(Photo by Garrett W. Ellwood/Getty Images)
Colorado v. Missouri – 2003
In 2003, the Colorado Buffaloes got off to a fast start, knocking off 23rd-ranked CSU and UCLA to climb to No. 17 in the polls.
After that, the wheels fell off. The Buffs lost six of the next seven games, falling to 3-6 overall. Heading into the Missouri game, CU was coming off a tough 26-21 loss to Texas Tech. For only the 12th time since the start of the 1976 season, a span of 324 games, the Buffs had a two-score lead at some point during the game, and lost. CU had an early 14-0 lead on the Red Raiders but still managed to lose.
Of concern to the Buff faithful was the fact that of those 12 losses after leading by two or more scores, only eight of them occurred in the 25 seasons between 1976 and 2000. Four had now occurred during the Gary Barnett era, including the second time in 2003 (a 23-14 lead against Baylor becoming a 42-30 loss).
Lies, damned lies, and statistics. Numbers can be construed in any number of ways. Fair enough. But for the 2003 Colorado Buffaloes, one statistic could not be misstated or misinterpreted:
3-6.
November 8 Colorado 21, No. 22 Missouri 16
Joel Klatt passed for 187 yards and two touchdowns, leading Colorado to a 21-16 upset of 22nd-ranked Missouri. Brian Calhoun rushed for 65 yards and a score, while D.J. Hackett caught five passes for 84 yards as the Buffs beat the Tigers for the fifth straight season.
The Buffs scored first, taking a 7-0 lead on a 16-yard pass from Klatt to Derek McCoy, culminating an 82-yard drive to open the contest. Missouri responded with a 77-yard drive of its own, but the 18-play, 8:22 marathon netted only a field goal.
Colorado countered with its second long drive, this one covering 80 yards. Klatt hit fullback Lawrence Vickers from three yards out to give Colorado a 14-3 lead.
Missouri cut the lead to 14-9 midway through the second quarter on a 17-yard pass from quarterback Brad Smith to receiver Victor Sesay (the two-point pass attempt failed). The Tigers had the chance to take the halftime lead, but on the 15th play of their next drive, running back Zack Abron fumbled into the CU end zone.
The Buffs opened the second half as strongly as the first half, scoring on their first possession. A 75-yard drive was finished off by a 3-yard scoring run by Brian Calhoun, and the Buffs were up 21-9.
The much-maligned Colorado defense made the lead hold up, but not without drama. One long Missouri drive ended on the Colorado 21-yard-line after a Smith fumble, while another ended at the CU 40 on an incomplete pass on fourth down.
Missouri did score with five minutes to play on a 48-yard screen pass from Smith to running back Damien Nash to make the score 21-16.
The 47,722 CU faithful on hand to witness the event were on the edge of their seats when Missouri took over on their own 20 with 2:39 to play. A sack and an interception by Buff safety Dominique Brooks ended the threat, though, and the Buffs had a 21-16 win.
“I think this was our most complete game of the year,” said Gary Barnett. “It was good to get this win. Missouri is obviously a good football team.”
“It’s a huge tribute (to the defense), because I don’t know how they stayed the course," said defensive coordinator Vince Okruch. "To a man, they bought in and believed, and they deserved this kind of game.”
While the Buffs could rightfully celebrate their second win over a ranked team in 2003, they still needed to win out in order to become bowl eligible. Colorado was now 4-6 (2-4 in Big 12 play), and would need wins over Iowa State and Nebraska to entertain post-season hopes.
The Iowa State game would be in Ames, but was now looking to be a winnable contest. The Cyclones were 2-7, win-less in conference play.
ISU was mired in a seven-game losing streak, having won its first two games against Northern Iowa and Ohio before giving up an average of over 40 points per game in losing its last seven.
The Cyclones had been shut out in their last two games, 28-0 at Nebraska, and 45-0 at home against Kansas State. A win over Iowa State was not outside the realm of the reasonable.
A win over Nebraska Thanksgiving weekend was another story. The 18th-ranked Cornhuskers were 8-2 overall (4-2 in conference), and would be coming to Folsom Field for the first time since being embarrassed by the Buffs in 2001.
The Nebraska game, though, was three weeks away. If the Buffs were to entertain hopes of a December game in a warm climate, they could not look past Iowa State.
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