Colorado University Athletics
Photo by: Derek Marckel
Colorado Falls to Kansas State in Finale
November 29, 2025 | Football
MANHATTAN, Kan. — The 2025 Colorado football season concluded on a snowy, windy Saturday afternoon at Bill Snyder Family Stadium with Kansas State pulling out the 24-14 win.
Colorado finishes the year 3-9 overall and 1-8 in Big 12 play in head coach Deio "Coach Prime" Sanders' third season.
Colorado never led in the contest, only tying the game right before halftime. KSU outscored CU 17-7 in the second half as the Buffs struggled to move the ball with just 67 yards in the third quarter.
Kansas State (6-6, 5-4 Big 12) had 472 yards rushing last week against Utah and figured to be run-heavy against the Buffs on Saturday. Colorado did a good job of keeping the KSU run game in check until late, with the Wildcats totaling 113 of their 206 total rushing yards in the fourth quarter.
"It's not a consolation prize," Coach Prime said of the Buffs' effort. "They're supposed to fight. They are supposed to want it and give their best. Let's give them [KSU] some love and credit, but there's no consolation prize given in these things."
K-State running back Joe Jackson ran the ball 26 times for 142 total yards and three scores. Quarterback Avery Johnson was 10-for-17 in the air with 115 yards and ran the ball seven times for 36 yards.
With the decision made earlier in the week that freshman quarterback Julian Lewis would redshirt, graduate transfer Kaidon Salter was back at the helm of the Buffs' offense. He put up 172 yards passing on 14 completions and 25 attempts with one interception. Omarion Miller had seven catches on 12 targets for 120 yards.
"This one was my last collegiate game with me being a fifth-year senior and could also be my last game ever playing football again," Salter noted. "Just being able to get the opportunity [to play] was amazing."
Seniors Jeremiah Brown and Preston Hodge led the Buffs on defense with eight tackles apiece.
The Buffs did not have any flags thrown in their direction for the first time this season, while Kansas State was penalized four times for 50 yards. K-State was just 4-for-11 on 3rd down but converted on 2-of-3 4th down attempts. CU finished 8-for-17 on 3rd down and just 1-for-4 on 4th down.
"It's emotional out there after every game you lose," Prime continued. "I'm not a loser. I don't handle it well. I don't cope well; I'm a thinker, so I always try to visualize and see plays all night long. What we could have, should have, would have done better? I just told them [the team] we won't be in this situation again. I promise you that, because I'm not happy right now.
"I've learned a tremendous amount this season. It's not like I desire to learn it this way, but I've learned a tremendous amount about how it's not always about wins and losses. It's about young men. It's about coaches. It's about situational football. It's about life. It's about so many things and I'm thankful that these guys fought until the end. They didn't shut it down."
How it happened
Kansas State received the opening kickoff and ate up the clock, holding onto the ball for a little over seven minutes on its way to an opening-drive score. The Wildcats converted on two third downs and gained nine yards on a 4th and 5 to extend the drive. Running back Joe Jackson rushed for 38 yards on the opening possession, on his way to finishing off the 13-play drive with a four-yard carry into the endzone for the early 7-0 lead.
Colorado didn't touch the ball on offense until the 7:40 mark of the 1st quarter. The Buffs kept the ball on the ground with rushes on six of the first seven plays. CU was stopped back-to-back plays on 3rd-and-1 and 4th-and-1, but a facemask on the Salter 4th down rush handed the Buffs the first down, moving the ball to the KSU 34. The drive stalled for the Buffs on the KSU 21, and Coach Prime opted to send out senior kicker Alajandro Mata, whose 39-yard field goal was blocked.
Neither offense could duplicate its opening drive movement early in the second quarter as KSU's second drive resulted in a punt and CU turned the ball over on downs. The Wildcats came up short on a 4th and 1 with Keaton Wade making a crucial stop in the backfield, and the Buffs couldn't capitalize with the next dive ending with a Salter interception.
Colorado got the ball back right before the half and featured a heavy dose of Hayden on the ground. He opened the drive with back-to-back rushes of 24 and 14 yards, and Salter found Miller on a screen pass for 38 yards that put the ball at the KSU 1-yard line. Three plays later, Micah Welch front-flipped into the endzone, and Mata added the extra point to go into the half tied, 7-7.
The Buffs outgained the Wildcats 162 yards to 114 yards in total offense and 84 yards to 59 yards rushing in the first half. Hayden had 62 yards on the ground in the first half.
Colorado took the ball and went 41 yards in eight plays to open the half, with Salter scrambling for 23 yards early in the drive. Colorado again stalled, going for it on 4th down, and Ryan Staub came out at quarterback on the Buffs' second drive of the half and handed the ball off twice before Salter came back in for 3rd-and-8 and picked up four yards on a scramble.
The Wildcats offense retook the field in prime positioning on their own 44-yard line, following a short 39-yard punt. Six plays and 56 yards later, Jackson found the endzone to put KSU back in the lead 14-7with 4:32 to go in the quarter.
KSU took to the run game, keeping the ball on the ground on 10 of the 15 plays that led to a 35-yard field goal and took almost seven minutes off the clock as the Wildcats took their largest lead of the day, 17-7.
Colorado wasted little time opening its next drive with a 43-yard strike from Salter to Miller, putting the ball at the KSU 32. Slater targeted Miller for another deep ball down the near sideline, drawing a flag for a pass interference to put the ball on the K-State 17-yard line, and on a 3rd and 8, Salter scrambled for 10 yards down to the 5-yard line. Three plays later, Welch put an exclamation mark on the nine-play, 75-yard drive, with his second touchdown of the day, cutting the deficit to 17-14 with 7:03 to play.
The Wildcats answered back with a 17-yard rushing score from Jackson to put KSU back up by 10, 24-14, on an 8-play, 75-yard drive that ate up 4:26 on the clock. Jackson had six rushes and accounted for 60 yards in the back-breaking drive.
"We have to do better," Brown commented. "We get stops, and then once the offense scores, we have to get another stop. We kind of get complacent in that sense."
Colorado's offense took the field with 2:34, but not before a bobble on the kickoff almost turned bad for the Buffs. Forced to take shots downfield, Salter hit Miller for 16 on 3rd and 10 and followed up with a 15-yard strike to Zach Atkins to move the ball to the KSUY 46 right before the two-minute timeout.
"We gave up some plays that we shouldn't have given up offensively," Salter expressed. "I could have hit some targets on certain downs to keep the chains moving, or whatever the case might be. But, you know, it was an up-and-down game, and we had the chance to go out there and take it away, but we came [up] short. I'm just glad that we went out there and fought today as a team, and it seemed like we all played together and were united."
The CU offense stalled after the stoppage, gaining three yards with Salter getting sacked on 4th and 6, giving the ball back to KSU with 1:13 to go.
Colorado finishes the year 3-9 overall and 1-8 in Big 12 play in head coach Deio "Coach Prime" Sanders' third season.
Colorado never led in the contest, only tying the game right before halftime. KSU outscored CU 17-7 in the second half as the Buffs struggled to move the ball with just 67 yards in the third quarter.
Kansas State (6-6, 5-4 Big 12) had 472 yards rushing last week against Utah and figured to be run-heavy against the Buffs on Saturday. Colorado did a good job of keeping the KSU run game in check until late, with the Wildcats totaling 113 of their 206 total rushing yards in the fourth quarter.
"It's not a consolation prize," Coach Prime said of the Buffs' effort. "They're supposed to fight. They are supposed to want it and give their best. Let's give them [KSU] some love and credit, but there's no consolation prize given in these things."
K-State running back Joe Jackson ran the ball 26 times for 142 total yards and three scores. Quarterback Avery Johnson was 10-for-17 in the air with 115 yards and ran the ball seven times for 36 yards.
With the decision made earlier in the week that freshman quarterback Julian Lewis would redshirt, graduate transfer Kaidon Salter was back at the helm of the Buffs' offense. He put up 172 yards passing on 14 completions and 25 attempts with one interception. Omarion Miller had seven catches on 12 targets for 120 yards.
"This one was my last collegiate game with me being a fifth-year senior and could also be my last game ever playing football again," Salter noted. "Just being able to get the opportunity [to play] was amazing."
Seniors Jeremiah Brown and Preston Hodge led the Buffs on defense with eight tackles apiece.
The Buffs did not have any flags thrown in their direction for the first time this season, while Kansas State was penalized four times for 50 yards. K-State was just 4-for-11 on 3rd down but converted on 2-of-3 4th down attempts. CU finished 8-for-17 on 3rd down and just 1-for-4 on 4th down.
"It's emotional out there after every game you lose," Prime continued. "I'm not a loser. I don't handle it well. I don't cope well; I'm a thinker, so I always try to visualize and see plays all night long. What we could have, should have, would have done better? I just told them [the team] we won't be in this situation again. I promise you that, because I'm not happy right now.
"I've learned a tremendous amount this season. It's not like I desire to learn it this way, but I've learned a tremendous amount about how it's not always about wins and losses. It's about young men. It's about coaches. It's about situational football. It's about life. It's about so many things and I'm thankful that these guys fought until the end. They didn't shut it down."
How it happened
Kansas State received the opening kickoff and ate up the clock, holding onto the ball for a little over seven minutes on its way to an opening-drive score. The Wildcats converted on two third downs and gained nine yards on a 4th and 5 to extend the drive. Running back Joe Jackson rushed for 38 yards on the opening possession, on his way to finishing off the 13-play drive with a four-yard carry into the endzone for the early 7-0 lead.
Colorado didn't touch the ball on offense until the 7:40 mark of the 1st quarter. The Buffs kept the ball on the ground with rushes on six of the first seven plays. CU was stopped back-to-back plays on 3rd-and-1 and 4th-and-1, but a facemask on the Salter 4th down rush handed the Buffs the first down, moving the ball to the KSU 34. The drive stalled for the Buffs on the KSU 21, and Coach Prime opted to send out senior kicker Alajandro Mata, whose 39-yard field goal was blocked.
Neither offense could duplicate its opening drive movement early in the second quarter as KSU's second drive resulted in a punt and CU turned the ball over on downs. The Wildcats came up short on a 4th and 1 with Keaton Wade making a crucial stop in the backfield, and the Buffs couldn't capitalize with the next dive ending with a Salter interception.
Colorado got the ball back right before the half and featured a heavy dose of Hayden on the ground. He opened the drive with back-to-back rushes of 24 and 14 yards, and Salter found Miller on a screen pass for 38 yards that put the ball at the KSU 1-yard line. Three plays later, Micah Welch front-flipped into the endzone, and Mata added the extra point to go into the half tied, 7-7.
The Buffs outgained the Wildcats 162 yards to 114 yards in total offense and 84 yards to 59 yards rushing in the first half. Hayden had 62 yards on the ground in the first half.
Colorado took the ball and went 41 yards in eight plays to open the half, with Salter scrambling for 23 yards early in the drive. Colorado again stalled, going for it on 4th down, and Ryan Staub came out at quarterback on the Buffs' second drive of the half and handed the ball off twice before Salter came back in for 3rd-and-8 and picked up four yards on a scramble.
The Wildcats offense retook the field in prime positioning on their own 44-yard line, following a short 39-yard punt. Six plays and 56 yards later, Jackson found the endzone to put KSU back in the lead 14-7with 4:32 to go in the quarter.
KSU took to the run game, keeping the ball on the ground on 10 of the 15 plays that led to a 35-yard field goal and took almost seven minutes off the clock as the Wildcats took their largest lead of the day, 17-7.
Colorado wasted little time opening its next drive with a 43-yard strike from Salter to Miller, putting the ball at the KSU 32. Slater targeted Miller for another deep ball down the near sideline, drawing a flag for a pass interference to put the ball on the K-State 17-yard line, and on a 3rd and 8, Salter scrambled for 10 yards down to the 5-yard line. Three plays later, Welch put an exclamation mark on the nine-play, 75-yard drive, with his second touchdown of the day, cutting the deficit to 17-14 with 7:03 to play.
The Wildcats answered back with a 17-yard rushing score from Jackson to put KSU back up by 10, 24-14, on an 8-play, 75-yard drive that ate up 4:26 on the clock. Jackson had six rushes and accounted for 60 yards in the back-breaking drive.
"We have to do better," Brown commented. "We get stops, and then once the offense scores, we have to get another stop. We kind of get complacent in that sense."
Colorado's offense took the field with 2:34, but not before a bobble on the kickoff almost turned bad for the Buffs. Forced to take shots downfield, Salter hit Miller for 16 on 3rd and 10 and followed up with a 15-yard strike to Zach Atkins to move the ball to the KSUY 46 right before the two-minute timeout.
"We gave up some plays that we shouldn't have given up offensively," Salter expressed. "I could have hit some targets on certain downs to keep the chains moving, or whatever the case might be. But, you know, it was an up-and-down game, and we had the chance to go out there and take it away, but we came [up] short. I'm just glad that we went out there and fought today as a team, and it seemed like we all played together and were united."
The CU offense stalled after the stoppage, gaining three yards with Salter getting sacked on 4th and 6, giving the ball back to KSU with 1:13 to go.
Players Mentioned
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