Colorado University Athletics
Buffs Ready For Road Test Vs. No. 24 Bruins
October 30, 2015 | Football, Neill Woelk
PASADENA, Calif. — With a 4-4 record and five games remaining, the Colorado Buffaloes firmly believe they're still in good position to attain one of their preseason goals — a bowl berth.
But if the Buffs are going to be anywhere but home for the holidays, they'll have to produce a few upsets down the stretch — and today would be as good a time as any to start, when they tackle UCLA in a 1 p.m. game at the Rose Bowl (Pac-12 Networks).
That the Buffs (4-4, 1-3 Pac-12) are underdogs against the 24th-ranked Bruins (5-2, 2-2) is neither a secret nor a surprise. The Buffs just last week ended a 14-game Pac-12 losing streak with a win at Oregon State while UCLA, one of the preseason favorites to compete for a Pac-12 South title, is coming off a 40-24 win over then-No. 20 Cal.
But the Buffs believe they're ready to record a win that will turn heads around the conference, even if just about everyone outside of their locker room doesn't give them much of a chance.
“We're really confident with the game plan given that we can go out there and put up a good showing, and even win the game,” quarterback Sefo Liufau said. “No one really believes us — that's OK, we believe in ourselves.”
CU head coach Mike MacIntyre has spent the season convincing his players to believe in themselves. They've had spurts of playing well, but until last week against OSU, have been unable to reap the reward for their efforts.
Now, MacIntyre believes there's more to come.
“Our kids truly believe, and I think if you asked them they would look you in the eye and it wouldn't be B.S. anymore,” MacIntyre said. “They definitely think they can beat anybody they play. That's why they fight so hard and keep battling and believe that they can do it. That's our plan, is to line up and play and beat anybody that we play.”
There's plenty of history working against the Buffs today.
For starters, CU is 2-18-1 all time in games played in California, with the only wins coming in the 1996 Holiday Bowl (33-14 over Washington) and a 2002 win over UCLA (31-17). The Buffs have also dropped 19 straight games against ranked teams, and 24 in a row against ranked teams on the road.
But that last road win against a ranked team was the 2002 win over the Bruins — and the Buffs are by no means in awe of this UCLA bunch. In fact, the they're anxious to play a team they believe they could have beaten a year ago, when they rallied from a 17-point deficit to send their game into overtime, only to see the Bruins take a win in the second OT period.
“There are a lot of great things we did last year,” Liufau said. I think with what we put in as a game plan for this week, in terms kind of base-downs, we have a really good idea of what we want to do and how to accomplish it. It's another great week to get a win. It's going to be a great game and I think we're setting ourselves up to have a really good shot at winning it.”
To get there, the Buffs will have to shut down a high-powered Bruins offense that features the one-two punch of freshman quarterback Josh Rosen and a rushing attack that's currently ranked fourth in the Pac-12.
Buffs defensive coordinator Jim Leavitt called Rosen “probably the best quarterback we've seen.” The 6-foot-4, 210-pounder has thrown for 1,968 yards and 15 touchdowns this season.
“He throws the ball well. He's got good 'clock' in his mind. He understands coverages, he knows where he wants to go with the ball and he delivers it,” Leavitt said. “He can make all the throws. He's gained a lot of valuable experience this year, already. I mean he's a really good player.”
Rosen, though, isn't infallible, particularly when he's under pressure. He threw three interceptions in a narrow win over BYU when the Cougars hounded him throughout the game, and one in each of the Bruins' two losses (Stanford and Arizona State), including a pick-six in the loss to Stanford.
But the Bruins are by no means a one-dimensional offense. Even if leading rusher Paul Perkins (754 yards on 125 attempts) doesn't play today as expected because of an injury, they have an ample backup in 6-3, 210-pound freshman Soso Jamabo.
The Buffs remember Perkins well, as he gashed them for a 92-yard touchdown run last year early in the game, helping UCLA jump out to a 17-0 lead. But Jamabo has already shown this year why he was one of the nation's top running back recruits a year ago, as he's run for 278 yards on just 47 carries, including an 18-carry, 79-yard effort in the win over Cal.
Defensively, the Bruins are No. 1 in the conference against the pass, giving up just 193.1 yards per game. Against Cal, they sacked Bears quarterback Jared Goff five times. But the Bruins have proven susceptible against the run, as they are tied for 10th in the Pac-12 in rush defense, yielding nearly 204 yards per game on the ground. The Bruins suffered a big blow earlier this season when preseason all-conference first team linebacker Myles Jack went down with a season-ending injury.
“Their secondary is really athletic and moves well,” MacIntyre said. “They lost a couple really good players on defense of course, but they have guys that fill in right behind them who are excellent players. Their nose tackle Kenny Clark is just a sophomore, but I think he is a force inside. They have an excellent pass rusher when they put Deon Hollins outside to rush. They are a very talented football team.”
The Buffs will have to no doubt be more consistent offensively than they have shown so far. While they've had productive stretches in Pac-12 play, they haven't put together a complete game yet.
“We just have to be consistent all around, and be able to put together drives,” Liufau said. “We did a better job of it against Oregon State, but then it was the fact of being able to finish the drive—you just have to put all of the pieces together. We've learned from our mistakes against Oregon State and we'll be ready to go this week.”
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
