From the turmoil of former head coach Karl Dorrell’s abbreviated 2022 Colorado football season, I entered Saturday still dubious and taking Cal to win 38-27 because the season stats (defensively) explicitly and overwhelmingly showed why the Buffs could not beat the Bears.

But then came one of those Saturdays that make college football special, even in beleaguered Boulder, as Colorado defied all of the numbers and the odds in an unforgettable tale that starts with interim head coach Mike Sanford.

In these times of great adversity for the program, Sanford brought new life to this Buffs team.

All this talk of “energy” throughout the bye week was put into context at Folsom Field. Sanford set the tone with his meniscus-tearing kind of energy, the team celebrated after every down and the home crowd came to life along with the team.

“That was purely based off [what] coach Mike Sanford brings to practice every single day,” offensive lineman Casey Roddick said of that energy. “So we just bottled that up throughout practice, and we bring it into game day.”

Sanford addressed the media openly at every availability explaining what he and the coaching staff were developing behind the scenes, with his meticulous focus on the players. He brought the media and others into his process instead of pushing people away at a time when it seemed like the program could sure use less spotlight if anything.

But it's one thing to talk about change -- it's another to bring it to fruition in front an announced 50,000-plus incredibly loyal fans.

The players’ testimonies had reinforced that something had come from the mid-season coaching change, and Saturday at Folsom Field, Sanford indeed emerged as the difference-maker the team needed.

Sanford and the coaching staff’s intangible energy produced a tangible product on the field as the Buffs earned a much-needed first win, 20-13 in overtime, over Cal.

Again, though, the story started well before kickoff.

Sanford brought the players onto the field about two hours before the game to watch a video of their best plays this year. It was a unique and defining moment for the effort Sanford has put into his players to re-instill belief in them.

“I grew [up] a son of a college football coach that coach[ed] some of the best programs in America and I love the traditions of football,” Sanford said. “I love the pomp and circumstance, the stuff that predates my time on Earth. And so that was really important, but I also felt like the Buff Walk was kind of anticlimactic. I wanted to have some type of moment where we could all come together and envision, visualize what we’re going to do on that screen.

"I wanted to show the team the images on that screen of what they’ve done, of the culture of joy [in] how we’ve practiced. [And] also showing them the plays that we’ve made this year. You know, the plays that win football games.”