Brice Cherry: Colorado's show-stopping finish stings Bears, but they'll be back

BOULDER, Colo.

In a game that had a little bit of everything, Baylor did everything it could to win it.

Except actually win it.

The outcome is going to sting for a while for Baylor.

Thats sports.

Thats life.

But something tells me we havent heard the last of these plucky Bears.

Somehow, some way, Colorado extracted a miraculous 38-31 overtime victory from the larynx of defeat, defeating Baylor on Saturday night before a grumbling, then stunned, then delirious crowd of 52,794 at Folsom Field.

How exactly did it happen? Seriously, I had a first-hand seat in fact, as I write these words there are still University of Colorado students partying on the field and yet its a little hard to comprehend.

Heres the most painful of lessons for Baylor: Until the clock hits triple zeroes, you cant ever start feeling like a hero.

Truthfully, the most excruciating part of the proceedings played out even AFTER the clock hit zeroes.

You see, once you get to overtime they turn the clock off.

After doing so much to put itself in position to win the game, Baylor fell victim to two of the more amazing, jaw-dropping plays youll ever witness in suffering the loss.

And that was after both teams produced enough highlights through the first three-plus quarters to keep YouTube in the black for the next decade.

With two seconds remaining, and Baylor needing to only prevent a touchdown to clinch a hard-earned road win, Shedeur Sanders dug deep into his bag of tricks and pulled out the show-stopper.

Running for his life (as usual), Sanders flung a desperation heave to the end zone, because desperate times call for desperate measures.

But in the process he showed why hell be a first-round NFL draft pick next spring, putting the ball on the money for a 43-yard touchdown pass to his sliding receiver LaJohntay Wester.

I just trusted God, Sanders said, after explaining the strategy of rolling out and looking for Webster.

I threw it up to God, and God answered the prayer, for sure.

Bedlam.

Pandemonium.

Sheer insanity.

From the Baylor side, the play was sponsored by 7-11, because it served up the Big Gulp.

Bear fans had to be thinking, Oh, no.

No, no, no.

Theyre not going to blow this game, are they? Sorry to break it to you, gang, but yes.

Yes, they are.

Baylor won the coin toss prior to the overtime, and naturally chose to go on defense first.

But, perhaps for the first time all night, all the momentum was with the Buffaloes now.

That showed on the final touchdown of the night, as the Bears gassed defense couldnt stunt the forward progress of Micah Welch for the 1-yard TD.

Then Sawyer Robertson positioned the Bears to answer.

The Baylor quarterback moved his team down to the 2-yard line with a savvy 13-yard, first-down run.

All the Bears needed was to punch it in from there, kick the extra point, and live to fight another OT.

But remember when I referenced those two jaw-dropping plays the Buffs made to steal the win? Yeah, let's talk about that second one.

Dominic Richardson got the carry, pushed toward the end zone, where Travis Hunter was waiting.

The Buffs mesmerizing two-way star put a hat on the ball just inches before Richardson could cross the plane of the end zone.

The pigskin popped loose and Colorado fell on it.

Ball game.

Well, almost.

Naturally, the officials had to review the play.

Thus led to one of those only-in-college-football moments where you had thousands of Colorado fans spilling onto the field while the public address announcer helplessly pleaded, Get off the field! The game isnt over! Except it really was.

Hunters play couldnt have been timed any better if it had been crafted in a Swiss watchmakers factory.

Seriously, all that guy does is make plays.

Offense, defense, whatever.

Downtown Athletic Club, start etching his name on that Heisman Trophy already.

An inch or maybe two more, and Richardson would have scored, even with the fumble.

Football is a cruel, cruel mistress sometimes.

And here is where we forgo the rewriting and save some paragraphs from the original Baylor-Colorado column.

Because the truth of it still holds up.

The coolest guy at Folsom Field wasnt the future NFL first-round pick Shedeur Sanders.

It wasnt Hunter, that playmaking future Heisman finalist (and possibly winner).

It wasnt even the dude they call Coach Prime, who is so cool that they kept his pacifiers in the freezer when he was a baby.

Nah, on this night, the coolest guy in all of Colorado was one Sawyer James Robertson.

Baylors junior quarterback calmly piloted the Bears in a performance that should settle the teams starting quarterback debate once and for all.

Look, it wasnt always pretty.

Things got shakier than a rope bridge from Pikes Peak to Mount Elbert in the second half for Robertson and the Bears.

But being cool doesnt mean youre only smooth and steady when everything is going hunky-dory.

Nah, the true definition of cool is how one responds when things get wild.

Its shown in how you react when your helmet catches on fire.

Robertson merely shrugged his shoulders and put out the flames.

Thats cool, man.

Give the guy an NIL deal with one of the deodorant companies Speed Stick or Old Spice or something.

He never let the Buffs see him sweat.

At this point, theres just no way that Dave Aranda, Jake Spavital and company can bring back Dequan Finn as the starter over Robertson.

Its clear to anyone with eyes that Robertson gives the Bears the best chance to win now.

Thats not necessarily an indictment on Finns play.

Its not really even fair to judge Finns Baylor tenure on the small sample size that weve seen thus far.

He has played in only two games, remember.

But you dont bench the guy who goes out and puts you in position to claim a sweet Big 12 road win.

Not when he plays as sharp as Robertson did.

Robertson has done absolutely nothing to lose the job and everything to win it.

I tend to think Finn will still have an impact on this season.

Even if hes not the starter going forward, hell play a vital role.

In college football, its essential to have a talented backup quarterback.

And make no mistake, Finn is dripping with talent.

Baylor signed the former MAC Player of the Year for good reason.

His speed brings another dimension to the BU offense.

Remember his 39-yard blur for Baylors first touchdown of the season in the Tarleton game? Stuff happens over the course of the season.

Injuries, slumps, suspensions, whatever.

Youd like to be two-deep everywhere on the depth chart, but theres no more important place to have depth than, you know, the most important position on a football team.

Sure, Robertson has to still be better.

He was 0-for-6 to start the second half before making a completion.

But hes not alone in the Baylor camp of people who have to be better.

The defense, as well as it played at times, has to tackle better.

Shedeur is slippery, but the Bears still should have bagged about 10 or 11 sacks instead of the eight they totaled.

Spavital has to be better.

Colorado may be a blue state, but Baylor painted it red, because the play-calling leaned especially conservative in the second half.

In the fourth quarter and overtime, the Bears ran the ball on 10 of 12 plays.

(And, obviously, that proved to be one run too many.) Take a shot downfield already.

It obviously worked for Colorado.

Isaiah Hankins has to be better.

Granted, 45-yard field goals arent gimmes, but all of the Shedeur and Hunter heroics would have been rendered moot if the Baylor kicker had been able to ice the game with 2:19 to play in the fourth.

Such is life.

Such is football.

You can say Baylor deserved to win, and youd be right.

You can also say Baylor deserved to lose, and youd be right again.

Apparently, deserves got nothing to do with it.

Thats a tough lesson for the Bears to swallow, but the good news is the season is far from over.

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This article has been shared from the original article on wacotrib, here is the link to the original article.