The halfway point of this season brought an opportunity for these Buffs. They could spiral after a tough loss like they did last season or they could respond and get things back on the right track.

Colorado chose the latter, and it did it emphatically.

Deion Sanders and the Buffs dominated Arizona Saturday in Tucson, steamrolling the Wildcats for 60 minutes in a 34-7 performance to pick up their fifth win of the season.

Brent Brennan and Arizona started this game with an admission. The Wildcats opened the afternoon with an onside kick on the opening kickoff, a confession that they would probably need to steal a possession or two during the course of the game in order to keep up. The surprise tactic didn't work out, as the Buffs fell on the ball and got right to work.

Both sides of the ball were humming for the Buffs right from the jump in Saturday's game. A long completion from Shedeur Sanders to LaJohntay Wester — the target of the day for CU — on third-and-long set up an Isaiah Augustave touchdown on the first drive of the game.

Arizona’s first offensive series ended with a Keaten Wade sack on his first defensive snaps of the season. Colorado quickly made it 2 for 2 on offense, as Sanders found Drelon Miller for his first career touchdown with a nifty shovel pass to make it 14-0.

After Arizona found its footing with a touchdown to cut the lead in half, Sanders and the Colorado offense continued to use a balanced attack to march down the field at will. Just as the second quarter started, Will Sheppard capped the 11-play drive with a one-handed touchdown catch to extend the lead back to two touchdowns.

The Buffs gave Arizona two chances to climb its way back into the game, but the Wildcats weren’t able to take advantage of either one. With Colorado driving in Arizona territory to take a three-score lead, center Hank Zilinskas snapped the ball before Sanders was ready, and Arizona jumped on it. However, its ensuing drive lasted just two plays as BJ Green stripped Wildcats quarterback Noah Fifita to get the ball back to CU.

The Buffs continued to play some sloppy football in enemy territory, as Sanders forced an unnecessary throw over the middle into tight coverage and was intercepted. Colorado’s defense continued to hold strong, however, forcing a three-and-out to get the ball back again. Sanders and the offense finally punched in another touchdown, this time a short scramble by the star quarterback, to blow the game open and take a 28-7 lead into halftime.Arizona failed over and over again to make a comeback in the second half, as the Colorado defense continued to shut it out throughout the game. Colorado finished the game with seven sacks and three forced turnovers, making it impossible for Arizona to move the ball. On nearly every series, Fifita and the Wildcats were stuck behind the chains and forced to push the ball downfield, which they didn’t have the time to do.

The Buffs shut down star receiver Tetairoa McMillan for just about the entire day, even after Travis Hunter left the game due to his shoulder injury. McMillan entered Saturday as the third leading receiver in the nation with more than 120 yards per game, but he managed just five catches for 38 yards on Saturday.

Colorado improves to 5-2 and 3-1 in conference play with the win. It will head back home to take on Cincinnati for homecoming on Oct. 26.

First quarter

COL 12:37: Isaiah Augustave 1-yard run (Alejandro Mata kick), COL 7-0

COL 6:16: Drelon Miller 1-yard pass from Shedeur Sanders (Alejandro Mata kick), COL 14-0

ARIZ 1:17: Chris Hunter 1-yard pass from Noah Fifita (Tyler Loop kick), COL 14-7

Second quarter

COL 13:03: Will Sheppard 16-yard pass from Shedeur Sanders (Alejandro Mata kick), COL 21-7

COL 1:07: Shedeur Sanders 6-yard run (Alejandro Mata kick), COL 28-7

Third quarter

COL 5:58: Alejandro Mata 28-yard field goal, COL 31-7

Fourth quarter

COL 4:42: Alejandro Mata 34-yard field goal, COL 34-7

Colorado’s offense was about par for the course on Saturday, but its defense was phenomenal. Robert Livingston pitched his best game in a season full of impressive ones as the Buffs slowed down every aspect of the Arizona offense.

The Wildcats cracked 100 yards on the ground, but they weren’t able to do it efficiently. Arizona finished the game with just 107 yards on 34 carries, and it didn’t fare much better through the air. Noah Fifita threw for 138 yards and was sacked seven times, including two from Keaten Wade and two from Samuel Okunlola, in a disastrous day for the Arizona offensive line group. Arizona finished with just 245 total yards on the day.

Livingston’s unit also forced three turnovers — one interception and two fumble recoveries — during a spectacular performance where it completely suffocated the Arizona offense from start to finish.

The biggest turning point of this game arguably came on its opening play. Arizona tried to surprise Colorado out of the gates with an onside kick on the opening kickoff. The Buffs weren’t fooled, as freshman running back Brandon Hood came up with the recovery and the Buffs immediately went down and scored.

Arizona had two chances to create turning points of its own, but its offense wasn’t able to get anything going. Colorado turned the ball over on back-to-back trips inside the Wildcats’ 30-yard line with a 21-7 lead, but Arizona fumbled it back and then went three-and-out in response.

The best catch of the day was made by Sheppard, who has had some drop problems this season but has become very reliable in contested-catch situations. Sheppard can go up and get the ball over just about anybody, and he proved it once again with a one-handed snag in the end zone for the Buffs’ third touchdown of the day.

The biggest play of the game for the Colorado defense came in a sudden change situation. After the offense turned it over on a bad snap exchange, defensive end BJ Green continued his stellar play in recent weeks, getting home and ripping the ball away from Fifita. LaVonta Bentley came away with the recovery, and the Buffs were back in business.

Wester’s chemistry with Shedeur Sanders has been growing in recent weeks, and it really stuck out right from the jump on Saturday. Wester and Sanders wasted no time connecting, as the two hooked up on a huge 46-yard gain to pick up a third-and-15 on Colorado’s first drive.

Wester finished the day as the game’s leading receiver with eighth catches for 127 yards, and he accounted for more than half of Colorado’s yards through the air. With Hunter banged up, the Buffs needed someone to step up as the No. 1 receiver, and Wester was happy to be that guy.

The injury news throughout the week was all surrounding two-way star Hunter, who left last week’s loss to Kansas State with a shoulder injury. Hunter was cleared to play on Saturday, but the Buffs limited his snaps on defense in the first half. Hunter didn’t dress for the second half of the game for what CU called “precautionary measures,” while Allison Williams reported on the FOX broadcast that Hunter had a “slight re-aggravation” of his shoulder injury.

Backup tight end Sam Hart was injured on Colorado’s first touchdown and hobbled off the field without putting any weight on his right leg. Hart never returned to the game. Running back Micah Welch didn’t play in the second half after carrying the ball once before halftime. Welch has been nursing a hamstring injury coming into this one, so that could be the reason he was pulled.

Colorado

Total Yards: 398

Passing

Shedeur Sanders: 23-for-33, 250 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT

Ryan Staub: 0-for-1, 0 yards

Rushing

Isaiah Augustave: 14 carries, 53 yards, TD

Charlie Offerdahl: 7 carries, 53 yards

Dallan Hayden: 6 carries, 35 yards

Micah Welch: 1 carry, 8 yards

Shedeur Sanders: 7 carries, 6 yards, TD

Receiving

LaJohntay Wester: 8 catches, 127 yards

Will Sheppard: 4 catches, 54 yards, TD

Drelon Miller: 3 catches, 18 yards, TD

Travis Hunter: 2 catches, 17 yards

Sav’ell Smalls: 1 catch, 10 yards

Jimmy Horn Jr.: 2 catches, 9 yards

Isaiah Augustave: 1 catch, 7 yards

Dallan Hayden: 1 catch, 7 yards

Jordan Onovughe: 1 catch, 1 yard

Arizona

Total yards: 245

Passing

Noah Fifita: 16-for-26, 138 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT

Rushing

Quali Conley: 11 carries, 42 yards

Kedrick Reescano: 7 carries, 26 yards

Noah Fifita: 12 carries, 24 yards

Kayden Luke: 1 carry, 11 yards

Brandon Johnson: 2 carries, 8 yards

Cole Tannenbaum: 1 carry, -4 yards

Receiving

Tetairoa McMillan: 5 catches, 38 yards

Jeremiah Patterson: 2 catches, 31 yards

Chris Hunter: 4 catches, 30 yards, TD

Sam Olson: 2 catches, 27 yards

Quali Conley: 3 catches, 12 yards