A scouting report of the Colorado Buffaloes and Wyoming Cowboys ahead of Saturday’s game at Folsom Field in Boulder.
Colorado Buffaloes
Head coach: Deion Sanders, 3rd season (14-14, 41-20 career)
2025 season: 1-2, 0-1 Big 12
Last week: Lost at Houston, 36-20
5 Buffs to Watch
TE Zach Atkins: Has four catches this season for 26 yards, but three of those catches came with Kaidon Salter at quarterback. Atkins could be a key target in the passing game on Saturday.
S Tawfiq Byard: Hasn’t started yet, but played most of the game last week at Houston and was CU’s best defender. He had 14 tackles in that game and now leads the Buffs with 19 tackles on the season.
WR Quentin Gibson: The freshman, who was MaxPreps national prep player of the year in 2024, showed some explosiveness on kickoff returns last week. He has just three catches for 12 yards on offense, but the Buffs want the ball in his hands.
LB Shaun Myers: Progressively getting more snaps each week, Myers has 10 tackles on the season in limited playing time. As the Buffs continue to shuffle the deck at linebacker, he could be in line for a start.
QB Kaidon Salter: The senior is expected to return to the starting role after being benched last week. Salter has completed 30-of-44 passes (68.2%) for 261 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing for 67 yards and two touchdowns.
Wyoming Cowboys
Head coach: Jay Sawvel, 2nd season (5-10)
2025 season: 2-1, 0-0 MWC
Last week: Lost at home to Utah, 31-6
5 Cowboys to Watch
QB Kaden Anderson: Now a sophomore, he’s thrown for 535 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions this season. He took over as the starter late last year, starting three games and throwing for 955 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions.
WR Chris Durr: He’s had an exceptional start to the year, with 16 catches for 240 yards and two touchdowns so far, averaging 15.0 yards catch. Last year, he led the Cowboys with 31 receptions and finished third on the team in yards (348).
NT Ben Florentine: The only full-time starter back on defense from last year, he has 10 tackles and three sacks this season. Last year, he had 26 tackles, four tackles for loss and a sack. He’s be a leader up front for a solid defensive line.
TE John Michael Gyllenborg: One of the top tight ends in the Mountain West, he’s off to a bit of a slow start, with eight catches for 84 yards and a touchdown. Last year, he caught 30 passes for 425 yards and three touchdowns, earning second-team all-conference honors. He’s been playing with a thigh bruise, but Sawvel expects him to play.
LB Brayden Johnson: A transfer from Oklahoma Baptist, where he earned all-conference honors, he’s made his mark early with the Cowboys. He’s tied for the team lead with 20 tackles, while also posting an interception, pass breakup and QB hurry.
When Colorado has the ball …
The Buffs have yet to figure out what they are on offense this season. They’ve had rotation at quarterback and they’ve been inconsistent in throwing and running the ball. If the Buffs are, indeed, going back to Salter at quarterback, he’ll bring a running dynamic to the position, and the Buffs had their best ground performance in his one full game (against Georgia Tech). The Buffs also want more use and production out of a talented receiver room. “I do think we’re close,” tight ends coach Brett Bartolone said. “I think we’ve just got to let loose and play and I think that starts in practice. We’ve got to practice the right way. We got to prepare the right way. And I’m going to say it again, we’ve got to execute. … We’ve got to execute when the lights are on.” The Buffs will face a Wyoming defense has been solid this year, at least until Utah broke loose in the second half last week. “They’re physical upfront, and they really do play well together as a unit,” CU tight end Zach Atkins said. “If we execute our stuff, nobody can stop us. That’s what it comes down to. It’s not about them; it’s about us.”
When Wyoming has the ball …
In the first three games, Wyoming has struggled to generate much offensively, other than putting up 31 points against FCS Northern Iowa in Week 2. Sophomore quarterback Kaden Anderson is a pocket passer who has been inconsistent during his short time with the Cowboys, but he certainly has arm talent and some good weapons in receiver Chris Durr and tight end John Michael Gyllenborg. Where Wyoming could hurt the Buffs is on the ground. They average 158.7 rushing yards per game and have three solid backs. Sam Scott is the workhorse, averaging 14.7 carries per game, but Terron Kellman and Samuel Harris are both posting at least 7.2 yards per carry. On defense, CU has some struggles against the run, but that’s mainly come from running quarterbacks and Anderson hasn’t been a runner. The Buffs’ secondary has had some issues at times, too, and Anderson could look to exploit that. Cornerback DJ McKinney said the Buffs need a strong start to set the tone. “We feel like we come alive later on in the game, but we just want to start fast,” he said. “We feel like we’re the heartbeat of this team. So the team goes as our defense goes. So we just want to start fast and play fast.”
Special teams
The Buffs have continued to excel in the kicking game. Buck Buchanan has put 13 of 15 kickoffs out of the end zone for touchbacks. Punter Damon Greaves is second in the Big 12 in average (45.4) and has put six inside the 20-yard line. And Alejandro Mata has been perfect so far, going 3-for-3 on field goals and 8-for-8 on extra points. The Buffs also got some production from Quentin Gibson on kickoff returns last week (averaging 25 yards). Wyoming kicker Erik Sandvik is 2-for-3 on field goals and 5-for-5 on extra points. Punter Bart Edmiston Jr. has averaged 43.3 yards with five inside the 20. Wyoming hasn’t had a kickoff return, but Deion DeBlanc has averaged 13.3 yards on four punt returns. Wyoming has also shown a knack for blocking kicks, with one in each game (two blocked field goals, one blocked punt).
Notables
• Of the 27 games between CU and Wyoming, only six have been played since 1947. This is the first meeting since 2009. The teams tied in 1926 and Wyoming’s two wins came in 1935 and 1982. The first meeting was a 10-6 CU win on Nov. 5, 1900, in Boulder.
• CU is 4-1 in nonconference games at Folsom Field under Deion Sanders. The lone loss came in Week 1 against Georgia Tech. CU has not lost two nonconference home games in the same season since 2006 (Montana State and Arizona State).
• Through three games, CU has ranked top eight nationally each week for TV ratings. The only other team in the country that’s had every game in the top 10 is Notre Dame (two games, both top three).
• Last year, CU was penalized a Big 12-worst 7.7 times per game, at 67.8 yards per game. So far this year, the Buffs are averaging just 5.0 penalties per game, at 43.3 yards per outing.
• CU quarterbacks have thrown at least one touchdown pass in 30 consecutive games, which is a school record, dating back to Nov. 19, 2022. Five different quarterbacks have contributed to that streak: JT Shrout, Maddox Kopp, Shedeur Sanders, Ryan Staub and Kaidon Salter.
• Buffs cornerback Tyrecus Davis was a starter at Wyoming the past two seasons. He’s played just six defensive snaps this season for the Buffs.
• Wyoming has won two consecutive games on the road, at Washington State to close the 2024 season and at Akron to open this season. The Cowboys haven’t won three straight road games since the end of 2018 and start of 2019.
• The Cowboys’ Ben Florentine has had a sack in four straight games. The last Wyoming player to have a sack in five straight games was former Denver Bronco Patrick Chukwurah, from 1999-2000.
• Two coaches on the Wyoming staff are quite familiar to CU fans. Offensive coordinator Jay Johnson was the Buffaloes’ offensive coordinator in 2019 under former head coach Mel Tucker. After four seasons (2020-23) at Michigan State with Tucker, Johnson is in his second season at Wyoming. And this offseason, the Cowboys hired Gary “Flea” Harrell as running backs coach. Harrell was the Buffs’ running backs coach the past two years.
• Aaron Bohl, the son of former Cowboys’ head coach Craig Bohl, is the defensive coordinator. The 31-year-old played linebacker at Minnesota State-Moorhead and has been on the Wyoming staff since 2017. He was a grad assistant for two years, linebackers coach for five years (2019-23) and took over as DC last year.
