No. 20 Colorado and host Texas Tech have their sights set on a trip to the Big 12 Championship when they square off Saturday afternoon in Lubbock, Texas.
Colorado (6-2, 4-1 Big 12) is tied for second place with Iowa State, and Texas Tech (6-3, 4-2) is tied with four other teams with two Big 12 losses.
Texas Tech traveled to Ames, Iowa, last week as a 13-point underdog and handed Iowa State its first loss of the season. The Red Raiders beat the Cyclones 23-22 when Behren Morton led a 71-yard scoring drive that Tahj Brooks capped with a touchdown run with only 20 seconds remaining.
Morton has thrown for 2,300 yards and 19 touchdowns against five interceptions. His quarterback rating is 136.1. Brooks has 1,047 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. Josh Kelly has 68 catches for 736 yards and five touchdowns.
Under coach Joey McGuire, Texas Tech has a 9-2 record in November and December.
“We face a daunting task playing a team coming off a huge upset,” Colorado coach Deion Sanders said. “I won’t call it an upset though, because I know Joey and know they felt like they would go in there and do what they did.”
In his third season leading the Texas Tech program, McGuire has lofty postseason expectations.
“We didn’t want to just get bowl eligible in November,” McGuire said. “It’s awesome that we did that. But, playing a game that keeps you in the mix is what we face on Saturday. If we take care of business Saturday, then we are still in the mix to try and get to Arlington and that’s the ultimate goal as far as pushing the program forward.”
The Buffaloes were on a bye last week. They beat Cincinnati 34-23 on Oct. 16 when Shedeur Sanders threw for 323 yards and two touchdowns and Travis Hunter had nine catches for 153 yards and two touchdowns.
Shedeur Sanders has thrown for 2,591 yards and completed over 73 percent of his passes. He has 21 passing touchdowns, six interceptions and has been sacked 25 times. His patience in the pocket has allowed playmakers Hunter, LaJohntay Wester and Jimmy Horn Jr. to rack up impressive receiving statistics. Two-way star Hunter has 60 catches for 757 yards and eight touchdowns; Wester has 501 yards and seven touchdowns; and Horn Jr. has 434 yards. Colorado has five players who average double-digit yards per catch.
“I believe we are facing two of the best college football players in the country,” McGuire said. “Travis Hunter is probably the leader in the Heisman Trophy race right now and is a generational player. You have to go a long way back to find a guy that can take over 100 snaps on Saturday and play at an elite level. Then, in my opinion Shedeur Sanders is the best quarterback in college football. If I was an NFL GM, he would be the first pick in the draft.”
Colorado has won its last two road games by 27 points each. Deion Sanders said the Buffaloes have been focused and embraced the challenge of playing on the road.
“Every game is a playoff game for us,” he said. “Every game is the Super Bowl to us. We are in a single-elimination tournament, and we are approaching every game with passion, purpose, consistency, focus and a dog-like attitude.”
