Colorado brought cooler weather with it to Tucson in a homecoming game against Arizona, and it rubbed off on the Wildcats’ offense.
Shedeur Sanders had three touchdowns, Arizona’s offense only got in the red zone once and the Buffaloes beat the Wildcats 34-7 at Arizona Stadium on Saturday.
Arizona head coach Brent Brennan credited Colorado and its head coach Deion Sanders for beating Arizona in “all three phases.”
“Obviously, we are extremely disappointed, and we have a lot of work to do. Where we’re at right now is 100% my fault, so I have to get to work fixing it,” he said.
Brent Brennan: Obviously we are extremely disappointed and we have a lot of work to do. Where we’re at right now is 100% my fault, so I have to get to work fixing it.
@AllSportsTucson pic.twitter.com/svVfHtDfVI— Kevin Murphy (@KevinMurfee) October 20, 2024
Noah Fifita was 16 of 26 for 138 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
Colorado had seven sacks on Fifita. Entering the game, Arizona had given up five all season.
Arizona’s 245 yards on offense were its lowest since 2021, and its seven points were its least scored at home since a 70-7 home loss in the Territorial Cup to Arizona State in the last game of the Kevin Sumlin era.
“Obviously, we need to play better on offense, and we need to give our quarterback and our playmakers opportunities to move the football effectively,” Brennan said.
Brent Brennan talks about some of the issues on offense Arizona had against Colorado. @AllSportsTucson pic.twitter.com/9CzlUL7eXf
— Kevin Murphy (@KevinMurfee) October 20, 2024
After Arizona (3-4, 1-3) failed to recover an onside kick on the opening kickoff, Sanders connected with LaJohntay Wester on a 46-yard pass that set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Isaiah Augustave a few plays later to put Colorado up 7-0. From there, Sanders was responsible for three touchdowns in the first half — a 1-yard shovel pass to Drelon Miller, a 17-yard pass to Will Sheppard and a 6-yard TD run.
Colorado (5-2, 3-1) had a 28 -7 lead at halftime, with a 1-yard shovel pass from Fifita to Chris Hunter late in the first quarter accounting for the Wildcats’ only points in the game.
The Buffaloes tacked on two field goals in the second half.
Sanders was 23 of 33 for 250 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions, and one rushing touchdown.
To say the Wildcats are banged up would be an understatement, especially on the defensive side of the ball.
Arizona entered the game without defensive back Treydan Stukes who suffered a season-ending knee injury against Utah on Sept. 28, and senior defensive back and team captain Gunner Maldonado, who suffered a lower-body injury against Texas Tech on Oct. 5.
The injury woes for Arizona continued on Saturday.
Redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Isiah Johnson got injured in pregame warmups, and junior linebacker Jacob Manu left the game with an injury in the first half. Redshirt freshman offensive lineman Rhino Tapa’atoutai and sophomore linebacker Kamuela Ka’aihue also suffered injuries.
Despite all of the injuries and the adversity the team is facing after hefty expectations entering the season, Fifita says the culture is intact, and there’s no finger pointing going on.
“The defense has all the right in the world to get on me and our offense because, at the end of the day, seven points will never be enough in a college football game, but they continue to just talk about what they need to do better,” he said. “So, our culture is still strong, and we’ve got to transfer it into football.”
Noah Fifita: Our culture is still strong, and we’ve got to transfer it into football. @AllSportsTucson pic.twitter.com/sxrTvOXHIp
— Kevin Murphy (@KevinMurfee) October 20, 2024
Brennan said the team was “crushed from top to bottom and everybody in between” in the locker room immediately following the game.
“My message to them is that the only way forward is together, and the only way forward is together, working hard… I know this: when you lose games, the outside world wants to pull you apart, and that’s the one thing we can’t let happen,” he said.
Brent Brennan talks about his message to the players and injuries. @AllSportsTucson pic.twitter.com/XmyBxAdZkQ
— Kevin Murphy (@KevinMurfee) October 20, 2024
Arizona plays West Virginia (3-2, 2-2) next Saturday at Arizona Stadium.
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com writer Kevin Murphy was born and raised in Tucson, and has followed Arizona Wildcats athletics since childhood. Murphy is a journalist product manager with the Green Valley News & the Sahuarita Sun. He has a bachelor’s degree from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at ASU.
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