter hauled in his second touchdown reception of the night, catching a 34-yard pass from Shedeur Sander with just three seconds left before halftime.
Colorado gets possession of the ball to begin the third quarter.
The Colorado Buffaloes stopped Brendan Sorsby on a 4th-and-1 run to take over at their 46 with 30 seconds on the clock and all three timeouts.
With two minutes until halftime, Cincinnati has the ball and will face a second-and-13 at their own 42-yard line.
The Bearcats will kick to begin the second half.
The Cincinnati defense forced Shedeur Sanders’ first two incompletions of the night to limit the Buffaloes to a 28-yard field goal. Alejandro Mata was successful on the attempt.
A pass interference penalty on what was an intercepted Sorsby throw put Cincinnati at the Colorado 14-yard line. One play later, Evan Pryor tied the game with a touchdown run up the middle.
Snapped just before the clock ended on the first quarter, Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders kept the ball and scrambled for a four-yard touchdown. The Buffaloes lead 14-7 with three quarters to go.
After a three-and-out on the first drive, Cincinnati found the endzone on the second try. Helped set up by a 40-yard pass from Brendan Sorsby to Evan Pryor, Tony Johnson caught a six-yard pass from Sorsby for the score. Nathan Hawks tied the game with the extra point.
Travis Hunter hauled in a three-yard strike from Shedeur Sanders to give Colorado a 7-0 lead on the team’s first possession of the game.
On a third-and-13, Colorado looked to score on a 57-yard touchdown reception by Jimmy Horn Jr. On his way to the endzone, Horn Jr. put up a peace sign to a Bearcats defender for a live ball foul, taking away the score.
On the game’s first possession, Cincinnati had a pair of incomplete passes and a Corey Kiner rush for no gain for a three-and-out. Colorado will begin at its 36 after a punt.
The Cincinnati Bearcats won the coin toss and opted to receive the opening kick on the road at Colorado.
To begin Saturday, the Cincinnati Bearcats were 6.5-point underdogs on the road against Colorado according to DraftKings. With around an hour remaining before the scheduled kickoff, the line has moved one-half of a point in Cincinnati’s favor, making the Bearcats six-point underdogs. The point total has remained as 57 points.
What does the scouting report say about Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders?
One of the three keys to the game will be limiting the signal caller who is among the top quarterbacks in completions, passing yards, touchdowns and more.
Cincinnati’s road trip to Colorado will be just the second meeting between the two schools.
Cincinnati visited No. 2 Colorado of the Big 8 conference on Sept. 16, 1972. Colorado won 56-14 before finishing 8-4, losing to Auburn in the Gator Bowl. The Bearcats finished 2-9 following a 2-2 start to the season.
Here are five things to watch for as the Bearcats hit the road to meet Colorado in a primetime matchup against the Buffaloes, including a healthy Travis Hunter ready play on offense and defense and the Bearcats balancing rushes from Corey Kiner and passes from Brendan Sorsby on the offensive game plan.
The Buffaloes with Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter are the No. 7 passing offense, while UC with Sorsby, Corey Kiner and Evan Pryor are the No. 52 rushing offense. The Bearcats’ overall offense is No. 24 in the country, averaging 451.4 yards per game, while the Buffaloes are 64th at 398.6.
Watch Cincinnati Bearcats football vs. Colorado on ESPN.com/watch
This section will be updated when the game begins.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | ||
| CINCINNATI | 7 | 7 | 0 | 9 | — | 23 |
| COLORADO | 14 | 10 | 7 | 3 | — | 34 |
Cincinnati vs. Colorado will be broadcast nationally on ESPN with Mark Jones on play-by-play, Roddy Jones as analyst and Quint Kessenich on the sideline. 700WLW features Hall of Famers Dan Hoard on play-by-play and former UC receiver Jim Kelly on color. Former Bearcats quarterback Tony Pike is the sideline reporter with Mo Egger as host/engineer of the broadcast.
In August, I picked Colorado to win in my season picks as I thought it would be a difficult atmosphere. While I think the game is more winnable than originally expected, the Bearcats are going to have to shut out a potent passing attack after facing three top-notch runners in a row (Tahj Brooks of Texas Tech, R.J. Harvey of UCF and Cam Skattebo of Arizona State). Turnovers would be fortuitous to get a win that would make them bowl-eligible with four games left on the docket. That said, I’ll stick with my original score with UC on the road in a different time zone.
Prediction: Colorado 30, Cincinnati 27
Game lines and odds from DraftKings as of Saturday:
Cincinnati Bearcats linebacker Jared Bartlett is tied for the team lead in tackles with Antwan Peek Jr. He was dinged up on Cam Skattebo’s second touchdown last week vs. Arizona State but is believed to be OK.
For Colorado, all-purpose Deion Sanders-like player Travis Hunter is also projected back after sitting out parts of the last two games with a shoulder injury.
“Travis is better than last week,” Sanders said at his weekly news conference in Boulder. “I think he’ll have more productivity because he’s feeling much better than last week. You can just tell with his little giddy-up and the way he goes about life, a little more pep in his step.”
From the Weather Channel, sunny skies are expected with a high of 74 in Boulder on Saturday, and evening lows will dip to 47 degrees. Kickoff temperature is forecast to be 58 degrees.
Buy Cincinnati Bearcats football tickets this season with with GoBearcats.com
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