The Rocky Mountain Showdown was back in Fort Collins on Saturday for the first time since 1996, but it was far from home cooking for Colorado State. Colorado took the short bus ride up north and spoiled the party, dominating most of the night and coming out with a 28-9 victory to improve to 2-1 on the season.

The big story of this one was the experimentation that Pat Shurmer and the Buffs were willing to do on the offensive side of the ball, starting up front. The Buffs played a little musical chairs on the offensive line this week, and left guard Justin Mayers is the one who came up without a chair. Tyler Brown slid over from right tackle to left guard, and Florida International transfer Phillip Houston got his first start of the season at right tackle.

The returns were very promising, save for some penalty struggles. Shedeur Sanders was sacked just once and consistently had time to survey the field and distribute the ball from the pocket. The Buffs also were able to run the ball for the first time all season thanks to the true freshman Micah Welch in the first half, as he finished with nine carries for 65 yards.

The Buffs’ offense got off to a slow start in this one, as Sanders missed a few early throws and Colorado was forced to settle for a few punts. Colorado State took advantage of a poor punt by Mark Vassett, and running back Justin Marshall popped a few explosive runs to set up an early field goal to give the Rams the lead after one quarter.

In the second quarter, a crucial penalty changed the dynamic of the first half. With Colorado still trailing 3-0, Sanders launched what looked to be a wild incompletion on second-and-13. However, he was hit late by Colorado State defensive lineman Andrew Laurich, resulting in a 15-yard penalty and a first down.

From that moment through essentially the rest of the game, Sanders was in the zone. He picked the Rams apart on that drive, eventually finding LaJohntay Wester for a short touchdown to give the Buffs the lead. He and Wester hooked up again late in the second quarter for another touchdown to send CU into halftime up 14-3.

Colorado State started the second half with a crucial stop, but the success was short-lived. Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi immediately threw an ugly interception deep in Rams territory, setting up Travis Hunter’s first touchdown of the night to make it 21-3.

The teams traded fumbles, and then Fowler-Nicolosi was picked off again, this time by Hunter on fourth down to give the Buffs the ball back. He then capped off the ensuing Colorado drive with his second touchdown of the second half, this time on a fade route from Sanders in the corner of the end zone.

Hunter’s second score made it 28-3 and essentially put the game out of reach, even after the Rams added a touchdown with just under 10 minutes to go in the game. Colorado had no trouble salting away its second win of the season.

First quarter

CSU 7:21: Jordan Noyes 25-yard field goal, CSU 3-0

Second quarter

COL 5:51: LaJohntay Wester 4-yard pass from Shedeur Sanders (Alejandro Mata kick), COL 7-3

COL 0:58: LaJohntay Wester 34-yard pass from Shedeur Sanders (Alejandro Mata kick), COL 14-3

Third quarter

COL 10:11: Travis Hunter 2-yard pass from Shedeur Sanders (Alejandro Mata kick), COL 21-3

Fourth quarter

COL 13:20: Travis Hunter 21-yard pass from Shedeur Sanders (Alejandro Mata kick), COL 28-3

CSU: 9:58: Justin Marshall 5-yard run (2-point conversion failed), COL 28-9

Hunter and Sanders had excellent games, but the Buffs controlled this one almost from start to finish because of their balance. They were able to control the clock and stay ahead of the sicks on the ground, and Shedeur Sanders had time to operate in the pocket with improved play up front.

Defensively, the Buffs got gashed on the ground a few times, but down-to-down it was a very strong performance. The secondary played an excellent game, sticking to receivers in man coverage and not allowing any big plays in the passing game. The stars played like stars for CU, no doubt about it, but the Buffs usually get that production from their top guys no matter the result. It was the impact of the others that made the big difference in this one.

The first turning point was the roughing the passer call that got the Buffs going in the first half, but Preston Hodge’s interception in the second half really shut the door on CSU’s chances. Fowler-Nicolosi panicked, threw the ball back across his body, and Hodge took advantage to set up a short Colorado touchdown drive that extended the lead to three scores.

LaVonta Bentley has been Colorado’s best player in the front seven on defense through two games. He came into Colorado State week battling a foot injury that limited him in practice throughout the week, but it didn’t limit him in the game, where he finished with five tackles.

In the second half, Colorado State was driving in the red zone and attempting to cut the lead back to two scores. Bentley made an incredible individual play to rip the ball away from Keegan Holles and come away with the recovery to put an end to a 16-play drive.

There’s usually an offensive and a defensive player of the game, but Travis Hunter may have won them both, so he just gets one big player of the game section for himself.

The best player in college football was back at it again on both sides of the ball on Friday night, finishing with 13 receptions for 100 yards and two touchdowns on offense and five tackles, one pass breakup and an interception on defense. All of his skills were on display.

First, Hunter showed off the insane change of direction and ability to make defenders miss after the catch.

Then, he undercut a deep dig route on fourth down, made a leaping interception above his head and gave the Buffs great field position with a big return.

As an encore, Hunter snuck behind the defense and snagged a deep ball in the corner of the end zone for his second touchdown of the night.

It was another stellar performance from one of the rarest talents we’ve ever seen in college football.

The Buffs left this one relatively healthy, although there was an injury scare to Hunter late in the game. After chasing down a long run and making a tackle, Hunter left the game and appeared to be grabbing his right shoulder, and then the CBS broadcast reported that the athletic trainers were testing out his neck. He later returned to the game even with the score out of reach, so all appears to be well there.

Colorado

Total Yards: 419

Passing

Shedeur Sanders: 36-for-49, 310 yards, 4 TD

Rushing

Micah Welch: 9 carries, 65 yards

Isaiah Augustave: 6 carries, 31 yards

Charlie Offerdahl: 2 carries, 16 yards

Shedeur Sanders: 2 carries, -3 yards

Receiving

Travis Hunter: 13 receptions, 100 yards, 2 TD

LaJohntay Wester: 5 receptions, 80 yards, 2 TD

Will Sheppard: 7 receptions, 61 yards

Jimmy Horn Jr.: 4 receptions, 22 yards

Isaiah Augustave: 1 reception, 14 yards

Sav’ell Smalls: 1 reception, 13 yards

Terrell Timmons Jr.: 1 reception, 10 yards

Micah Welch: 2 receptions, 9 yards

Sam Hart: 1 reception, 2 yards

Charlie Offerdahl: 1 reception, -1 yards

Colorado State

Total yards: 340

Passing

Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi: 22-for-39, 209 yards, 2 INT

Rushing

Avery Morrow: 3 carries, 67 yards

Justin Marshall: 14 carries, 54 yards 1 TD

Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi: 11 carries, 6 yards

Keegan Holles: 3 carries, 4 yards

Receiving

Jamari Person: 7 receptions, 51 yards

Dylan Goffney: 4 receptions, 37 yards

Justin Marshall: 2 receptions, 29 yards

Tory Horton: 2 receptions, 24 yards

Caleb Goodie: 2 receptions, 24 yards

Dane Olson: 1 reception, 16 yards

Vince Brown II: 2 receptions, 15 yards

Armani Winfield: 2 receptions, 13 yards