The Colorado Buffaloes, fresh off their first victory of the season, travel to Norman, OK to face the Sooners. Two weeks ago this game looked like it might just be another in a long line of defeats for the Buffs. But last Saturday two things happened to change all of that. Dan Hawkins finally got his first victory as head coach for the Buffs. All the hard work and perseverance finally paid off for the players and coaches. Everything seemed to click, no penalties, drives resulted in scores, defensive players made sure tackles, and they forced turnovers. Oh and the other important thing that happened last Saturday, the Oklahoma Sooners lost Heisman Trophy candidate Adrian Peterson. While this is a great bit of news for the Buffs, and despite the fact that Oklahoma has no other back with over 100 yards rushing, Peterson had over 900, it is important to focus on the players the Sooners do have.
Throughout the season the strength for the Buffs has been the defense. Colorado is only giving up 77 ypg on the ground. In the air the Buffs defenders have given up lots of yards, but did a great job last week limiting the high powered Texas Tech passing game and holding them to one touchdown. Without Peterson in the lineup the burden to move the ball falls more onto the shoulders of quarterback Paul Thompson. Thompson was a wide receiver up until spring ball, but when Rhett Bomar was forced to leave the team due to a scandal Thompson was moved to quarterback, where he was originally recruited. Thompson has played well so far this season moving the Sooners offense efficiently. For the Buffs the key is to pressure Thompson and hopefully force some early turnovers. It is important that the Buffalo defenders do not overlook the Sooner running game. Every year some relatively unknown college player comes off the bench and becomes a star. So, just because the other Sooner running backs have not played much they could still produce a big day if the Buffs aren’t prepared. Overall I like the Buffs chances to hold the Sooners’ offense in check and give the team a good chance to win.
Under Bob Stoops the Sooners have been know to play an aggressive style of defense built upon the shoulders of athletic well disciplined players. Linebackers Rufus Alexander and Zach Latimer are seniors and will be looking to shut down Bernard Jackson and the Buffs running game. Hugh Charles and Mell Holliday have been very productive recently as the Buffs have cranked up the running game. Riar Geer has emerged as the go to guy for Jackson in the passing game. It is important for Jackson to find Geer for some easy completions early on to build confidence. Another must for Colorado is to continue to finish drives. If the Buffs get to the red zone, 3 points is not going to be good enough to beat a ranked team. Receivers must catch passes, Jackson must keep his cool, running backs must run hard, and most importantly turnovers must be avoided. These things happened last week and the Buffs won, if they happen again the Buffs will again emerge with a victory.
Prediction – Buffs keep improving – CU 20 OU 17

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