Colorado needed a miracle to push Baylor to overtime. The Buffs got it.
They got another when two-way star Travis Hunter forced a fumble at the goal line for a touchback to beat the Bears in overtime, 38-31.
Quarterback Shedeur Sanders, sacked on four of five snaps at one point late in the fourth quarter, rallied the Buffaloes with a 43-yard Hail Mary on the final snap of regulation to send the game into overtime tied at 31.
A play earlier, receiver Will Sheppard dropped another Hail Mary that hit him in the chest.
In overtime, the Buffaloes (3-1) scored on their first possession on a touchdown from freshman running back Micah Welch.
Baylor’s run-heavy approach late in the game in constant rain put the Bears (2-2) on the 2-yard line.
Running back Dominic Richardson dove over the goal line but Hunter met him and knocked the ball out with a hit from his shoulder pad. It rolled into the end zone where Carter Stoutmire knocked it out of the back of the end zone.
LEGENDARY
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Buffaloes fans stormed the field prematurely as the play was being reviewed, and the goal posts came down almost immediately. The call stood after a review and the party was on.
Hunter’s night crescendoed on the final play but he conducted another symphony on both sides of the ball throughout, offering a compelling argument for his Heisman Trophy case.
He caught seven passes for 130 yards with two tackles, a tackle for loss and the game-deciding forced fumble. It was his fifth consecutive game with 100 receiving yards. Sanders was harassed for much of the night but especially late. Colorado’s offensive line surrendered eight sacks, the same number it allowed in the Buffaloes first three games.
The Buffaloes trailed by 14 in the first half and didn’t lead in the second half until scoring in overtime.
Now, after the most dramatic win of the Deion Sanders era in Boulder, they’re halfway to a bowl game.
(Photo: Andrew Wevers / Getty Images)