The date is Sept. 24, 2016. The Buffaloes roll into Eugene at 2-1 to play the 2-1 Oregon Ducks. Colorado has just come off a hard-fought loss in Ann Arbor, a game in which the Buffs lost their starting quarterback, senior Sefo Liufau, to injury. Highly touted freshman Steven Montez will be making the first start of his career as CU looks to capture its first win against Oregon since joining the Pac-12.
The Buffs come out of the gates red hot, scoring on their first four possessions of the game. Phillip Lindsay scores on a 1-yard run on CU’s first possession. A 24-yard Chris Graham field goal completes the second drive for the Buffaloes. Shay Fields hauls in a 7-yard touchdown pass and Montez runs in a touchdown of his own to round out the scoring in those four drives.
Oregon starts slow but is able to counter-punch a bit by ending the half scoring on three of its last four drives — two touchdowns and a field goal — to stay within striking distance of Colorado. Graham puts an end to the first half scoring with a 33-yard field goal. Halftime: 26-17, good guys.
Colorado continues its onslaught by taking the third quarter kickoff and marching the ball 75 yards in only five plays, capped off by a 48-yard strike from Montez to Devin Ross that put the Buffaloes up 33-17. But Oregon wouldn’t go down quietly as the Ducks score 21 unanswered points while the Buffs’ offense slows down. Oregon takes a 38-33 lead into the fourth quarter.
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The black and gold need to find an answer and they have to find it quick. Up to this point, you would never suspect that Montez was a freshman, as he has carved up the Ducks through the air and on the ground. Montez then steps up again in a huge way. At the 8:51 mark of the fourth, he lets loose with a 31-yard bomb to Bryce Bobo and…
Touchdown. The Buffs now lead 41-38, but can they hold on? Fast forward a few minutes and Oregon starts its final drive of the game at the 2:57 mark. The Ducks are able to march down the field and with 55 seconds remaining and produce a first-and-goal from the Buffs’ 7-yard line. Dakota Prukop takes the snap, fires a pass in the endzone and…
The Buffaloes would kneel the ball and leave Eugene with a 41-38 victory. Montez would etch his name in the history books as well, becoming the first Colorado player ever to throw for 300 yards and rush for 100 yards in the same game. Talk about putting an exclamation point on a recording breaking first start.
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