A Big 12 After Dark showdown takes place on Saturday night in Boulder, Colo., as the BYU Cougars (3-0) travel to Folsom Field to take on the Colorado Buffaloes (2-2, 0-1 in Big 12). Kickoff is set for 9:15 p.m. Central on Saturday, September 27th. BYU is seeking to remain perfect on the season and win its Big 12 opener. Colorado, which fell to Houston in its Big 12 opener, needs a win to even up its league record.
The Cougars enter the game as 7.0-point favorites, and the over/under is set at 49.5 points. Here are two key players to watch in this game, followed by the top storylines for each team, and a prediction from Heartland College Sports.
Two Key Players to Watch
BYU Running Back LJ Martin
Quarterback Bear Bachmeier is off to a nice start, but Martin is the one driving the bus after three games. He’s rushed for 342 yards and a touchdown in three games. He’s the only BYU back with more than 100 yards rushing. When a team has a true freshman at quarterback, a quality running back and running game is a tremendous asset. This is a road conference opener and Martin must have a big game to take the heat off Bachmeier.
Colorado Quarterback Kaidon Salter
If you’re looking for a reason why Colorado didn’t beat Houston, Salter didn’t play in that game after he was benched by coach Deion Sanders. He didn’t get precise about why, but indicated that Salter wasn’t seeing eye-to-eye with the coaching staff. Now, he’s “accepted the process,” as Sanders put it. His play against Wyoming last week — 304 passing yards and 86 rushing yards with four total scores — seems indicative of that. BYU doesn’t want this guy to get going the right way. He’s completed 66% of his passes and leads Colorado in rushing.
Top Storylines
Poking the Bear
Bachmeier hasn’t really faced a quality opponent yet under center (Portland State, Stanford, East Carolina). One may quibble with whether Colorado is a “quality opponent.” But, the Buffs have developed a solid pass rush and their front line is stealthily good at getting past the line of scrimmage. This should be a game where CU blitzes a lot to force Bachmeier into making quick decisions. It’s up to the freshman to make sure those decisions aren’t poor ones.
Bunch Up the Backs
While Salter does lead the team in rushing, two backs are not far behind. Micah Welch and Simeon Price each have 143 yards rushing. Welch (29) has nearly as many carries as Salter (32) and Price has 21. Knowing that Salter missed a game, it’s clear that the Buffs want to run Salter as much as they can. But they need to get enough balance with Welch and Price to throw the BYU defense off and to not wear out their quarterback. Price has a higher yards per carry average. He could break one.
Prediction: Colorado 29, BYU 26
A freshman quarterback making his Big 12 debut on the road is usually not a good recipe for success. The Buffs are going to throw everything they can at the quarterback. That makes Martin’s production a big deal. But Salter — if he plays the way he did a week ago — is the X factor here. BYU hasn’t faced a quarterback that dynamic yet. If the Cougars can’t slow him down or force him into a major mistake or two, the Buffs win.
