Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes got off to a 1-0 start after taking down North Dakota State in a 31-26 thriller on Thursday, and it didn’t come easy.
The Buffs stopped NDSU just four yards short on a Hail Mary attempt in the waning moments of the game, securing their first victory since last October.
Despite the close call, Coach Prime can draw valuable information from Colorado’s first test of the year, and not all of it comes from what the Buffaloes were doing themselves.
After reviewing the film, Sanders used a couple of examples of all 11 North Dakota State players rallying to the football on defense. That kind of effort has separated the Bizon from other FCS programs in recent years, and it’s also something Coach Sanders would like to see from his team.
“This is why [North Dakota State] has won so many dern championships. It’s hereditary. They passed it down, they passed it down, then they passed it down. What you passing down,” Sanders asked his team. “What you passing down? This is passed down. This is a standard. That’s unbelievable; 11 guys [getting to the football]. On two different plays — I could put up many more — but I just wanted to show you those two different plays. Everybody on the team gets to the ball.”
North Dakota State is expected to vie for another FCS National Championship in 2024, and it showed that it could compete with some of the most talented athletes in the FBS.
Colorado will now prepare to take on Nebraska in one of the premiere nonconference games of Week 2. The Buffs are 7.5-point underdogs in the matchup, which is set for a 6:30 kick on Saturday with coverage on NBC.
