Heading into rivalry week with the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders and his team are prepared for a physical game.
The tradition of this matchup is historic. Formerly in the same conference, the rivalry across the box state’s southeast border has always been competitive. During Tuesday’s press conference, Sanders addressed his respect for the Cornhuskers, especially for head coach Matt Rhule. However, he wasn’t afraid to throw a shot.
“I have a ton of respect for Matt Rhule… he was a professional did a phenomenal job, maybe not the job he aspired to do but he has a ton of experience and I love what he's accomplished in his college coaching career,” Sanders said. “I look for them to be physically tough, imposing and try to run the football.”
Nebraska ran the football 47 times in their first game of the season. At 4.7 yards per carry, the rushing attack was a key reason for the team’s success. With a physical defense to pair, Nebraska is a 7.5-point betting favorite against Colorado.
In its Week 1 victory over North Dakota State, Colorado successfully held the trenches on defense. Nebraska will be a step up in competition trench-wise for the Buffs. With the added meaning, Sanders is making sure all his players are educated on what the rivalry means to Boulder fans.
“It's been things passed along and passed down from older generations to now that The Governor (Camden Dempsey)… took the floor and allowed us to know some things about this rivalry and some things that should impact us,” Sanders shared. “You're not going to be seeing anybody on the team wearing red this week.”
Colorado did struggle against the pass in its win. It will need to improve before Saturday in order to slow down Nebraska's true freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola. In its victory over the UTEP Miners, he had 238 yards passing along with 2 touchdowns. The Nebraska offense had over 500 yards on the day. After dissecting the game film, Sanders showed praise for the young QB.
“The kid made some darn good throws, some pretty good plays. They did some consistent things we knew they would do within their offense…I love what he showed in his first college game ever,” Sanders said.
Still, on-field performance won't be the only obstacle for the Buffs. Playing on the road, Sanders noted they begun preparing for the intense crowd noise. Memorial Stadium will be a hostile environment on Saturday night.
As the Buffs begin their two-game road trip, this game will be monumental for momentum should Colorado win. Ultimately, the game will come down to the offensive and defensive lines. Nebraska will be hungry to derail Coach Prime and the Buffs at home. Kickoff is 5:30 p.m. MT on Saturday, broadcast on NBC.
Photo by Roberto Patrick Gerra/Sko Buffs Sports
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