Colorado Stuns No. 14 Houston 42-32 in Boulder Upset

BOULDER, Colo. — The Colorado Buffaloes delivered their best performance of the season on Friday night, erasing a 20-7 deficit with 28 unanswered points to stun No. 14 Houston 42-32 at Folsom Field.

It was Colorado’s first victory over an AP top-15 team since beating No. 3 Oklahoma on 29 September 2007, and the third ranked win of Deion Sanders’ tenure as head coach. The upset also dealt a heavy blow to Houston’s College Football Playoff hopes, while keeping the Buffaloes’ own path to a bowl game alive.

Houston, ranked No. 14 in the highest ranking in programme history, scored on its first four drives to build a 20-7 lead in the second quarter. From there, Colorado took over — and never gave it back.

A second quarter that changed the night

The Buffaloes exploded for 21 points in the second quarter, collecting 225 total yards in the period. Quarterback Isaac Wilson found wide receiver Ernest Campbell for 24 yards to spark the first scoring drive, then kept it alive with an eight-yard scramble on third down. Running back Richard Young finished the job, slipping through the line and breaking free for a 48-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 10-7 with 9:25 left in the half.

On the third play of the next Buffaloes drive, DeKalon Taylor took a pitch from Wilson and turned on the jets for a 67-yard touchdown, closing the gap to 20-14 with 1:49 remaining in the second quarter.

JaQuail Smith broke free for a 32-yard score to close out the first half, and Colorado went to the locker room having seized the momentum entirely.

“They got it together tonight,” Sanders said of his offence. “I mean, we threw the heck out of the ball a little bit, and we ran the heck out of the ball.”

Five scorers, 249 yards on the ground

The ground game defined the night. Colorado ran for 249 yards and five touchdowns — its best rushing output under Sanders — and finished with 466 total yards, a season high against an FBS opponent. The six touchdowns were the second-highest mark of the season for the Buffaloes, and the most against a Big 12 opponent in 2026.

Five different Buffaloes reached the end zone. Young scored twice and finished with 99 yards on the ground. Taylor’s 67-yard run and Smith’s 32-yard score joined Young’s efforts, while Joseph Williams turned a short pass into a 53-yard touchdown early in the third quarter to stretch the lead to eight.

“We worked all week for this,” Young said. “And a thing I can say is that we never give up.”

Williams finished with five catches for 80 yards and a touchdown, bringing his total to 100 catches as a Buff.

“I’m very appreciative of the coaching staff for continuing to trust in me,” Williams said. “That builds my confidence up even more, each game we go, and each practice we go. So the more trust and the more confidence I build, the more I keep having games like this.”

A freshman steps in — then Wilson returns

The night took a worrying turn in the third quarter when Wilson limped off with 5:34 remaining, apparently nursing a banged-up ankle. True freshman Kaneal Sweetwyne came on in his place — and scored on his very first snap, a 14-yard keeper that made it 35-20.

Wilson returned early in the fourth quarter, with the Buffaloes holding a 35-20 lead, and finished 17 of 25 passing for 217 yards, one touchdown and one interception. ESPN Analytics had given Colorado just a 17 per cent chance of winning before kick-off.

Young collected his second touchdown of the night from two yards out to give the Buffaloes a commanding 42-26 lead with 3:59 remaining. Houston made one last gasp, scoring on a four-yard passing touchdown, but its two-point conversion attempt was stifled once again — and Colorado closed out the upset.

What it means for both teams

Colorado (4-6, 2-5 Big 12) has now won two of its past three games after losing five in a row. The Buffaloes need to win out to become bowl eligible — and avoid a third losing campaign in Sanders’ four seasons at Colorado. Sanders is 20-27 since taking over the programme.

“Everybody’s counting us out when they say we can’t win two games in a row to make a bowl game,” Williams said. “But why can’t we? Everybody in the building believes it, and everyone in the building knows it, so we are approaching it like we are going to do it. We’ve got two games left.”

Colorado travels to Cincinnati on 21 November for its penultimate regular-season game, before closing against UCF. Houston (8-3, 6-2 Big 12), which had been 7-0 this season when scoring 27 or more points, heads to West Virginia on the same day with its playoff path now badly damaged.

The Associated Press noted that the win slightly cooled the hot seat for Sanders, whose team had also beaten Kansas State 27-24 in overtime on 31 October. For one Friday night in Boulder, at least, the Buffaloes looked like the team their coach has long promised they could be.

Florida State also kept its own season on track with a win over Pitt this week. The Jets also staged a comeback of their own this week, stunning the Canadiens in overtime. UCLA pulled off an upset of its own in college basketball, beating Arizona in its season opener.