ATLANTA — For 58 minutes on Thursday, Colorado’s offense and special teams appeared to be letting a dominant defensive performance go for naught.But oh, how quickly the first game of Deion Sanders’ fourth season flipped.Colorado quarterback Julian Lewis, in his third career start, guided the Buffaloes 75 yards in 63 seconds, throwing a go-ahead 20-yard touchdown pass to Charlie Williams with 37 seconds to play. Then, defensive back Boo Carter blocked a Georgia Tech field goal attempt as time expired, preserving a 14-13 Colorado win inside Bobby Dodd Stadium.
Georgia Tech's potential game-winning FG gets blocked!
What a win for Coach Prime and Colorado 🔥 pic.twitter.com/0kPWhJwxeN
— ESPN (@espn) September 4, 2026The Buffaloes got revenge for a loss to the Yellow Jackets in the 2025 season opener and can now embrace the positives of this year’s opener despite a few worries.Sanders overhauled Colorado’s roster by bringing in more than 40 transfers this offseason. He changed the coaching staff, too, hiring new play callers on offense and defense after a disappointing 3-9 record in 2025.The first impression of Sanders’ fourth Buffaloes team was a mixed one: a stingy defense, but an offense that couldn’t get anything going for most of the game, and a special teams unit that made too many mistakes.The Buffaloes bottled up Georgia Tech’s two big offensive transfers, former Indiana quarterback Alberto Mendoza (17-of-23, 237 yards) and former Michigan running back Justice Haynes (64 yards on 19 carries).But Lewis struggled mightily most of the game until he completed 4-of-6 passes on that final drive for 60 yards. The Buffaloes’ only touchdown for most of the game was a run by Micah Welch for a 7-0 lead in the second quarter. That score was matched immediately by a 100-yard kick return by Georgia Tech’s Rahkeem Smith. The Yellow Jackets kicked a field goal late in the first half to take a 10-7 lead and added one late in the fourth quarter to go up 13-7 — after Colorado had a 38-yard attempt for the tie blocked.After falling behind 14-13 with 37 seconds left, Georgia Tech drove to the Colorado 27-yard line. But Aidan Birr, a finalist for the Lou Groza Award last season, had his game-winning 45-yard attempt blocked.Colorado celebrates its comeback win over Georgia TechSeth EmersonHere’s what we learned from a sloppy game and a wild finish:Better late than never for Julian LewisTo be honest, the first 58 minutes of Thursday night’s game were ugly for Lewis. He had only 64 passing yards headed into Colorado’s final drive, and there were several key third-down situations where Colorado refused to put the ball in his hands.But when the Buffaloes needed it most, Lewis demonstrated the resolve and poise needed to win the game. Lewis threaded a perfect pass to Williams for the game-winning score.The irony was that Lewis didn’t have any success throwing downfield for most of the night. He had just one completion that went more than 15 yards. Then he delivered that perfect strike to win the game.Lewis finished 14-of-27 with 124 passing yards and a touchdown. It was his third start for Colorado but his first game in new offensive coordinator Brennan Marion’s “Go-Go offense.” For much of the night, it was the no-go offense, and Lewis struggled, but Colorado found something late, and a 17-yard screen pass to begin the final drive built some confidence for the unit.Lewis was a top-50 prospect and a significant signing for Colorado during the 2025 recruiting cycle. He was viewed as the future of the quarterback position for the program when he signed. Now that he’s ascended to the full-time starting role, Lewis will have to be better than what he showed for most of the night. But Colorado will gladly take the persistence he showed late in the game every time it hits the field. — Antonio Morales
