CU Football 2023 – Our Time!

“You’re absolutely right Mr. Spicoli, it is our time.”  Mr. Hand – Fast Times at Ridgemont High

It’s been five years since the Buffs have been favored by double digits over a power 5 school.  Buff Nation will recall it was that game, on October 27, 2018, where CU gave up a second half 28-point lead and lost to the (then) lowly Oregon State Beavers 41-34 in overtime.  It was one of the biggest chokes in college football history, a black eye to a storied Colorado football program, and led to the firing of Coach Mike MacIntyre 22 days later.  Ironically that loss set off a chain of events that led to the hiring of Coach Prime five years later.

Tonight, CU enters Folsom Field as an 11-point favorite to beat the Stanford Cardinal.  Win, and CU is one victory away from becoming bowl eligible, which while Coach Prime says is not the goal of the CU football program, it is the goal of Buff Nation and would mark a remarkable, fantastical, nearly unimaginable successful season.

Coach Prime may be coming, but Buff Nation has always been here.  For years we’ve shown up and been treated to sub-par football.  We have been forced to sit through blow outs (or opt to leave early).  No longer.  Tonight, under the lights of Folsom Field, this is our time.  This is what we have been waiting for.  We are favored, we have the better team, and we have the biggest upside.  It’s all in front of us, and tonight, well tonight we reap what we have dreamt about for seasons – a competitive team with a chance to return to national prominence.

While CU’s undefeated Cinderella season ended a few weeks ago, the Buffs remain the darling of the national media and the number one college football story.  Coach Prime expressed disappointment that the Stanford game would have a 10 ET (8 MT) kickoff, on Friday nonetheless, but College football is ruled by the pursuit of the dollar, and recent history shows you can put the Buffs on at anytime of day or night and they will draw record eyeballs. 

This is an enviable position to be in.  The school makes money, the players gain followers, and Buff Nation continues to bask in the attention.  In order to stay in that spot light, CU is going to have to pull a James Francis Ryan and  earn it.  To stay in the good favor of America, the Buffs are going to have to beat Stanford.  If there is one thing we know about this country, it’s that America loves a winner.  Coach Prime knows this.  There is no excuse.  CU must win.

Go Buffs!

Doug