The Colorado football team nearly pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the Deion Sanders era.

Coach Prime and the Buffs had two weeks to prepare for No. 11 Utah, but you couldn’t tell in the first half on Saturday night. Colorado’s offense looked the worst it has all season and self-inflicted wounds reared their ugly heads in front a near sellout crowd at Folsom Field.

All of that changed at halftime.

Here are three takeaways from the Colorado football team’s 27-24 loss to No. 11 Utah (6-0).

Tale of two halves for Colorado football team

The first half went as bad as it could’ve for Colorado offensive coordinator Brennan Marion on Saturday night.

The Buffs’ offense had just 21 rushing yards at halftime and that wasn’t even the worst part of their performance. Colorado had just three first downs and more penalty yards (82) than total yards (70) in the first half.

Whatever Deion Sanders or Brennan Marion said at halftime, it worked.

The Buffs executed back-to-back, 75-yard TD drives to open up the second half and take a 14-13 lead. Jaquail Smith took a short pass from Isaac Wilson 68 yards to the end zone and on the next possession, DeKalon Taylor scored from 18 yards out.

Isaac Wilson started his second consecutive game for the Buffs at QB and managed it relatively well despite a pair of INTs. He completed 63% of his passes for 221 yards and two TDs, but his second INT of the night (was 20-17 with five minutes remaining) ended the Colorado football team’s upset bid.

Jaquail Smith was the star of the night, totaling 139 yards of offense on 13 touches. He appears to have solidified himself as the Buffs’ top RB.

Colorado football defense keeping Buffs competitive

For the third consecutive week against Big 12 opponents, the Colorado football team has played good enough defense to win.

The Buffs held Utah to a season-low 27 points and kept the Folsom Field crowd engaged while the offense slept walk through the first half. Defensive lineman Dylan Manuel and safety Naeten Mitchell intercepted Utah QB Devon Dampier, who came into Week 7 with just two INTs on the season.

Safety Randon Fontenette continued his strong play, racking up 10 total tackles (eight solo), two PBUs and a forced fumble. Cornerback RJ Johnson had two PBUs for the second straight game since returning to the starting lineup.

It might not always feel like it, but DC Chris Marve’s unit has been a strength in Big 12 play.

Post-bye week struggles continue

The Colorado football team hates to see a bye week coming.

After Saturday night’s loss to No. 11 Utah, the Buffs are now 0-4 in games following a bye week in the Coach Prime era. It wasn’t as bad as last year’s 53-7 loss to Utah after the bye but it’s a concerning trend nonetheless.

Also concerning is the fact that Colorado has now lost eight consecutive games against Big 12 opponents dating back to last season. The Buffs have had multiple QBs and play callers in that span, a sign that the struggles against conference foes is a systemic issue.

The Colorado football team will have another chance to pull off an upset next week at Oklahoma State.

Follow Colorado Buffaloes beat reporter Scott Procter on X.