Epic collapse: Stanford stuns Colorado football in double-overtime comeback thriller

BOULDER — A Friday night party in Boulder turned into an epic Colorado collapse.

Stanford erased a 29-point halftime deficit, scoring on every possession after the half and hitting a game-tying field goal on the final play of regulation before stunning CU in a wild 46-43 double-overtime win at Folsom Field.

The Cardinal picked off Shedeur Sanders in the second overtime and walked it off moments later on Joshua Karty's 31-yard kick.

Stanford turned a 29-0 snoozer into an instant classic. The visitors went 8-for-8 scoring on second-half/overtime possessions and spoiled CU star Travis Hunter's anticipated return to action.

"They were resilient," said a dejected Colorado coach Deion Sanders. "Big win for them, horrible loss for us."

Cardinal QB Ashton Daniels shredded the Buffs' defense. He finished with four touchdowns and 396 yards — all but 35 of them after halftime.

Daniels led a 70-yard drive in the final three minutes, setting Karty up for a 46-yarder at the regulation buzzer.

The teams traded touchdowns in overtime, including Elic Ayomanor's ridiculous over-Travis-Hunter's-shoulder TD catch to force a second OT.

The Buffaloes (4-3, 1-3 Pac 12) got to the 1-yard-line in the second overtime but went backwards on second down before a scrambling Sanders threw a floater up for grabs that was picked off.

Stanford didn't push its luck on the ensuing possession, getting one first down before booting the game-winner.

It set off a raucous after-midnight celebration for Stanford, which had been left for dead after a 1-4 start and the 29-point deficit but pulled off the biggest comeback in program history.

The Cardinal (2-4, 1-3 Pac 12) partied as a stunned Folsom Field crowd — one that had thinned significantly from its sold-out zenith of 53,134 — filed out in a funeral-like procession.

It was the biggest blown lead in Colorado football history and the largest since a Nov. 6, 2010 loss to Kansas, when the Buffs led 28-3 before losing 52-45.

"From youth football on, I don’t remember being up 29-0 and losing a football game," Deion Sanders said. "This is really tough for me, tough for all of us."

Here are three takeaways from the Buffs' complete collapse.

Not ready for Prime time

Even with this being the sixth nationally-televised game CU has played in seven games, "Coach Prime" said it himself.

"We’re not built for the moment right now."

Instead, it was Stanford putting on the show.

Colorado simply fell apart in every phase of the game after a dominant first half.

Despite Hunter's return, Stanford carved up the CU defense, gaining 408 yards after halftime.

At the root of it all was penalties.

The Buffs committed 17 of them for 127 yards. Those included numerous pre-snap, personal foul and substitution infractions.

They halted promising CU drives, extended Cardinal possessions and kept Stanford in it long enough to mount the comeback.

Then there were the coverage busts and missed tackles, highlighted by Ayomanor's 97-yard touchdown catch and run that truly sparked the comeback.

"That 97-yard touchdown is where it all started," Deion said.

Speaking of Ayomanor, he entered with 15 catches for 207 yards and one TD through five games. The sophomore torched CU for 13 catches, 294 yards and three scores.

Colorado special teams had its own issues, including a kickoff out of bounds, a missed 46-yard field goal that came up short and a 26-yard punt.

The offensive line allowed five sacks and didn't get consistent push up front. No CU player ran for more than 37 yards and the Buffs averaged 3.8 yards per carry.

Finally, there was Sheduer Sanders, who played a mostly brilliant game with for 400 yards and five touchdowns. Even he wasn't immune, throwing a completely ill-advised second-overtime pass that Alaka'i Gilman picked off to set Stanford up for the win.

"It was just a dumb play," the junior QB said.

"He never should've thrown that ball," father Deion added.

The Buffs played like a team that was physically and mentally exhausted, fatigue spilling over into a slew of miscues that painfully siphoned a win away.

Coaches always tout victories as "a total team win." Well, this was a total team collapse.

CU wastes Travis Hunter's up-and-down comeback

The sold-out Folsom Field crowd went absolutely wild when star two-way player Travis Hunter's name was announced in the pre-game starting lineup.

Hunter, who had missed the past three games with a lacerated liver suffered against Colorado State, made his presence felt early and often.

He was in coverage on three incompletions during Stanford's first two possessions and snagged a first-down catch on CU's opening scoring drive.

On the Buffs' second possession, Hunter scored his first FBS touchdown on a 24-yard catch.

And when the Cardinal had shaved a 29-0 lead to 29-26? CU scored on four plays, capped by Hunter's 16-yard touchdown catch that put Colorado briefly back in command.

His return also opened up CU's defensive options in a stout first-half defensive performance that evaporated in the final 30-plus minutes.

CU needs Hunter to be the lockdown game-changer he was against TCU and Nebraska before his injury, because the rest of the secondary has major problems.

Hunter finished with 13 catches for 140 yards and two touchdowns, but he still didn't appear to be at full strength, playing tired down the stretch.

He got beat on several key Stanford completions and came up hobbled after hard hits late in the game.

The sophomore also committed a crucial personal foul penalty that extended a Stanford touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.

"People might focus on the plays he didn't make, but the plays he made kept us in the game," Deion said.

Colorado collapse threatens bowl chances

Colorado was right on the doorstep.

Up 29 at halftime, ready to cruise into the idle week at 5-2 with good vibes and a two-game winning streak, already one win away from going bowling.

It seemed like a natural next step for the Coach Prime era in Boulder, which has been filled with dramatics all season.

Instead, it was a somber sight in Boulder. Most CU players walked off the field almost immediately, angry and stunned.

Deion said he could feel a second-half fight coming after a CU drive stalled out late in the first.

"I felt complacency. I just didn’t like how I felt going in at halftime," he said.

"Here comes the complacency, here comes the team I can’t stand."

Translation: This team is still too green, still too inconsistent and undisciplined to be good, much less great.

Big picture, this loss could have major repercussions for CU.

With four currently-ranked teams still on the schedule over CU's last five games, a bowl game went from very likely to very much uncertain.

So this is also a psychological game now for the Buffs.

Even with a bye next week, can Colorado possibly bounce back after an embarrassing loss like this?

Given the intense spotlight brought by Coach Prime, there's certainly no ducking the pressure.

"We have no choice but to go forward, because that’s life," Deion said. "Knuckle up and let's go."

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado football vs. Stanford: Score, takeaways from CU's epic collapse