MANHATTAN, Kansas – Colorado didn’t have much to play for on Saturday, but the Buffaloes didn’t go down without a fight.
CU battled throughout the day at Bill Snyder Family Stadium before falling to host Kansas State 24-14 in the season finale.
The Buffs (3-9, 1-8 Big 12) closed their third season under head coach Deion Sanders with a five-game losing streak. Kansas State (6-6, 5-4) reached bowl eligibility with the victory.
Coming in as 17.5-point underdogs, CU pulled within 17-14 midway through the fourth quarter, but K-State put the game away with a 75-yard scoring drive in the closing minutes.
“We just got to find a way to finish and thatap what good teams do,” CU linebacker Jeremiah Brown said.
It was Kansas State that had the strong finish, though, outscoring the Buffs 17-7 in the second half and putting together a game-clinching drive late in the fourth quarter. K-State’s Joe Jackson ran for 133 yards and three touchdowns on 25 carries, getting 60 of his yards on the Wildcats’ game-sealing drive.
“We did (stop the run), to extent, but we just got to be consistent with it,” Brown said. “Just got to finish; thatap all.”
CU running back Micah Welch scored two touchdowns and receiver Omarion Miller caught seven passes for 120 yards. Quarterback Kaidon Salter, making his first start since Nov. 1, threw for 172 yards and an interception.
“It was an up and down game, and we had the chance to go out there and take it away, but we came short,” Salter said.
K-State opened the game with an impressive and methodical 13-play, 74-yard scoring drive that took 7 minutes, 40 seconds off the clock. Running back Joe Jackson keyed the drive with a 27-yard run and then capped it with a 4-yard touchdown run.
CU responded by marching to the K-State 21-yard line, but the drive stalled there and Alejandro Mata’s low field goal attempt was blocked.
The Buffs’ defense stepped up the rest of the half, forcing two three-and-outs and getting a fourth-down stop by Keaten Wade near midfield.
Meanwhile, CU kept driving into K-State territory, but was stopped a yard short on fourth-and-3 and then Salter threw an interception.
The Buffs, however, found some rhythm late in the half.
Hayden kick-started a drive with runs of 24 and 14 yards. Then, Salter hit Omarion Miller for 38 yards to the Wildcats’ 1-yard line. Micah Welch punched it into the end zone for a game-tying touchdown 18 seconds before halftime and CU went into intermission tied 7-7.
CU opened the second half with a promising drive to the K-State 34, but gained just three yards on three straight runs, including a 1-yarder by Hayden on fourth down that was inches shy of the first down marker.
Midway through the third, Kansas State got a couple of big passes from Avery Johnson to get into scoring position and Jackson punched the ball into end zone on a 1-yard run. That gave the Wildcats a 14-7 lead with 4:32 to play in the third.
The score remained that way until K-State put together another long drive, this one covering 61 yards in 15 plays and taking 6:43 off the clock. Luis Rodriguez drilled a 35-yard field goal to increase the Wildcat lead to 17-7 with 10:23 to go in the fourth quarter.
The CU offense responded, though, with Salter leading a 75-yard drive, which began with his 43-yard pass to Omarion Miller. Welch capped the drive with his second 1-yard touchdown, pulling the Buffs within 17-14 with 7:03 to go.
Kansas State responded with a game-sealing nine-play, 75-yard drive, with Jackson scoring on a 17-yard drive to make it 24-14 with 2:37 to go.
CU was unable to mount a comeback in the closing minutes.
“Itap not a consolation prize,” CU head coach Deion Sanders said of his team’s fight. “They’re supposed to fight. They’re supposed to want it. They’re supposed to give their best.
“First of all, letap acknowledge the opposing team. They played a heck of a game. They’re well-coached. … The quarterback (Johnson) didn’t make many mistakes, the running back (Jackson) ran hard and when they needed to make the plays defensively they made the plays, so letap give them some love and some credit, but itap no consolation prize given in these things.”
