Five takeaways from the Buffs' 35-30 loss to Arizona

BOULDER — There was Pac-12 football in Boulder for the first this season Saturday, and it couldn’t have been much Pac-12er.

The Colorado Buffaloes fell 35-30 to the Arizona Wildcats in a game that featured little defense.

Here’s what you should know:

There were too many penalties

Colorado’s penalty numbers have slowly decreased over the course of the sesason, but they jumped back up on Saturday.

Guard Casey Roddick was called for unneccessary roughness in the first quarter. Then, on the next snap, tackle Arlington Hambright was called for holding. The momentum the Buffs’ offense had been building was killed and Colorado was forced to punt.

All told,  the Buffs were called for eight penalties and they led to a loss of 85 yards. Arizona was called for one penalty, a five-yard false start.

Mistakes are common when inexperienced players see significant playing time but on Saturday, one of the big reasons the Wildcats came out on top.

The pocket made a return

We’ve talked a lot at DNVR about how quarterback Steven Montez’s game improves when he’s given a pocket and uses it.

That was on display Saturday afternoon.

In the first half, Montez picked apart Arizona’s defense behind the protection of a decent offensive line. He looked poised and in control. The offense typically stayed on-schedule. Some of Montez’s best plays were made when he was forced to leave the pocket, but he only did so when needed.

In the second half, things changed.

The protection broke down more frequently and Montez seemed to panic. The second-half offense wasn’t nearly as potent as the first. Although it was frustrating to watch the tides turn, it was as clear as ever that Montez’s performances are tied closely to how well his offensive line plays.

The injuries are piling up

The Buffs were missing at least nine starters at one point in Saturday’s game.

Receiver Laviska Shenault sat out with a core injury. Defensive end Mustafa Johnson missed the game with a high-ankle sprain. Safety Aaron Maddox is still recovering from a lacerated leg. Cornerback Chris Miller had surgery to repair a torn ACL Friday. Guard Colby Pursell sat out for an undisclosed reason.

Then, during the game, receiver K.D. Nixon, went down, as did safety Mikial Onu, defensive lineman Jalen Sami, and tight ends Jalen Harris and Brady Russell.

The good news is that, outside of Miller’s, none of the injuries are expected to be major concerns going forward.

The skill guys showed out

Tony Brown is a beast.

The senior wide receiver made a name for himself in the Rocky Mountain Showdon and he’s stepped up his game since.

On Saturday, Brown caught 10 passes for 141 yards, including a 49-yarder down the sideline through tight coverage. It was another NFL-caliber play from Brown.

Then, on the next snap, Brown carried a reverse into the endzone for a 15-yard score.

Without their top two threats, Colorado desperately needed this performance from Brown.

Sophomore running back Alex Fontenot also stepped up. He carried the ball 21 times for 94 yards and caught five passes for 34 more.

The pass defense was horrifying

The Buffs couldn’t stop Arizona quarterback Khalil Tate.

Tate, who missed the previous game with a hamstring injury and was questionable against Colorado, didn’t seem to have his typical running capabilities, but that didn’t stop him from torching the Buffs for over 400 passing yards.

Tate picked up massive gains on deep balls, but the key to his success was his efficiency in the middle of the field. Nearly every play, he was able to find an easy completion. In the second half, Tate completed 23 of 27 passing attempts.

Colorado didn’t help itself by generating little pass rush in the absence of Mustafa Johnson. The Buffs only forced Tate, a quarterback prone to mental mistakes, into one bad decision when he forced a third-down pass into quadruple coverage due to a lack of   time.

Although the pass defense was as weak as it has been all season, the run defense took a major step forward. Colorado held Arizona to its worst rushing performance of the season, just 83 yards and a 3.2 yards per carry average.