One of the best games of the college football season happened on Friday night between Stanford football and Colorado football. It looked like it might be a game that a lot of people turn off at halftime as the Buffaloes held a 29-point lead going into the third quarter, but the Cardinal flipped the script very quickly.
Stanford came out and immediately put the pressure on Colorado, and it was a 10-point game in the blink of an eye. Stanford ended up drilling a 46-yard field goal as time expired in the fourth quarter, and that sent the game to overtime. The Cardinal won the game in double OT, and it was a brutal loss for the home Buffaloes.
A big storyline in the game for Colorado football was the return of their star, Travis Hunter, who had been out with an injury. He had a big game on offense, scoring two touchdowns, but he and the rest of the Buffaloes defense struggled mightily against the Stanford passing game in the second half. The Cardinal absolutely torched the Buffaloes through the air in the second half, and that was ultimately the reason for what ended up being the biggest comeback win in Stanford football history.
Travis Hunter plays on both offense and defense every game, so he is getting an absurd amount of snaps every game. One former NFL All-Pro football player thinks that should change.
“I said it once imma say it again, Travis playing entirely too many snaps,” Former NFL star Gerald McCoy said in a tweet. “He either has to pick a side or cut back. 1 or 2 games that’s cool. But practice plus games playing both sides of the ball. Naw man. It’s too much. Can’t maximize the athlete like that.”
McCoy has a point. Hunter is in college, and these snaps are definitely taking a big toll on his body. He is also not getting much time at all to rest between possessions, and that is likely having a big effect on his game as well.
Colorado football has fallen
With the loss, Colorado is now 4-3 on the season, and the Buffaloes need two more wins to become bowl eligible. After starting 3-0 and surging into the AP Poll, this team has taken a major fall from grace.
With the way the rest of the schedule shapes up in the daunting Pac-12, it looks like it's going to be very difficult for this team to find a way to get to six wins on the season. Colorado has clearly taken some big steps forward from last year's 1-11 season, but it is becoming clear that this team still has a lot of work to do.