Colorado
5-0 , 2-0
Arizona State
3-3 , 1-2
No. 21 Buffs Top Arizona State, 28-21
October 06, 2018 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Colorado sophomore Laviska Shenault Jr. scored four touchdowns — two receiving and two rushing — and CU's defense came up with five consecutive stops in the second half Saturday to produce a 28-21 win over Arizona State at Folsom Field.
Mike MacIntyre's No. 21 Buffs improved to 5-0 overall and 2-0 in Pac-12 play in front of 52,681, the largest Folsom gathering in eight years as Colorado three times came back from a one-score deficit before finally taking the lead late in the third quarter. ASU dropped to 3-3, 1-2.
Shenault finished with 13 catches for 127 yards and two scores and carried the ball five times for 13 yards and a pair of touchdowns to become the first player in CU history to have multiple touchdowns receiving and rushing in the same game. CU quarterback Steven Montez was 24-for-33 for 328 yards and two touchdowns while running back Travon McMillian carried 30 times for 136 yards. Colorado's offensive line, meanwhile, did not give up a sack against a team that had 18 sacks coming into the contest, and helped carve out a 7-minute drive on the last possession of the game that ran the clock out and did not give ASU a last-second chance to tie the game.
Defensively, the Buffs were outstanding in the second half. Colorado linebacker Drew Lewis — who moved back inside after Nate Landman was ejected for targeting in the first half — had a team-high 10 tackles and defensive end Mustafa Johnson had seven tackles, including a huge sack on a decisive goal-line stand that paved the way for the win.
After giving up two scores in the first half, the Buffs limited ASU to just one touchdown after intermission — and that came on the Sun Devils' first possession. From that point on, the Buffs shut down the Arizona State attack.
"We are more mentally and physically tough as a whole team than we were last year," MacIntyre said. "There's no doubt. We didn't win those type of games last year. We wouldn't have put them away like we did. We wouldn't have kept battling."
HOW IT HAPPENED: After playing catchup for the better part of three quarters, the Buffs took their first lead of the game with 42 seconds remaining in the third period when Shenault ran in from the 1-yard line. James Stefanou's PAT gave the Buffs a 28-21 lead, and Colorado made the margin stick for the rest of the day.
Shenault's fourth touchdown of the day capped a seven-play, 80-yard CU drive that came after Colorado's defense had forced three straight ASU punts. The big play of the drive was a 51-yard Montez pass to K.D. Nixon on a first-and-20 play from the CU 48.
That score, in turn, set the stage for the defensive stand of the game.
CU's fans barely had time to celebrate taking the lead before ASU quarterback Manny Wilkins hit Frank Darby with a 72-yard toss that put the Sun Devils at the Colorado 3-yard line. One play later, ASU had a second-and-goal from the 2-yard line.
But the Buffs then came up with a pair defensive gems.
Mustafa Johnson sacked Wilkins at the 10-yard line to force a third-and-10 before Wilkins hit a 7-yard completion. On fourth-and-3, Wilkins then looked for 6-foot-8 wide receiver Curtis Hodges on a fade route in the right corner of the end zone — and Buffs cornerback Delrick Abrams Jr. was waiting. Abrams knocked the ball away, ending ASU's threat on CU's doorstep.
"Gigantic," MacIntyre said of Abrams' play. "He played it just like we taught, red zone technique. … The other big play was when they ran the bootleg and Mustafa, a 285-pound defensive tackle, plays the boot correctly, comes under control and tackles the quarterback. That was huge."
Colorado then took possession and drove to midfield before punting to the Sun Devils with 8 minutes to play, giving the Sun Devils one more chance.
But the Buffs then came up with their fifth straight defensive stop to force a punt and take possession at their own 24 with 7:10 to play and a 28-21 lead. Colorado then punished a tiring Sun Devils defense with a 13-play drive that ran out the clock, running directly at the heart of the defense. McMillian carried six times on CU's first seven plays, picking up positive yardage on every attempt.
"The way we ran the ball at the end of the game to put the game away, to me, that was really special," MacIntyre said. "That was a really special ending there."
In the final quarter, CU had advantages of 24-6 in plays, 97-3 in yards, 7-0 in first downs and 12:34-2:26 in possession time. Colorado has given up just three points in the fourth quarter this year — and that was a meaningless Colorado State field goal when the Buffs held a 45-10 lead.
"Our veterans have taken a leadership role," MacIntyre said. "They have truly showed the younger guys that they care about them and they are a huge part of the team."
The Sun Devils drew first blood with a touchdown drive on their opening possession, setting the stage for a back-and-forth battle for much of the rest of the game. The two teams traded a pair of touchdowns in the first half — as well as a pair of missed field goals — to send the game into halftime tied up at 14-14, then traded scores again to open the second half to make it a 21-21 ballgame with 11:46 to go in the third quarter.
ASU drove 86 yards for the first touchdown of the game, benefitting from a pair of CU penalties on third down on the drive. Eno Benjamin's 1-yard run gave the Sun Devils a 7-0 lead.
Colorado, however, quickly answered, driving 75 yards on eight plays to tie the game. Montez had completions of 12 yards to Shenault and McMillian, then threw 39 yards to Tony Brown to put the Buffs at the ASU 3. Three plays later, Shenault took the direct snap and scored from 1 out to tie the game at 7-7.
Both teams then missed field goals on their next possessions before ASU regained the lead, going 79 yards in 13 plays, with Benjamin again scoring from 1 yard out.
But Colorado answered again, driving 84 yards on 13 plays. The Buffs converted two third downs and a fourth down on the drive, including a third-and-12 when Montez found Jay MacIntyre for a 27-yard gain. Montez and Shenault then capped the drive with a 3-yard touchdown pass with just 24 seconds left in the half to tie the game at 14-14 at intermission. It was Shenault's fifth straight game with a touchdown catch.
The Sun Devils had one more scoring drive under their belt, opening the second half with a 75-yard drive that needed just four plays. Wilkins finished the march with a 40-yard scoring toss to Darby.
But the Buffs responded with a 75-yard scoring drive in just five plays, with Montez connecting with Shenault from 30 yards out down the left sideline for the tying score, giving the CU sophomore his first multi-receiving touchdown game.
Colorado's defense then took over, producing five consecutive stops. The third put the Buffs in position for the go-ahead score, followed by the decisive goal-line stand.
Colorado then got one more defensive stop and the offense put the game away with the final drive that ran out the clock.
TURNING POINT: Colorado's defense produced a stop that led to CU's go-ahead touchdown, then stuffed the Sun Devils on the Colorado goal line to produce the decisive stop of the game.
KEY STATISTIC: The Buffs did not give up a quarterback sack and did not turn the ball over for the second straight game.
WHAT IT MEANS: Now 5-0, the Buffs are 2-0 in the Pac-12 and head to USC next weekend with confidence and momentum.
NEXT UP: The Buffs hit the road next Saturday for an 8:30 p.m. (MT) game at USC. While the Buffs won't need any extra motivation, they will no doubt be reminded over the coming week that CU is 0-12 all-time against the Trojans.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
Team Stats
ASU 7, COLO 0
ASU - Benjamin, Eno 1 yd run (Ruiz, Brandon kick), 13 plays, 86 yards, TOP 6:33
ASU 7, COLO 7
COLO - Shenault, Lavis 1 yd run (Stefanou, James kick), 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:55
ASU 14, COLO 7
ASU - Benjamin, Eno 1 yd run (Ruiz, Brandon kick), 13 plays, 79 yards, TOP 5:03
ASU 14, COLO 14
COLO - Shenault, Lavis 3 yd pass from Montez, Steven (Stefanou, James kick) 13 plays, 84 yards, TOP 5:15
ASU 21, COLO 14
ASU - Darby, Frank 40 yd pass from Wilkins, Manny (Ruiz, Brandon kick) 4 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:25
ASU 21, COLO 21
COLO - Shenault, Lavis 30 yd pass from Montez, Steven (Stefanou, James kick) 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:49
ASU 21, COLO 28
COLO - Shenault, Lavis 1 yd run (Stefanou, James kick), 7 plays, 80 yards, TOP 2:31
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
