Woelk: Ability To Finish Was 2016 Buffs Trademark

BOULDER — Sooner or later, Mike MacIntyre's Buffaloes will play a nailbiter.

Saturday's game at the Rose Bowl vs. UCLA (8:30 p.m., ESPN2) is a very good candidate.

The last three times the team have met, the game has come down to the fourth quarter or overtime. Records haven't mattered and neither have rankings. When the Buffs and Bruins get together, recent history suggests it will be a down-to-the-wire affair.

In 2014, the 2-5 Buffs played host to the 25th-ranked, 5-2 Bruins. Colorado rallied from a 31-14 deficit to tie the game in the final minute of regulation before finally dropping a double-overtime decision, 40-37.

In 2015, the 3-4 Buffs lost a wild 35-31 game to the 5-2, 24th-ranked Bruins despite a massive 554-400 edge in offensive yards. After trailing 21-6 at the half, Colorado came back to take a 31-28 lead in the fourth quarter before finally yielding the winning touchdown.

In 2016, the No. 21 and 6-2 Buffs played host to 2-6 UCLA. The Buffs trailed at the half, didn't take the lead until the fourth quarter and didn't put the game away until Isaiah Oliver's 68-yard punt return touchdown late in the fourth provided the final score in a 20-10 CU win.

"It's always a good game to tune in to watch," CU head coach Mike MacIntyre said earlier this week. "Usually it's been close, most of the time it's been high scoring. … They're always well coached and it's always a tough game. The last few games, it seems like we match up and it's back and forth. I imagine this Saturday it'll be the same way."

Thus, it will be no surprise if Saturday night's game is a late-night thriller — and if so, it will be interesting to see how the Buffs react in a tight game.

After all, that might have been the biggest improvement made by the 2016 Buffaloes, who made a historic leap from a 4-9, Pac-12 South last-place team in 2015 to a 10-4, Pac-12 South title winner last season.

Simply, the 2016 Buffs learned how to close the deal.

Remember 2015? Four of CU's Pac-12 losses came by a total of 20 points. Three times, the Buffs had the lead in the third or fourth quarter, and in another game they were tied in the third. They lost all four of those games.

But last year, the Buffs flipped the script. They trailed Oregon in the fourth quarter before rallying for the win. They trailed Stanford early, then halted the Cardinal on a first-and-goal from CU's 4-yard line to protect a four-point lead late in the game before finally taking a 10-5 win. They trailed UCLA at the half and won. They trailed Washington State in the third quarter and won. They were tied with Utah late in the third quarter and won.

The Buffs finished. They didn't panic. They were a senior-laden, veteran group that had been through the Pac-12 wars before and they put that knowledge to use.

This year, the Buffs have yet to face one of those down-to-the-wire affairs. They've been comfortably ahead by the third quarter in all three of their wins; and while last week's loss to Washington was a one-score game in the third quarter, the Huskies took control in the fourth.

"I honestly think we'll respond well when we get into that type of situation," MacIntyre said after Wednesday morning's practice. "We're going to have some close ones. A lot of the guys out there for us have been through those before and know how to respond."

Almost no one wins every close game. But quite often, every season includes a handful of those nailbiters — and it's those close games that make the difference between a winning and losing season.

As MacIntyre said, the Buffs are sure to see a few close ones this season. With eight Pac-12 games remaining in a league that is very balanced, it's not a stretch to think half of those eight could be games decided in the fourth quarter.

Saturday night's matchup with the Bruins is just the next opportunity.

CALLIER BIG ON THIRD DOWN: Maybe one of the more impressive defensive numbers thus far has been produced by outside linebacker Jacob Callier, who has become a third-down specialist. The true freshman has been in for just 66 defensive snaps, but he is tied for the team lead in third-down stops with five. The only other player with five is Lewis (263 snaps). Callier also has a sack and four quarterback pressures (also tied for the team lead).

LANG REGAINING WEIGHT: When freshman defensive lineman Terrance Lang showed up this summer for camp, he weighed about 40 pounds less than he had when he came to Boulder for his official visit.

He's already put more than 20 pounds back on, and that regained weight is sculpted muscle from time in the weight room.

"He'll be 290 before we blink," MacIntyre said.

The Buffs are still planning to redshirt Lang this year. His natural ability has been evident in practice thus far, but CU coaches would love for him to have four years at 290 pounds up front.

"He's physically athletic enough, he's just not big and strong enough yet," MacIntyre said. "But he's going to be really good."

MacIntyre also said redshirt freshman DE Terriek Roberts would be on the travel squad this week for the UCLA game. The 6-foot-6, 270-pound Roberts has played in two games this year and has been credited with one tackle (a third-down stop).

BUFFS BITS: MacIntyre said Isaiah Oliver and Jay MacIntyre would continue to return punts, with the hopes of working Ronnie Blackmon into the rotation in the future. Blackmon had a 40-yard return against Washington. "He's very athletic; he just has to get consistent in catching it," MacIntyre said. … MacIntyre wouldn't say if sophomore Tim Lynott Jr. would start again at center this week. … Along with wide receiver Juwann Winfree's best game as a Buff last week, CU coaches also liked what they saw from true freshman Laviska Shenault Jr., who had one catch for 20 yards and was open on another pass that sailed over his head.

UPDATED DEFENSIVE STATS: Colorado's updated defensive statistics, compiled by coaches, have ILB Drew Lewis a the team's leading tackler with 44, followed by fellow ILB Rick Gamboa (36) and defensive lineman Leo Jackson III (27). Oliver is the leader in pass break-ups with seven, followed by Trey Udoffia with five.

Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu