Woelk: Buffs Refuse To Accept Bad Breaks

BOULDER — For one sun-splashed Folsom Field Saturday afternoon, the Colorado Buffaloes were exactly what they'd envisioned themselves being since the day they started fall camp.

A team with a powerful offense, a steady defense — and a team that didn't shoot itself in the foot every time opportunity knocked.

Simply, the Buffaloes did what they were supposed to do: they dispatched a visiting "group of five" team with cool, calculated efficiency. They took care of business with a dominant 48-14 performance, and soon thereafter, looked at the next task at hand.

That would be Saturday's Rocky Mountain Showdown, a 5 p.m. matinee meeting with rival Colorado State at Sports Authority Field (CBS-CS).

"We're all already thinking about it," Buff quarterback Sefo Liufau said. "It's the next game. We'll rest up today, go back to work (Sunday) and get ready for them."

Not that the Buffs didn't take time to enjoy Saturday afternoon's dismantling of an overmatched and undermanned UMass squad. The feeling of excitement — mixed in with a healthy dose of relief — was almost palpable on the CU sidelines as the game clock ticked down. Because such a performance has been so rare in recent years, the Buffs almost didn't know how to react.

"I was sitting on the bench in the fourth quarter and started thinking that in the four years I've been here, I've never been able to sit out a fourth quarter," CU wide receiver Nelson Spruce said. "It's almost reassuring that we can do this."

Certainly reassuring is this: the Minutemen who visited Folsom on Saturday were virtually the same team that took the Buffs to the wire a year ago. Same quarterback, same offensive line, same receiving corps and many of the same defenders.

How big was this @moefish5 pick in the end zone? We'll give you a hint. Huge! #GoBuffs https://t.co/XWCPBs4aVx
— Colorado Buffaloes (@cubuffs) September 13, 2015

But instead of Colorado needing a furious second-half rally to take a 41-38 win, the Buffs were in cruise control long before the fourth quarter even started this time around. After throwing a few punches early, the Minutemen were on the ropes the rest of the afternoon, absorbing body blow after body blow from CU's suddenly powerful running game.

"They started to believe in themselves," head coach Mike MacIntyre said. "Last year, we got up on a few people and didn't put them away. … Now we've been there before, so they don't let up at all; they keep the pedal down."

An apt description. But of all the outstanding pedal-to-the-metal plays in the game, two defined the Buffs on Saturday.

The first was Ryan Moeller's end zone interception of Blake Frohnapfel late in the second quarter, a play that came just minutes after a discouraging penalty gave the Minutemen a first-and-goal.

With the Buffs clinging to a 24-14 lead and the Minutemen just 10 yards away from the end zone, Moeller intercepted Frohnapfel. Eight plays later, the Buffs finished an 80-yard march with their fourth touchdown of the afternoon, turning a close game into a rout in the making.

In years past — OK, last week — the Buffs might have accepted the penalty as their fate. They likely would have given up at least a field goal if not a touchdown. After all, bad things just seem to happen to the Buffs. It seemed to be their destiny.

But not Saturday. The Buffs stuffed fate at the goal line and delivered a nasty blow to destiny's chin.

"We said this is a draw-a-line-in-the-sand kind of week," MacIntyre said. "We're not going to take it anymore."

.@cpizzythoo shows power and speed on this 35 yard TD. #GoBuffs https://t.co/iIg1rbwzDn
— Colorado Buffaloes (@cubuffs) September 13, 2015

From Moeller's interception forward, the Buffs were a different team. The defense did not give up another point the rest of the afternoon. The offense added three more touchdowns and a field goal in a dominant performance.

The second defining moment? Late in the third quarter, Buff running back Christian Powell delivered the final blow with a 35-yard touchdown run, a score that put the Buffs up 48-14. Making the key block on the play was redshirt freshman wide receiver Lee Walker, who delivered a crushing pancake block on a much-bigger UMass defender.

After the play, MacIntyre rushed downfield to celebrate — but not with Powell. Instead, he embraced Walker.

"I was really, really excited to see that," MacIntyre said. "That's another guy playing a role with all he's got. Those little things are what makes a difference in truly winning and losing consistently."

No doubt, the post-game celebration was well-deserved. Colorado athletic director Rick George stopped by MacIntyre's press conference to offer his congratulations to his coach, and the two shared a private moment of celebrating something that's been all too rare in the MacIntyre era: a blowout victory.

But already also on the horizon was next week.

"I think we finally came out and played how we are supposed to play," Liufau said. "It's exciting to see.

"But it's just one game and we want to be ready for next week."

Indeed, while the Buffs were enjoying the fruits of Saturday's labor, they were also well aware of what's ahead.

A year ago, a 31-17 loss to CSU set the stage for a disappointing season. The Buffs aren't planning on a repeat performance.

"I didn't realize, coming from California, how big the game is," wide receiver Nelson Spruce said. "It's my last season, and I don't know how I'll be able to live with myself if we don't come out with a win."

Nobody will suggest that Saturday's blowout victory magically turned the Buffs' program around. Certainly, they will see plenty more adversity before the season is finished.

But for the first time in a long while, the Buffs not only faced up to adversity, they punched back. They refused to accept that their destiny is to be a team that accepts bad luck as a matter of course.

Instead, they drew up a new map — and those are the type of defining moments that last much, much longer than one splendid Saturday afternoon.

Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu