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    • Deion Sanders Talks Nebraska Loss, Same Problems For Buffaloes
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    Deion Sanders Talks Nebraska Loss, Same Problems For Buffaloes

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    LINCOLN, Neb. – Looking for positive things to say after his team suffered a 28-10 loss to Nebraska, Colorado football coach Deion Sanders came up with this:

    His team won the second half 10-0.

    “I’m just excited,” Sanders said after the game. “I mean, you have to understand that in a situation like this, you have to find something to hold on to so you can cheer your team on. And I’m really excited about the second half of the football that we played.”

    That’s one way to look at it. Another way to look at it is that Sanders and the Buffaloes still have many of the same issues they had last year, despite overhauling the roster for the second year in a row.

    ∎ Last year, they gave up the second-most quarterback sacks in the country (56). On Saturday, they gave up six more.

    ∎ Last year, the Buffaloes finished last in the nation in rushing yards per game with 68.9. On Saturday, they managed just 16 rushing yards on 22 carries.

    ∎ Last year they also had the third-most penalties in the country with 107. On Saturday they had another nine for 104 yards.

    Isn’t he worried about all these recurring problems?

    “Yeah,” Sanders said, before reiterating his team’s success after the break. “And I wish I could have struggled with nobody really scoring in the second half, I think for two weeks in a row. I wish I could have struggled with that a year ago. Those are good situations to be in. Now we just have to get it together in the first half. There’s always progress, man.”

    In this case, Colorado has other problems too

    For example, Colorado’s offense this year should be explosive. It showed flashes of that in Colorado’s first game, a 31-26 win over North Dakota State.

    Why did it have so much trouble with Nebraska’s defense?

    “I have no idea,” Sanders said. “If we had known that answer, I think we would have responded quicker. Like we just didn’t get it working until it was too late.”

    After dominating the first half, Nebraska led 28-0 at halftime. The Cornhuskers (2-0) then tried to kill time, especially in the third quarter when they consumed 9:30 of the 15-minute period.

    Quarterback Shedeur Sanders, Deion’s son, finished 23 of 38 passes for 244 yards and one touchdown. He also was sacked twice in his first four plays and threw an interception that was returned 7 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter. By the end of the game, his team had converted just four of 14 third downs.

    Like his father, Shedeur was reluctant to say too much when asked if his team was having the same blocking issues as last year.

    “I’m not sure,” he said. “I haven’t seen the movie yet.”

    Shedeur said his team came to the game prepared, but then reality set in: a live game in front of a sold-out crowd of 86,906 at Memorial Stadium.

    “Maybe everyone on the team just wasn’t ready for it yet,” Shedeur Sanders said.

    Deion Sanders Makes Comment About Matt Rhule

    Last year, Deion and Shedeur Sanders had “personal” issues with the Cornhuskers and their coach Matt Rhule before the game.

    A year later, Deion Sanders called Rhule a “great guy” and said something about him after the game that may be hard to swallow for Colorado fans, who hate everything about rival Nebraska.

    “If we’re going to get beat up, he better do it, a God-fearing man,” said Deion Sanders.

    Last year, the Buffs finished 4-8 in Coach Prime’s first season after starting 3-0, including a 36-14 home win over Nebraska. They are now 1-1 heading into next Saturday’s game at rival Colorado State.

    “Sometimes you have those games,” Deion Sanders said. “Sometimes you have those days. And that was just one of those games and days at the same time. No excuses.”

    What Matt Rhule Said About Deion Sanders’ Team

    Freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola completed 23 of 30 passes for 185 yards and a touchdown for Nebraska, which also got two rushing touchdowns from running back Dante Dowdell.

    Nebraska is now 2-0 for the first time since 2016, when the Huskers finished 9-4.

    “That’s a really good football team,” Rhule said of Colorado. “They’re going to make a lot of noise in the Big 12. Defending No. 5 (receiver Jimmy Horn Jr.) and defending No. 12 (two-way star Travis Hunter) and defending No. 2 (Shedeur Sanders), those are the best players you’re going to play against. On the defensive end, they’re as active and violent as we’ve ever seen.”

    Hunter looked frustrated most of the night. He had 10 catches for 110 yards and three tackles on defense. Horn had just three catches in 26 years after catching seven balls for 198 yards in the season opener.

    Deion Sanders’ post-match theme

    How Colorado responds to this loss will be telling. Will the Buffs take a nosedive like they did last year, when they lost eight of their last nine games? Or will they bounce back and defeat their in-state rival next Saturday when they visit?

    “We’ve got to be able to handle pressure,” Deion Sanders said. Not just pressure from the opposing defense, but “pressure from the game, pressure from the moment.”

    “I want to see how we all respond to adversity,” said Deion Sanders.

    That’s especially true for the offensive line, which Colorado rebuilt after last year with transfers and freshman tackle Jordan Seaton, the nation’s top offensive line recruit. Sanders was careful about how he chose his words when describing their performance Saturday.

    “Protection was an issue,” Sanders said. “I try to be polite and say it, because I could say the same thing you did, but if I say it, you’re saying I’m throwing my guys under the bus,” Sanders said. “I’m not doing that at all. Protection was an issue. We’ve got to find a way to prevent that and do it better.”

    Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email address: [email protected]

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