A couple of Pac-12 programs that have had their fair share of turmoil so far in the 2022 campaign take the field in search of a win down in the Valley of the Sun. The Colorado Buffaloes make the trip southward as they take on the Arizona Wildcats Saturday night. Colorado was trounced 45-17 at home last Saturday, failing to cover the line as a 21.5-point underdog in their previous contest. Arizona came up on the short end of a 49-31 decision to Cal on the road, not covering the spread as a 3.5-point underdog last Saturday in their most recent game. The Buffaloes own a 16-8 advantage in the all-time series between the teams and have won two straight, including a 34-0 home victory in the most recent matchup on October 16, 2021.
Colorado was walloped at home by UCLA last week in their previous game to remain winless on the season. The Buffaloes enter this game 0-4 overall and 0-1 in the Pac-12 so they try for their first win of the year here. Against UCLA, Colorado found themselves down 14-0 after the opening quarter and never got closer than 11 the rest of the way. The Buffaloes lost the total offense battle 515-309, gave up 25 first downs while allowing 19 and committed the game’s only two turnovers. Those numbers overshadowed the fact that Colorado owned a 34:07 to 25:53 edge in time of possession in the contest.
For the year, the Buffaloes are 116th in the nation in passing offense as they average 158.5 yards per game through the air. Colorado is 114th in the FBS in rushing offense as the team averages 102.8 yards per contest on the ground. The Buffaloes are 129th of the 131 FBS t eams to take the field this season in scoring offense as they average 11.8 points a game. Colorado is an equally dismal 126th in scoring defense as they allow 43.3 points a contest. Owen McCown is 30 of 49 passing for 310 yards with one touchdown and one interception. J.T. Shrout is 22 of 55 passing for 232 yards with two touchdowns against one interception while Brendon Lewis (15 of 24, 92 yards, 43 rush yards) has also seen action this season. Deion Smith leads the team on the ground with 30 carries for 175 yards plus a score. Charlie Offerdahl (24 carries, 113 yards) and Alex Fontenot (20 carries, 84 yards) are also active in the run game. Daniel Arias has hauled in a team-high 13 passes for 206 yards this season. No other player has more than seven catches or 71 receiving yards on the year. Cole Becker has hit all five extra point attempts and four of five field goal attempts with a long of 43 this season.