CU Buffs scouting report vs. USC – Boulder Daily Camera

Colorado Buffaloes scouting report

Head coach: Deion Sanders, 1st season (3-1, 30-7 career)

2023 season: 3-1, 0-1 Pac-12

Last week: Lost at No. 10 Oregon, 42-6

5 Players to Watch

• WR Javon Antonio: Big receiver returned to the lineup last week after missing two games with an injury and he caught three passes for 42 yards. Could play a big role against a talented USC secondary.

• OLB Jordan Domineck: CU’s best pass rusher has two sacks and 5.5 tackles for loss. He’s had at least one TFL in the last three games. He also has 18.5 sacks in his college career.

• RB Dylan Edwards: After a record-breaking season opener at TCU, he’d been fairly quiet. The speedster still leads the Buffs in rushing (157 yards) and he’s third in receptions (17).

• QB Shedeur Sanders: Along with the rest of the team, he had an off game last week, but he’s been great most of the season. He’s completed 77% of his passes for 1,410 yards, 11 touchdowns and only one interception.

• S Trevor Woods: A steady leader in the back end of the defense, he’s got 25 tackles, two interceptions and a pass breakup this season.

Colorado offense

Led by Shedeur Sanders, the Buffs have shown explosive potential in the pass game. Outside of last week at Oregon, Sanders has been fantastic in moving the ball through the air, connecting with Xavier Weaver, Jimmy Horn and a variety of targets. The Buffs have been too one-dimensional, however, ranking 132nd nationally (out of 133 teams) in rushing, with 55.8 yards per game. A big part of that total is that Sanders has been sacked 22 times.

Colorado defense

The Buffs haven’t gotten on track on this side of the ball yet. They rank last in the Pac-12 in average points (33.3) and yards (475.8) allowed and they’ve been equally generous against the pass and run. They’re allowing 269.3 passing yards per game (11th in the Pac-12) and 206.5 rushing yards per game (12th). They have, however, been opportunistic in creating 11 turnovers (tied for first nationally) and they’ve started to make more disruptive plays in the backfield the past few weeks. They have to do better at getting off the field on third down, however, as they allow conversions 45% of the time.

Colorado special teams

At kicker, Jace Feely (4-of-6 on field goals, 10-of-10 on extra points) and Alejandro Mata (2-of-2 on field goals, 2-of-3 on extra points) have both had opportunities this season. Two of the three misses have been blocked. Punter Mark Vassett has been solid all season, average 42.6 yards and putting eight of his 19 punts inside the 20. The Buffs haven’t had many opportunities in the return game.

How Colorado can win

For starters, the Buffs need to get the offense back on track. A big part of that is on the offensive line, as the Buffs have got to get the run game going and keep Shedeur Sanders from getting sacked so much. Defensively, they’ve got to create havoc plays (turnovers, sacks, tackles for loss).

Buffs notables

• Since joining the Pac-12 in 2011, the Buffs are 5-38 against Top 25 opponents, with three of those wins at Folsom Field. They’ve lost 19 in a row to Top 10 opponents, with the last win coming on Sept. 29, 2007, against No. 3 Oklahoma in Boulder.

• Shedeur Sanders is on pace to set a lot of passing records at CU. So far, he has the most passing yards through four games (1,410) by any QB in CU history. He needs at least 170 yards against USC to top Sefo Liufau for the most through five games (1,579 in 2014).

• CU receivers Javon Antonio and Jimmy Horn are both close to reaching the 100-catch mark for their careers. Antonio has 98 career catches and Horn has 94.

• In the last three games, 48 of CU’s 85 points have come in the fourth quarter or overtime. The Buffs have scored just two offensive touchdowns in the first half over the last three games.

• So far this season, the Buffs have 67 plays of 10-plus yards (16.8 per game). Last year, the Buffs had 114 plays of 10-plus yards all season (9.5 per game).