With the Colorado Buffaloes up 7-3 at halftime against No. 10 Texas Tech, it looked like Colorado might pull off the upset if they could get something going on offense. Unfortunately, that never happened, and the Red Raiders won 29-7.
Colorado's opening drive was incredibly promising: a nine-play, 75-yard drive that ended with an eight-yard touchdown pass from Isaac Wilson to Joseph Williams. They never recaptured that momentum, with two drives before halftime ending in missed field goals.
Perhaps they could have recovered from the two missed field goals if they could stop turning the ball over. The Buffaloes had four turnovers in this game; all were interceptions, with three from Isaac Wilson and one from Joseph Williams, which opened the second
half and seemed to kill all of Colorado's momentum. Every drive in the third quarter ended in an interception, and they also went one for four on fourth down.
Here is everything we learned from Colorado's loss to Texas Tech.
Colorado needs a quarterback
The Buffaloes benched Julian Lewis for a reason. The offense was unproductive and couldn't move the ball. Isaac Wilson provided a bit of a spark in the second half against Baylor, even though it wasn't enough. On the first drive, Wilson was efficient, completing five of six passes for 61 yards. But that drive was Wilson's highlight of the game. He finished with 290 passing yards, a 59.1% completion percentage, and three picks. Those interceptions were incredibly poor decisions by Wilson and not the kind of mistakes the Buffaloes can afford going forward. Now the question is who will start at quarterback next week against Utah. Neither option looks good right now.
The Go-Go offense is not getting Colorado anywhere
Coming into this season, Brennan Marion was supposed to be bringing his Go-Go offensive scheme from Sacramento State to Colorado. Through the first five games, this offense hasn't worked. It worked for one drive against Georgia Tech because the Yellow Jackets did not seem to know how to defend it. But now teams have figured out exactly how to stop this run game, as Colorado posted a season-low 78 rushing yards against the Red Raiders. It is also their second consecutive game with under 85 rushing yards. Their season-opening victory against Georgia Tech proved that Colorado wins games with the Go-Go offense on the ground, and that is not working. They need to change their offensive game plan to adjust to the players on this roster. Something has to change, or the Buffaloes won't win another game this year.
The Buffaloes' defense is elite
Realistically, if Colorado had gotten something going on offense, the Buffaloes could have won. The defense contained the Red Raiders offense for most of the game, holding them to just 12 points after three quarters. Texas Tech's four drives in the second quarter ended in a punt, two fourth-down stops and a missed field goal. This is the type of defense that wins bowl games.
Colorado needs more production at receiver
Joseph Williams is one of the Big 12's most talented receivers. He finished the game with 10 receptions for 93 yards and the only touchdown. Williams came into Colorado's game against Texas Tech as the Buffaloes' leading receiver and now has 454 receiving yards and at least one touchdown in each of the past four games. However, no one else on the receiving corps has consistently stepped up as a threat. DeAndre Moore Jr. has 242 yards this season, for an average of just 60.5 yards per game.
Colorado also needs a new kicker
Elliott Arnold was not asked to do much. But when he was called on to make a 29-yard and a 52-yard field goal, he missed both. Special teams have been a problem for Colorado since Deion Sanders became the head coach, and this season is no exception. Right now, it doesn't seem like the Buffaloes have a kicker truly capable of starting at a Power Four school. Arnold definitely did not perform like one in this game against Texas Tech.
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This article originally appeared on Buffaloes Wire: Five takeaways from Colorado football's loss to Texas Tech
