(Above Image Credit: BVM Sports)
When: Saturday, Sept. 30th, 12:00 PM EST
Where: Folsom Field (Boulder, CO)
Channel: FOX (check your listings)
The USC Trojans look to keep their undefeated record and spot above the top 10 intact when they face the Colorado Buffaloes.
A True Test of Quarterbacks
Watching Colorado QB Shadeur Sanders struggle against Oregon and its QB Bo Nix last week was tough, but there is no rest for the weary.
This Saturday, he will face the most elite quarterback in college football today and last season’s Heisman winner, USC QB Caleb Williams.
So far, he’s completed 74.3 percent of passes for 1,200 yards and 15 touchdowns. He threw only five interceptions in 500 pass attempts. Stats like these position him as a front-runner for the Heisman this year.
Sanders has also shown that he can execute moves and achieve numbers that would deem him worthy in the eyes of the Heisman committee. He’s completed 76.9 percent of passes for 1,410 yards, 11 touchdowns, and one interception.
Both of them are passing machines and nearly equal to one another. This quarterback battle is just one of a few factors this game will come down to.
Is Colorado Still a Hot Team?
The first three weeks of this season had some of the best experiences Colorado had in a long time. It’s interesting to see how a team that won only one game last season now has three wins on their record.
They won to TCU in week 1 by the skin of their teeth, dominated Nebraska a week later, and survived two overtimes against rival Colorado State in a very personal game.
Colorado’s true test of strength and football wits truly started last week against Oregon. It turned out that they were not ready at all after being decimated 42-6.
Sanders was sacked seven times and fumbled only once. He only passed 159 yards, his lowest of the season. That’s a huge change compared to the first three weeks where he recorded 300+ passing yards.
USC will be no cake walk, but Colorado defeating them and Williams will leave a bigger impression in college football than the first three weeks. However, if they perform like last week, the result will end the same way, if not more humiliating.
USC vs. Colorado: Final Thoughts and Prediction
Just like last week, Colorado is coming into this game as the underdog.
Defensively, Colorado will be without Travis Hunter once again as he continues to recover from a lacerated liver injury he suffered against Colorado State. If the defense intends to get through this, they have to try and be all over Williams like how the Oregon defense was all over Sanders last week.
Last week, head coach Sanders spoke about how his team played like “hot garbage” against Oregon. He understands that this game will be the another huge test of his team’s talents. More importantly, it will determine if the new Colorado can truly hang with the Pac-12, that is, if it will survive.
Now, this could be the first time in years that a USC vs. Colorado game will bring some excitement. However, it’s worth mentioning that Colorado has never, ever defeated USC. It will take a lot for Colorado to exceed expectations, but I think things will continue going USC’s way.
