The Colorado Buffaloes were one Hail Mary away from the season's biggest Big 12 upset with a win over Utah. But the Hail Mary fell incomplete, and the Buffaloes ended up with their fourth loss of the year.
They continue the pursuit of their first conference win of the season against Oklahoma State, which just dropped out of both national polls after a close loss to Houston last week. The Cowboys are led by quarterback Drew Mestemaker, who is top-10 in the FBS in passing yards and passing touchdowns.
Colorado would like to have quarterback play like that. Their defense proves every week that it's an elite unit, but the offense cannot seem to get going, except for the first drive of the second half against the Utes.
If the Buffaloes want to pull
off an upset this week against Oklahoma State, they must do five things right.
Better quarterback play
The greatest limitation on Colorado’s offense is quarterback play. Julian Lewis wasn't the answer, so the Buffaloes turned to Isaac Wilson. He did not have a stellar game against Utah, completing 60 percent of his passes for 256 yards and 8.5 yards per attempt. His overall quarterback rating was 38, which never wins football games. If Colorado wants to compete with any remaining Big 12 team on their schedule, they either need Wilson to play better or to try another quarterback. However, switching quarterbacks at this point in the season probably wouldn't end well.
No turnovers
This is key to every game because turnovers kill momentum and drives. Utah scored 10 points off Colorado’s two turnovers last week, and that difference won the game. Any upset requires taking care of the football, and the Buffaloes haven't done that well this season. They haven't gone a game without a turnover since the season-opening win against Georgia Tech. If Colorado holds onto the ball and does not turn it over, they can give themselves a real chance in this game.
Get pressure on Mestemaker
Drew Mestemaker is at his worst under duress. So far this year, he has six interceptions. He typically throws those interceptions when he is under pressure and trying to force the ball downfield. If Colorado can get in the backfield and make Mestemaker uncomfortable, they could force him into a turnover or two, which would help them pull off an upset.
Get Joseph Williams involved
While it is important to spread the ball around and have multiple receiving threats, there is no denying Joseph Williams is Colorado's best offensive player. In the loss to Utah, he caught only five passes for 54 yards. Williams is the Buffaloes’ top playmaker. He has amazing hands to catch jump balls and will undoubtedly be Oklahoma State’s top concern. Still, good offensive coordinators find a way to get the ball to their top playmaker. Colorado needs to do that in this game.
Colorado needs to run the ball
Their offense is most successful when they can establish the run. Through the first three weeks, Oklahoma State's run defense looked really good. But in the past three weeks, including against run-heavy West Virginia, they have given up an average of over 200 rushing yards per game. Colorado can exploit this because it plays right into what it's supposed to do best. It doesn't necessarily matter who does it, but one of Colorado’s running backs needs to get a lot of rushing yards in this game, as it is a prime opportunity for someone to hit at least 100 rushing yards.
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This article originally appeared on Buffaloes Wire: Five keys to a Colorado road upset over Oklahoma State in Week 8
