Photo by: Joel Broida
Woelk: Buffs Will Learn, Move Forward From Loss At USC
October 08, 2016 | Football, Neill Woelk
LOS ANGELES — This one's going to hurt for a while.
The Colorado Buffaloes left opportunity on the Los Angeles Coliseum floor Saturday afternoon, an opportunity to take one more step forward, an opportunity to make one more statement in a season quest to tell the world "the Buffs are back."
But as much as it hurts, Mike MacIntyre's 4-2 Buffs can't afford to let Saturday's 21-17 loss to USC fester. There's still too much at stake this year, too many games ahead and too many things to accomplish for the Buffs to let this one be any more than a learning experience.
Certainly there are plenty of lessons to take away from Saturday's sun-splashed afternoon at the Coliseum.
For starters, CU's offense isn't unstoppable. As redshirt freshman quarterback Steven Montez noted, "It was a humbling experience. You're never as good as you think you are, and things aren't as bad as they seem right after a loss. I'd never say a loss is a good thing, but I do know we have to take this and learn from it and grow from it."
The Colorado offense that entered the game ranked ninth in the nation, averaging 531 yards per game, finished with 371 yards, CU's second-lowest total of the season, and a season-low 17 points. The Buffs struggled mightily on the ground, finishing with just 96 yards rushing (37 of those coming on one Phillip Lindsay run) while averaging just 3.3 yards per carry. Colorado also converted just six of 17 third-down tries and gave up four quarterback sacks.
Equally telling was Colorado's passing game. For the first time this season, CU's longest play from scrimmage wasn't produced by a quarterback. Rather, it was a 67-yard scoring pass from wide receiver Bryce Bobo to running back Phillip Lindsay. Aside from that moment of trickeration, CU's longest pass play of the day was a mere 22 yards. The Trojans dared the Buffs to beat them deep and the Buffs couldn't answer.
"We didn't play Colorado football," MacIntyre said. "We didn't play hard and fast like we're capable of doing. They (the Trojans) are a good team and had something to do with that, but we didn't play as well as we could have."
Not that the Buffs didn't do some good things. The offense finally found its footing, long enough at least to produce a fourth-quarter scoring drive that tied the game at 14-14. Given time to throw, Montez looked sharp. The redshirt freshman made plays when he had the chance — but he also made some mistakes, including an interception that he simply threw up for grabs.
"I've to learn to throw it away and not try to be the hero," Montez said. "I have to fix those things."
The defense, meanwhile, was good — very good at times. After giving up two long scoring drives in the first half, Jim Leavitt's crew produced three straight turnovers in the second half, giving the Buffs every opportunity to get back in the game.
Colorado did convert one of those turnovers into scores — the Bobo pass to Lindsay — but as MacIntyre later said, the Buffs didn't take full advantage of the opportunities that came their way.
"We did some good things," said Buffs defensive lineman Jordan Carrell, who came up with one of CU's three fumble recoveries. "But we have some things we can do better. We needed a stop at the end and didn't get it. We have to get better in those situations."
Sunday morning, CU fans will be replaying the game and asking themselves "what if?"
What if Ahkello Witherspoon — who recovered a fumble in the end zone early in the game — comes down with an interception in the fourth quarter instead of seeing Darreus Rogers make a spectacular play for a 46-yard catch? What if the Buffs don't shoot themselves in the foot with penalties in the first half, when they drove into USC territory only to finish the drive on the wrong side of the 50?
But playing "what if" has never changed the score of a game — and the Buffs don't have time to wallow in such pointless exercises.
A year ago, these kinds of losses hung like a cloud over the Colorado locker room. Players shook their heads and wondered what the next dose of bad news would bring.
But this is a team that has shown the ability to prevent one setback from becoming an avalanche. The Buffs are still atop the Pac-12 South standings today, albeit in a tie, and with six regular season games remaining, they're in as good a position as anyone to maintain that spot. This setback is by no means the end.
Late Saturday afternoon, MacIntyre stood outside the Colorado locker room and watched as his players filed to the bus.
"They'll come back," he said quietly. "This is a different team, an older team. They're going to come back from this and get better. They know how much they have to play for. They know what's left. They're not done. Not by a long shot."
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
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The Colorado Buffaloes left opportunity on the Los Angeles Coliseum floor Saturday afternoon, an opportunity to take one more step forward, an opportunity to make one more statement in a season quest to tell the world "the Buffs are back."
But as much as it hurts, Mike MacIntyre's 4-2 Buffs can't afford to let Saturday's 21-17 loss to USC fester. There's still too much at stake this year, too many games ahead and too many things to accomplish for the Buffs to let this one be any more than a learning experience.
Certainly there are plenty of lessons to take away from Saturday's sun-splashed afternoon at the Coliseum.
For starters, CU's offense isn't unstoppable. As redshirt freshman quarterback Steven Montez noted, "It was a humbling experience. You're never as good as you think you are, and things aren't as bad as they seem right after a loss. I'd never say a loss is a good thing, but I do know we have to take this and learn from it and grow from it."
The Colorado offense that entered the game ranked ninth in the nation, averaging 531 yards per game, finished with 371 yards, CU's second-lowest total of the season, and a season-low 17 points. The Buffs struggled mightily on the ground, finishing with just 96 yards rushing (37 of those coming on one Phillip Lindsay run) while averaging just 3.3 yards per carry. Colorado also converted just six of 17 third-down tries and gave up four quarterback sacks.
Equally telling was Colorado's passing game. For the first time this season, CU's longest play from scrimmage wasn't produced by a quarterback. Rather, it was a 67-yard scoring pass from wide receiver Bryce Bobo to running back Phillip Lindsay. Aside from that moment of trickeration, CU's longest pass play of the day was a mere 22 yards. The Trojans dared the Buffs to beat them deep and the Buffs couldn't answer.
"We didn't play Colorado football," MacIntyre said. "We didn't play hard and fast like we're capable of doing. They (the Trojans) are a good team and had something to do with that, but we didn't play as well as we could have."
Not that the Buffs didn't do some good things. The offense finally found its footing, long enough at least to produce a fourth-quarter scoring drive that tied the game at 14-14. Given time to throw, Montez looked sharp. The redshirt freshman made plays when he had the chance — but he also made some mistakes, including an interception that he simply threw up for grabs.
"I've to learn to throw it away and not try to be the hero," Montez said. "I have to fix those things."
The defense, meanwhile, was good — very good at times. After giving up two long scoring drives in the first half, Jim Leavitt's crew produced three straight turnovers in the second half, giving the Buffs every opportunity to get back in the game.
Colorado did convert one of those turnovers into scores — the Bobo pass to Lindsay — but as MacIntyre later said, the Buffs didn't take full advantage of the opportunities that came their way.
"We did some good things," said Buffs defensive lineman Jordan Carrell, who came up with one of CU's three fumble recoveries. "But we have some things we can do better. We needed a stop at the end and didn't get it. We have to get better in those situations."
Sunday morning, CU fans will be replaying the game and asking themselves "what if?"
What if Ahkello Witherspoon — who recovered a fumble in the end zone early in the game — comes down with an interception in the fourth quarter instead of seeing Darreus Rogers make a spectacular play for a 46-yard catch? What if the Buffs don't shoot themselves in the foot with penalties in the first half, when they drove into USC territory only to finish the drive on the wrong side of the 50?
But playing "what if" has never changed the score of a game — and the Buffs don't have time to wallow in such pointless exercises.
A year ago, these kinds of losses hung like a cloud over the Colorado locker room. Players shook their heads and wondered what the next dose of bad news would bring.
But this is a team that has shown the ability to prevent one setback from becoming an avalanche. The Buffs are still atop the Pac-12 South standings today, albeit in a tie, and with six regular season games remaining, they're in as good a position as anyone to maintain that spot. This setback is by no means the end.
Late Saturday afternoon, MacIntyre stood outside the Colorado locker room and watched as his players filed to the bus.
"They'll come back," he said quietly. "This is a different team, an older team. They're going to come back from this and get better. They know how much they have to play for. They know what's left. They're not done. Not by a long shot."
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
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