Oregon State Football: A Closer Look At Colorado

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With the Oregon State football team (5-2, 2-2 Pac-12) set to host Colorado (1-5, 1-2) on Saturday, BeaversEdge takes a closer look at the Buffaloes...

MORE: JUCO DE Nikko Taylor recaps Oregon State OV | WATCH: Offense Talks WSU Win & Previews CU | Beavers In The NFL: Week 6 Recap | Jonathan Smith Press Conference | Snap Counts vs WSU | Grades & Top Performers vs WSU | 5 Takeaways From OSU's Win | The 3-2-1: Oregon State Improves To 5-2

- CU has played one of the nation’s toughest schedules to date – the six opponents to date are a combined 27-11; Sagarin rates it the fourth-toughest so far in 2022 (behind Stanford, Arkansas, Auburn and Texas Tech)

- After the annual bye where the Buffaloes made a change in head coaches, naming Mike Sanford Jr. as the interim for the remainder of the ’22 season, Colorado ended a six-game losing streak dating back to last November with a thrilling 20-13 overtime victory over California last Saturday in Boulder

- A near-sellout Family Weekend crowd of 50,471 saw the Buffs take their first lead since the first quarter of the opener against TCU (3-0), fall behind 7-3 and then go ahead 10-7 and win it on a spectacular catch by sophomore WR Montana Lemonious-Craig in the first and only OT ...

- Lemonious-Craig caught eight passes for 119 yards and the game-winning touchdown against California in CU’s 20-13 overtime win last Saturday. Targeted eight times, he caught all eight balls and also earned five first downs. The 6-2, 185-pound sophomore nearly doubled his yards entering the game (15 receptions for 172 yards) in recording the first 100-yard receiving game of his career (and the 163rd in CU history).

- Colorado allowed 673 yards on defense in the 43-20 loss at Arizona on October 1. Then the head coaching change came down that also saw a change in defensive coordinators. The defense was overhauled to a degree and two weeks later, Cal came into today averaging 398.2 yards offensively; the Bears were held to 297. The 376-yard difference between games is the seventh-best improvement from one game to the next in CU history, and the 297 yards tied for the fourth-fewest allowed by a defensive coordinator (Gerald Chatman) in his first game steering the Buff defense

- Sanford Jr., who was in his first year as CU’s offensive coordinator, has been named interim head coach for the remainder of the 2022 season. A 17-year veteran of the coaching profession, Sanford previously served as a head coach for Western Kentucky in 2017 and 2018. He is 1-0 at Colorado and 10-16 in his third season as a collegiate head coach.

- QB Brendon Lewis decided to enter the transfer portal on October 18. He announced his decision on Twitter: “First off, I’d like to begin by thanking God for giving me the opportunity to play football at this level. I’m grateful to the University of Colorado, my teammates, coaches and Buff Nation for all my support over the past years. Over the various changes I’ve encountered throughout my three years at CU, I’ve decided I need to explore my other options and see who can best prepare me for my future. In order to do so, I have decided to enter the transfer portal.”

The Colorado-Oregon State series is even at 6-6... CU has won three of the last four which includes the last two in Corvallis, where CU leads, 2-1 ...

Oregon State's last win against the Buffs came in 2018 when the Beavers earned their first and only Pac-12 win in Jonathan Smith's first season.

That contest saw the Buffs race out to a 31-3 advantage before the Beavers' stormed back to ultimately take the victory 41-34 in overtime as Jack Colletto scored the winning touchdown... Jake Luton had 310 passing yards and three touchdowns, Jermar Jefferson had 135 yards rushing, and Isaiah Hodgins hauled in 11 receptions for 142 yards and two scores...

OSU's only home win against Colorado came during the 2013 campaign when the Beavers defeated the Buffs 44-17 in Corvallis. In the win, Sean Mannion threw for 414 yards and six touchdowns while Brandin Cooks hauled in nine receptions for 168 yards and two scores... CU won the 2015 matchup in Corvallis 17-13 and the 2017 matchup 36-33...

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