Colorado scored touchdowns in every phase of the game during the third quarter as the Buffaloes snapped a four-game losing streak by beating Arizona 34-0 on Saturday in Boulder.
Brendon Lewis completed 12 of 19 passes for 248 yards and two touchdowns, including an 11-yarder to Dimitri Stanley with 4:08 to go in the game to complete the scoring.
The Wildcats (0-6, 0-3 Pac-12) have lost 18 consecutive games, the longest skid in the nation. Arizona was shut out for the first time since Sept. 22, 2012, at Oregon.
The Buffaloes (2-4, 1-2) held a 6-0 lead midway through the third quarter when Trevor Woods blocked an Arizona punt and then scooped the bouncing ball, taking it 32 yards for a touchdown.
Just over a minute later, Carson Wells stepped in front of a pass from Gunner Cruz and took the interception 50 yards for a score.
The offense got in on the action on Colorado’s next possession, with Lewis throwing deep for a 62-yard touchdown to Brenden Rice for a 27-0 lead with 1:42 go in the quarter.
Cruz, who started the first two games at quarterback for Arizona, returned to the starting lineup after Jordan McCloud suffered a season-ending leg injury last week. Cruz was pulled after the pick-six, which came three plays after he appeared to injure his right thumb on a scramble.
Cruz was 13 of 22 for 82 yards. Backup Will Plummer threw for 71 yards with an interception on 7-of-17 passing.
A game that featured two of the nine worst scoring offenses in the country played out to form in the first half.
Colorado settled for Cole Becker’s 19-yard field goal on its first possession, and he added a 37-yard field goal midway through the second quarter for a 6-0 lead that managed to hold up until halftime thanks to a defensive stand by the Buffaloes.
Arizona’s best drive of the half resulted in first-and-goal from the 1, but a quarterback sneak and two handoffs netted zero yards. Cruz threw incomplete into the end zone on fourth down.
–Field Level Media
