Lopsided loss to Nebraska a painful reminder of Colorado’s struggles in trenches
Deion Sanders is used to doing what’s thought of conventionally inconceivable.
Play within the NFL and MLB on the identical day? Certain, he can try this. Change into the best cornerback of all time? Executed. Win as a head coach with zero school ore even highschool head teaching expertise? Yep. Did that at Jackson State.
However he cannot problem each conference. He is discovering that out at Colorado, the place, regardless of an unbelievable quarterback and bevy of ability expertise, the Buffaloes proceed to come back up brief. The most recent instance being a 28-10 loss to Nebraska.
The largest motive why? The Buffaloes are simply not adequate up entrance.
Colorado’s offensive line has been underneath the microscope because the second Sanders confirmed up on Colorado’s campus. It is usually a verbal punching bag, even for the pinnacle coach, who regularly watches his son, the star quarterback, take hit after hit.
It occurred once more towards the Huskers.
Nebraska had 4 sacks by halftime and completed their win over the Buffs with six (plus 10 tackles for loss) in a dominating effort within the trenches. The Buffaloes completed the sport having averaged 0.7 yards per rush. It wasn’t any higher on protection for Colorado, the place the Huskers averaged 4.3 yards per carry and saved true freshman QB Dylan Raiola clear with out permitting a sack.
It would not matter if Shedeur Sanders become an airbender (they actually can float within the air), you possibly can’t be persistently profitable at that place with out high quality blocking in entrance of you. Nebraska, a protection that will get very artistic whereas sending stress, made Shedeur’s life depressing.
There have been clues this may occur in Week 1 towards North Dakota State. The Buffaloes put up 445 passing yards, sure. However they solely managed 2.6 yards per carry towards an FCS staff. And whereas Sanders was solely sacked as soon as, he was pressured on seven drop backs.
These struggles aren’t shocking, thoughts you.
Colorado is making an attempt to buck conference by trotting out 5 new offensive linemen this season and anticipating speedy cohesion. The very best traces are inclined to have a number of begins collectively to learn to stream and talk. Colorado put everybody collectively within the spring and hoped the whole lot would click on shortly.
That components not often, if ever, works in school soccer. And no person has taken it to the intense like Deion Sanders, who’s signed 50-plus new gamers every of the earlier two offseasons.
Not the whole lot could be blamed on Colorado’s shortcomings alongside the traces of scrimmage. Colorado turned the ball over greater than Nebraska, struggled within the purple zone and racked up penalties. Shedeur Sanders, a wonderful QB, can also be not innocent It takes him practically three seconds to throw the ball each time he drops again; twenty fourth slowest within the FBS final season amongst gamers who took 50% of their staff’s drop backs.
However actually Colorado’s points Saturday are straightforward to elucidate: it acquired bullied up entrance by a staff with way more continuity. That is regardless of Matt Rhule and Deion Sanders taking their jobs on the similar time within the 2023 offseason.
Deion Sanders ignores the norm and creates his personal in so many facets of life. However there is not any altering the truth that the staff wins within the trenches tends to win in soccer.