Despite having plenty of talent, the Colorado Buffaloes weren’t projected by many to perform well in the Pac-12 or even make a bowl game heading into this season.
However, after an opening week stunner against TCU on the road, which included many notable performances, the Buffs are changing that narrative. In the first of many bowl predictions by Brad Crawford of 247Sports, he has the Buffs going to the First Responder Bowl and facing Illinois. Here’s what Crawford wrote on head coach Deion Sanders’ 1-0 Buffs:
Remember when oddsmakers placed Colorado’s win total at 3.5? Sanders and the Buffaloes might trump that projection during the first month of the season. No team in Week 1 was more impressive than Colorado after an offensive explosion at TCU. There are three early dark-horse Heisman candidates on offense alone — quarterback Shedeur Sanders, two-way player Travis Hunter and freshman phenom Dylan Edwards. The Pac-12 title race may have an unexpected contender in 2023 led by a first-year coach.
While the First Responder Bowl isn’t exactly the most exciting, making a bowl game in general after a 1-11 season and a complete roster overhaul would be a massive accomplishment.
Jerry Palm of CBS Sports also has the Buffs heading to the LA Bowl to face Fresno State:
.@jppalmCBS projects Colorado to face Fresno State in the LA Bowl https://t.co/HicKuV84Mn
— Jack Carlough (@Jack_Carlough) September 4, 2023
Contact/Follow us @BuffaloesWire on X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Colorado news, notes and opinions.