Epic collapse: Stanford stuns Colorado football
BOULDER – A Friday night party in Boulder turned into an epic Colorado collapse.
Stanford erased a 29-point halftime deficit, scoring on every second-half possession and hitting a game-tying field goal on the final play of regulation before stunning CU in a wild 46-43 double-overtime win at Folsom Field.
The Cardinal picked off Shedeur Sanders in the second overtime and walked it off moments later on Joshua Karty’s 31-yard field goal.
Stanford turned a 29-0 snoozer into an instant classic. The visitors scored on all seven possessions after halftime and spoiled CU star Travis Hunter’s productive return from injury.
“They were resilient,” said Colorado coach Deion Sanders. “Big win for them, horrible loss for us.”
Cardinal QB Ashton Daniels shredded the Buffs’ defense. He finished with four touchdowns and 396 yards — all but 35 of them after halftime.
Daniels led a 70-yard drive in the final three minutes, setting Karty up to hit a 46-yarder at the regulation buzzer.
The teams traded touchdowns in overtime, including Elic Ayomanor’s ridiculous over-Travis-Hunter’s-shoulder TD catch to keep Stanford in it.
The Buffaloes (4-3, 1-3 Pac 12) got to the 1-yard-line in the second overtime but went backwards on second down before a scrambling Sanders threw a floater up for grabs while retreating from pressure.
Stanford didn’t push its luck in the second OT, getting one first down before booting the game-winner.
It set off a raucous after-midnight celebration for Stanford, which had been left for dead after a 1-4 start and the 29-point deficit but pulled off the biggest comeback in program history.
The Cardinal (2-4, 1-3 Pac 12) partied as a stunned Folsom Field crowd – one that had thinned significantly from its sold-out zenith of 53,134 – filed out in a funeral-like procession.
It was the biggest blown lead in Colorado football history and the largest since a Nov. 6, 2010 loss to Kansas, when the Buffs led 28-3 before losing 52-45.
“From youth football on, I don’t remember being up 29-0 and losing a football game,” Deion Sanders said. “This is really tough for me, tough for all of us.”
