Isaac Wilson replaced Julian Lewis at halftime and brought Colorado back from a 10-point deficit Saturday, but Baylor scored the final 10 points to beat the Buffaloes 23–13 in their Big 12 opener.
The loss in Waco dropped Colorado to 2–2 overall and 0–1 in conference play, a week after its 41–7 defeat at Northwestern.
Lewis completed 11 of 16 passes for 75 yards and took three sacks. Wilson finished 12 of 25 for 156 yards and a touchdown, with neither quarterback throwing an interception.
Coach Deion Sanders took responsibility for the switch after Colorado reached halftime trailing 10–3.
“It’s a decision that I made because I was trying to get us going,” Sanders said.
Sanders did not name a starter for the next game in his postgame news conference. He said he needed to reassess the position and urged people not to give up on Lewis.
Colorado punted on its first three possessions after Wilson entered. Elliott Arnold then kicked a 46-yard field goal before Wilson led a 12-play, 95-yard touchdown drive, finding Joseph Williams from 17 yards to tie the score at 13–13 with 11:04 remaining.
Baylor answered with a five-play touchdown drive that ended with DJ Lagway finding Jadon Porter for 33 yards. After Colorado punted again, Rhett Armstrong kicked a 54-yard field goal for a 23–13 lead with 4:28 left.
JaQuail Smith then lost a fumble two plays into Colorado’s next possession.
Williams caught 11 passes for 127 yards and a touchdown. He also completed a 49-yard pass to Quanell Farrakhan Jr., who finished with seven catches for 117 yards.
Colorado gained 363 yards to Baylor’s 337 but converted only three of 15 third downs and failed on both fourth-down attempts. The Buffaloes rushed for 83 yards on 39 attempts, a total that included 40 yards lost on five sacks.
The Buffaloes have scored 20 points across consecutive losses after winning their first two games. Against Northwestern, four turnovers and three failed fourth-down attempts repeatedly ended possessions before Colorado could score.
Colorado hosts Texas Tech on October 3, with kickoff scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Mountain on FOX.
Read the complete report
This page is an original Sporting Page summary. The reporting remains with Colorado recap.
Read at Colorado recap
