GAMEDAY College Football
Utah 63, Colorado 21
(AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
By PAT GRAHAM
AP Sports Writer
BOULDER, Colo. - The loudest roar from the Utah side came at the end of a blowout of Colorado at Folsom Field and had nothing to do with what was happening on the field.
It was the scoreboard showing Oregon State knocking off Oregon. So far, everything the Utes needed to have happen in order earn a spot in the Pac-12 title game has happened.
Just one more obstacle to clear.
Cameron Rising threw three touchdown passes before taking a seat for the second half, Ja'Quinden Jackson ran for three scores and No. 14 Utah routed Colorado 63-21 to remain in the chase for the last spot into the conference championship.
The Utes (9-3, 7-2 Pac-12, No. 14 CFP) entered the weekend with an outside shot at earning a spot. But things have fallen nicely into place. No. 17 UCLA did its part for Utah by knocking off Cal on Friday. Then, the big assist - No. 22 Oregon State coming back to beat 10th-ranked Oregon.
All that remains is No. 12 Washington to win at Washington State later Saturday. That would create a three-way logjam between the Utes, Ducks and Huskies. Utah's league opponents would have the highest combined winning percentage in conference games and give the Utes the final spot. No. 5 USC already has a spot for next Friday's game in Las Vegas.
"We'll just see how the cards unfold," Rising said. "So far, so good."
The Utes built a 42-0 halftime lead and steadily started sprinkling in their backups. It didn't slow the Utes, who had 662 total yards of offense. Jackson scored on runs of 10, 2 and 66 yards.
The 63 points was the most allowed by Colorado since Oregon scored 70 on Oct. 27, 2012, in Eugene.
"All around a good way to to put an exclamation mark on the regular season," Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. "You have to look really hard at it to find a negative."
The Buffaloes (1-11, 1-8) brought to a close a dreary season that saw head coach Karl Dorrell fired in October and interim coach Mike Sanford go 1-6 in his place. The team lost seven games by 30 or more points.
"I told the team after the game in the locker room that I don't believe in moral victories normally, but tonight I do," Sanford said. "This group of players made football fun for me."
A coaching search is underway at Colorado with rumors swirling around names such as Deion Sanders and Bronco Mendenhall. There was a fan in the south end zone wearing a suit featuring Colorado logos and a bag over their head. On the back of the bag was a letter to " Coach Prime," urging Sanders to come to Boulder.
Maddox Kopp became the fourth Buffaloes quarterback to start this season. He finished with 123 yards passing and a late 1-yard touchdown to offensive lineman turned tight end Frank Fillip.
Utah tight ends Thomas Yassmin and Dalton Kincaid each turned in acrobatic scoring plays in the first half. Yassmin showed off his athleticism by catching a short pass and hurdling over cornerback Nikko Reed on his way to a 41-yard score.
Not to be outdone, Kincaid looked left on a long pass and quickly swiveled to the right to haul in a 29-yard pass from Rising while falling to the turf. Kincaid stayed down for several moments after the play.
THE TAKEAWAY
Utah: The Utes finish the regular season with nine wins for a fourth time in five seasons.
Colorado: The Buffaloes dropped to 4-37 against AP top-25 teams since becoming members of the Pac-12 in 2011, according to Pac-12 research.
ATTENDANCE
The announced attendance was 33,474. It's the lowest mark at Folsom Field (not counting the 2020 pandemic season) since Nov. 29, 2014, against Utah.
FINAL DAY
For 21 or so Buffaloes players, this was their last time running out onto Folsom Field behind live buffalo mascot Ralphie. Senior tight end Brady Russell felt a sense of contentment, he said.
"Because I know I personally gave everything I could," Russell said. "I have no regrets."
November 26, 2022
| Scoring Summary | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Quarter | Utah | Colo | |||
| Utah | TD | 6:35 | Micah Bernard 8 yd run (Jadon Redding kick) | 7 | 0 |
| Utah | TD | 2:20 | Ja'Quinden Jackson 10 yd run (Jadon Redding kick) | 14 | 0 |
| Second Quarter | Utah | Colo | |||
| Utah | TD | 12:34 | Ja'Quinden Jackson 2 yd run (Jadon Redding kick) | 21 | 0 |
| Utah | TD | 4:43 | Thomas Yassmin 41 yd pass from Cameron Rising (Jadon Redding kick) | 28 | 0 |
| Utah | TD | 0:52 | Money Parks 9 yd pass from Cameron Rising (Jadon Redding kick) | 35 | 0 |
| Utah | TD | 0:03 | Dalton Kincaid 29 yd pass from Cameron Rising (Jadon Redding kick) | 42 | 0 |
| Third Quarter | Utah | Colo | |||
| Colo | TD | 11:47 | Alex Fontenot 1 yd run (Cole Becker kick) | 42 | 7 |
| Utah | TD | 10:59 | Ja'Quinden Jackson 66 yd run (Jadon Redding kick) | 49 | 7 |
| Utah | TD | 5:37 | Makai Cope 21 yd pass from Bryson Barnes (Jadon Redding kick) | 56 | 7 |
| Colo | TD | 2:59 | Anthony Hankerson 23 yd run (Cole Becker kick) | 56 | 14 |
| Fourth Quarter | Utah | Colo | |||
| Utah | TD | 8:34 | Jaylon Glover 5 yd run (Jadon Redding kick) | 63 | 14 |
| Colo | TD | 2:46 | Frank Fillip 1 yd pass from Maddox Kopp (Cole Becker kick) | 63 | 21 |
| Team Stats | ||
|---|---|---|
| Utah | Colorado | |
| First downs | 33 | 12 |
| Rushing | 18 | 3 |
| Passing | 12 | 7 |
| Penalty | 3 | 2 |
| 3rd Down Efficiency | 2-6, 33% | 1-12, 8% |
| 4th down efficiency | 1-2, 50% | 1-2, 50% |
| Rushes-Yards | 43-383 | 25-62 |
| Passing Yards | 279 | 123 |
| Return Yards | 44 | 187 |
| Completions-Attempts-Int | 21-24-1 | 15-28-0 |
| Sacks-Yards Lost | 0-0 | 1--10 |
| Punts | 2 | 9 |
| Punts-Average | 35.5 | 40.8 |
| Fumbles Lost | 2-0 | 1-0 |
| Penalties - Yards | 4-39 | 8-82 |
| Time of Possession | 35:20 | 24:40 |
| Utah Passing | |||||
| Player | Cmp | Att | Yds | TDs | Int |
| C. Rising | 17 | 19 | 234 | 3 | 0 |
| B. Barnes | 4 | 5 | 45 | 1 | 1 |
| Colorado Passing | |||||
| Player | Cmp | Att | Yds | TDs | Int |
| M. Kopp | 15 | 28 | 123 | 1 | 0 |
| Utah Rushing | ||||
| Player | Carries | Yds | Avg | TDs |
| J. Jackson | 10 | 117 | 11.7 | 3 |
| M. Bernard | 12 | 91 | 7.6 | 1 |
| J. Glover | 13 | 62 | 4.8 | 1 |
| B. Barnes | 2 | 62 | 31.0 | 0 |
| C. Vincent | 4 | 23 | 5.8 | 0 |
| J. Dixon | 1 | 15 | 15.0 | 0 |
| C. Rising | 1 | 13 | 13.0 | 0 |
| Colorado Rushing | ||||
| Player | Carries | Yds | Avg | TDs |
| A. Hankerson | 8 | 46 | 5.8 | 1 |
| A. Fontenot | 7 | 11 | 1.6 | 1 |
| M. Kopp | 4 | 9 | 2.3 | 0 |
| M. Bell | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 |
| D. Smith | 2 | 3 | 1.5 | 0 |
| C. Roddick | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
| B. Russell | 1 | -1 | -1.0 | 0 |
| C. Offerdahl | 1 | -13 | -13.0 | 0 |
| Utah Receiving | ||||
| Player | Rec | Yds | Avg | TDs |
| D. Kincaid | 5 | 102 | 20.4 | 1 |
| T. Yassmin | 1 | 41 | 41.0 | 1 |
| M. Parks | 4 | 40 | 10.0 | 1 |
| M. Cope | 3 | 34 | 11.3 | 1 |
| J. Dixon | 2 | 28 | 14.0 | 0 |
| T. Pututau | 2 | 17 | 8.5 | 0 |
| M. Bernard | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 0 |
| D. Vele | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 |
| S. Enis | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 |
| L. Kendall | 1 | 0 | 0.0 |
0 |
| Colorado Receiving | ||||
| Player | Rec | Yds | Avg | TDs |
| B. Russell | 4 | 39 | 9.8 | 0 |
| M. Lemonious-Craig | 2 | 26 | 13.0 | 0 |
| J. Hestera | 3 | 25 | 8.3 | 0 |
| D. Capolungo | 1 | 18 | 18.0 | 0 |
| M. Harrison | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 |
| M. Bell | 2 | 7 | 3.5 | 0 |
| F. Fillip | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 |
| D. Smith | 1 | -2 | -2.0 | 0 |
| Utah Interceptions | ||
| Player | Int | Yards |
| Colorado Interceptions | ||
| Player | Int | Yards |
| N. Reed | 1 | 56 |
| Utah Punting | |||
| Player | Punts | Yards | Avg |
| J. Bouwmeester | 2 | 71 | 35.5 |
| Colorado Punting | |||
| Player | Punts | Yards | Avg |
| T. Carrizosa | 9 | 367 | 40.8 |
| Utah Punt Returns | |||
| Player | Ret | Yards | Average |
| D. Vele | 5 | 30 | 6.0 |
| M. Parks | 1 | -18 | -18.0 |
| Colorado Punt Returns | |||
| Player | Ret | Yards | Average |
| Utah Kick Returns | |||
| Player | Ret | Yards | Average |
| M. Parks | 1 | 32 | 32.0 |
| Colorado Kick Returns | |||
| Player | Ret | Yards | Average |
| D. Capolungo | 5 | 130 | 26.0 |
| E. Olsen | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Utah Missed FG | |
| Player | Length |
| Colorado Missed FG | |
| Player | Length |
