Colorado Fans See A Change In Football Program, Despite Loss: 'I'm A Believer In What Deion's Doing Here, Those Kids Didn't Quit'

BOULDER,CO - There were times in the early portion of the second half where I looked in the stands to see how many Colorado fans were still hanging around. From the looks of it, not many folks decided to hit the postgame tailgate early, which should give the football program hope.

Down 31-7 at one point in the game, it was the perfect opportunity for some fans that might be new to the whole 'Deion Era' to throw in the towel, for at least this game. But the fans clad in white weren't moving, instead waiting to see how much perseverance this young team has.

Make no mistake, Colorado should not have been down by 24 points, but execution was a major problem, on both sides of the ball.

But in terms of a team that was coming off a humiliating loss to Oregon, they made it a point to prove that they wouldn't just fall over.

"Wondeful game, they played their hearts out...they were resilient, they did not give up on multiple opportunities to give up," Deion Sanders said postgame. "They fought to the end, we sustained injuries, next man up came in and did their thing."

I've been to numerous games where the party outside would beat the onslaught inside, but not Colorado fans. These fans put their belief in Deion Sanders to turn their program around, and they were going to wait for the potential comeback.

A full Folsom Field in the fourth quarter of the Colorado-USG game on Saturday

Colorado Fights Back, Giving Fans Something To 'Believe' In

Luckily for the fans, Colorado went on a run that saw them trading touchdowns, while also forcing Caleb Williams into an interception. At the end of the day, it wasn't enough, but I already figured that was going to happen today.

What I didn't believe would happen were the Colorado supporters sticking around for it all, until I spoke with one fan postgame.

"Look, you have to remember what we've gone through over the years, We wanted football to be good we made it clear to our athletic director that 1-11 wasn't going to cut it," Frank, from Denver mentioned. "We were tired of not having a chance, but those young men gave us a reason to cheer today. Didn't win, but they fought back, when recent teams would lay down."

"For that, I'm a believer in what Deion's doing here. Did you see that crowd at 10 am? It was wild, and now we're out here partying like we just won the game. We're showing progress and the players are busting their butts. We had them (USC) pretty nervous late in the game."

Next Few Weeks Are Crucial For Deion Sanders, Colorado

The conversion around Colorado football will rightfully calm down a bit over the next few weeks. I think we could all use just a tad break, and take a look around the rest of college football. But, just because the Buffaloes aren't playing Top-10 teams doesn't mean they aren't important for the future.

If we see the second half Colorado team show up next week against Arizona State, the Buffaloes could secure their fourth win. Then, they have a chance to get closer to bowl eligibility with a potential home win against Stanford. So, the next two weeks are very important for the 2023 Colorado Buffs, because the only game I could see them grabbing a win against later in November is against Arizona.

Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders after the USC loss

But after today, I truly believe that this Boulder community has bought-in to the Coach Prime era. I was hesitant at-first to think a fan-base could stay engaged after being humiliated last week, and was headed that way today, until the team fought back.

I watched over 50,000 fans stay engaged for four quarters, when they could've quit at halftime. But, just as we witnessed in the three games to open the season, this group is getting better every week, in different aspects. That's all you can ask for as a fan, just as Deion Sanders mentioned postgame.

"Overall, I'm really proud of not-only the young men, the coaches, fanbase, student body, all of you," Sanders noted. "I'm truly proud of the way we represented Boulder today."