BOULDER — The Buffs ran into the locker room at halftime with a 13-7 lead over Utah on Saturday, only 30 minutes from reaching a dream.
They were left to lament what could have been, however.
“We had some opportunities,” CU coach Mike MacIntyre said at halftime. “We should be up 21-7.”
The Buffs blew two golden opportunities inside the 10-yard line in the second quarter. First, on third-and-goal from the 7-yard line with the game tied 7-7, Devin Ross sprinted open on a post pattern in the middle of the end zone. But Sefo Liufau’s pass was well behind Ross, forcing the Buffs to settle for a field goal.
On CU’s next drive, the Buffs faced a third-and-goal at the 2-yard line. Liufau and the offensive line rolled to the right, and fullback George Frazier came wide open across the other side of the formation. Liufau lofted a soft pass that hit Frazier in the hands. Then it hit the turf.
CU settled for another field and was left to imagine what could have been in the first half.
Utah’s special plays. A matter of inches turned into a long touchdown in the first quarter. And it put Colorado in a hole. Five minutes into the game, on a third-and-10 play, Liufau threw nine yards to Devin Ross.
But, after the chains came out for a measurement, CU was left short of a first down at its own 14 yard line. The Buffs decided to punt. And it quickly turned in Utah’s favor. Bobbie Hobbs returned the punt 55 yards for a touchdown that helped give the Utes an early 7-0 lead.
Utah struck big again on the first play of the fourth quarter. After a long CU drive ended in a touchdown that gave the Buffs a 20-13 lead, Kyle Fulks returned the ensuing kickoff 93 yards to put Utah on the doorstep of a game-tying touchdown, with a first and goal from the 3.
But CU’s staunch defense held the Utes to a field goal that cut the Buffs’ lead to 20-16.
Flipping right. Everything, it seems, is coming up Buffs this season. For a sixth consecutive game — and the 11th in 12 games — Colorado won the pre-game coin toss. The odds of winning 11 of 12 coin flips is about 0.9 percent. “Tails never fails,” CU quarterback Sefo Liufau said earlier this season.
The last time CU lost a coin flip was Oct. 8, when they lost at USC.
Footnotes. CU wide receiver Bryce Bobo missed the game with an ankle injury. … Ryan Moeller, who suffered a concussion against Washington State last week, played and forced a key fumble in the third quarter. … The sellout crowd of 52,301 was Colorado’s first sellout since Oct. 4, 2008 against Texas.