Colorado Buffaloes vs. Texas Longhorns 1:00 pm ET
Saturday – Big XII Championship – Reliant Stadium – Houston, TX
Texas is just one win away from the Rose Bowl and the BCS Championship and a probable matchup against USC for the national championship. The Longhorns can’t get ahead of themselves as they will be facing a Colorado team that has struggled in their last two games and really has nothing to lose in this venue. The pressure falls squarely on Texas, but the Longhorns have been dominating all season, so it’s highly unlikely that there will be any hiccups here. Texas has won 18 straight games, and only four of those have been single-digit victories.
The Buffaloes returned to this championship game thanks to an Iowa St. loss to Kansas in overtime. The offense has faltered, scoring just 19 points in its last two games after averaging 30.3 points per game in its first nine games. Colorado ranks 62nd in total offense due to a running game that has been non-existent through the second half of the season. The Buffaloes have averaged just 84.7 ypg in their last six games after racking up 165 ypg in their first five games.
The passing game is where this team is strong, but that didn’t show last Friday against Nebraska, where Colorado threw for a season-low 159 yards and averaged a season-low eight receiving yards. It was only the second time this season that the Buffaloes have been held to less than 300 total yards with the first time coming against the Longhorns. Texas held them to 237 total yards as the Longhorns took a 298-0 lead and never looked back.
Texas scored touchdowns on their first five possessions of that game, and the damage was done through the air. The Longhorns passed for a season-high 337 yards while the running game was kept in check. Texas rushed for 145 yards, their second-lowest production of the season, but that’s where the Buffaloes excel. Colorado is second in the country in run defense, allowing just 79.5 ypg and 2.4 ypc. The 145 yards allowed to Texas were a season high, but Texas ran the ball for just 3.1 ypc.
The Longhorns finished third in rushing offense in the country, so it will be strength against strength once again. Texas is likely to try to exploit the Buffaloes’ passing defense, which ranks 95th in the country in yards allowed. Colorado ranks 30th in passing efficiency defense, but Vince Young is the third most efficient quarterback in the country and that shows in the first meeting where he completed an astounding 25 of 29 passes. Colorado has to find a way to control the clock, as the defense was on the field for nearly 39 minutes in the opener.
Texas was a perfect 6-0 ATS at home this season, but 3-2 on the road, which included going 1-2 ATS while giving up three or more touchdowns. The Longhorns averaged exactly 50 points per game in their four Big XII road games, but Colorado hasn’t allowed that many points all season. The problem for the Buffaloes is that they averaged just 22.5 points per game in their conference road games and finished the season just 1-4 ATS on the road. Texas has gone over the total in nine of 11 games this season while Colorado was 6-5 up, but four of those overs came at home.
