Colorado sits 4-3 in its bye week under first-year coach Deion Sanders, which is already considerable progress from a 1-11 finish in 2022. Still, three losses in four weeks to open Pac-12 play after a 3-0 start may leave the Buffaloes unsatisfied. Colorado most recently blew a 29-0 halftime lead in a double-overtime loss to Stanford, which left Sanders urging his players to move on during the bye week as they seek to secure an upset or two in the tail stretch of the season.
"I'm proud of what we've accomplished thus far," Sanders told players at practice. "We feel like we should be much better. I know you feel like we should be farther down the road. I know you do, and I do as well. We know the task at hand. If we give up one we're supposed to win, that means we have got to take one they think we're not going to win. So let's just take one, and we'll be right back where we need to be. ... Ain't nobody giving you nothing no more. You see how it is when we drop something. They enjoy [it]. They enjoy the misses. So let's go take it, because I like to piss them off."
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One way or another, Colorado will have to win two of its five remaining games in 2023 if it intends to become bowl eligible. The road is difficult, however, The Buffaloes' remaining opponents include No. 25 UCLA, No. 12 Oregon State and No. 14 Utah, putting them on track to face three ranked teams across the final five weeks of the season. Arizona and Washington State, against which the Buffs will likely be underdogs, are also still to come.
