GAME AT A GLANCE
Matchup: Colorado Buffaloes vs. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Kickoff: Thursday, 6 p.m. MT, Bobby Dodd Stadium (capacity 51,913), Atlanta, Georgia
TV: ESPN
Radio: KOA 850 AM
Series: Georgia Tech leads 1-0
Itap a city that Deion Sanders said has borne “many meaningful moments.”
Sanders had more than a few of them 35 years ago in Atlanta, where he was the fifth overall pick in the 1989 NFL draft for the Falcons before also plying his unique talents to the Atlanta Braves.
However, as he brings his Colorado Buffaloes to one of the cities that helped make him famous, Sanders’ messaging has been clear.
The Buffs aren’t going on a nostalgia tour. They’re planning to bring home a win.
At long last the wait is over, as CU kicks off its fourth season under Sanders with a rematch at Georgia Tech on Thursday night. Like every team, the Buffs spent the past month battling each other and, particularly in the transfer portal era, the prime-time matchup on national television might answer plenty of questions for CU’s new-look roster right out of the gate.
“You can hope and pray. You have metrics that you assess. You watch the tape,” said Chris Marve, CU’s first-year defensive coordinator. “I think as a coach, you’ve got to believe your eyes and also your instinct and a combination therein. But once you know, once you lock up against somebody else, (you know).”
Georgia Tech marched into Folsom Field for last year’s opener and beat up the Buffs, returning home with 320 rushing yards and a seven-point win. No coach ever wants to put too much stock into the opening game, yet in retrospect the Buffs were punched in the mouth and never truly recovered.
CU finished with the second-worst run defense in the nation, and despite a midseason win against a 22nd-ranked Iowa State squad that stirred optimism for a strong finish, the Buffs instead lost their final five games by an average of 24.6 points.
Typically, CU’s annual kickoff luncheon is a cause for celebration, not confession. Yet at last week’s event, Sanders offered a candid assessment of last year’s disappointment, saying the most discouraging aspect wasn’t necessarily the final scores but “how we didn’t fight until the end.”
The Buffs have vowed to script a different story in 2026.
Thursday’s matchup pairs two teams that battled to the wire last year yet also share a wealth of similarities going into the rematch.
Both head coaches — Sanders and Georgia Tech’s Brent Key — are beginning their fourth seasons as their team’s head coach, although Key previously was an assistant and player for the Yellow Jackets. Both teams are breaking in new coordinators, with Marve and offensive coordinator Brennan Marion set to make their CU play-calling debuts. Georgia Tech counters with offensive coordinator George Godsey, also a former Tech player who’s coming off a 15-season run as an NFL assistant, and defensive coordinator Jason Semore, a career assistant who spent last season at Southern Miss.
Both lineups will lean heavily on transfers, and both teams are handing the keys to their offenses to high-profile quarterbacks long on talent but extremely short on experience. Georgia Tech’s Alberto Mendoza appeared in 10 games off the bench last year while backing up his brother, Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza, for national champion Indiana. Lewis enjoyed more meaningful playing time in his four appearances last year for the Buffs, throwing 94 passes without an interception, but the 18-year-old has yet to win a collegiate game as a starter.
“I’m really excited for the game. I know a lot of those guys on the staff over there,” Marion said. “Itap exciting to play real guys. Itap your first game, get an opportunity to go against a real opponent that has physicality, intensity. I know those guys are going to play hard. Thatap what you want.
“Any time going into game one, to be a real guy you have to play a real guy. Excited for an opportunity to go play coach Key and those guys in Atlanta.”
