Colorado failed to get going in Week 4 against Baylor, losing 13-23. In the aftermath of the game, major attention will be given to Deion Sanders’ decision to bench his starting QB, Julian Lewis, after the first half.
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However, the game also saw an unfortunate incident that sidelined a Colorado WR. The Buffs fans, in particular, didn’t like how the referees ruled the play in which DeAndre Moore Jr. suffered the injury.
Late in the second quarter, Moore went low across the middle to receive a pass from Lewis. However, as he was doing so, he was hit in the head by Baylor linebacker Travion Barnes and briefly knocked unconscious. He remained motionless on the turf for a good amount of time, drawing the immediate attention of medical personnel.
Things heated up when game officials reviewed the play and deemed it a clean, legal hit. This decision immediately drew backlash from Colorado fans online, who criticized the officiating crew for failing a enforce player safety.
“How did they not review that for helmet-to-helmet?” One angry fan commented. At the time of the incident, Baylor was in the lead 10-3.
“That was definitely helmet-to-helmet, but why wasn’t it looked at for targeting?” another fan said.
After regaining consciousness, Moore was able to sit up. However, he couldn’t walk without assistance and was carefully helped off the field by Joseph Williams.
Moore was taken straight to the locker room. He was subsequently ruled out for the remainder of the game. Seeing how bad Moore’s situation is, another fan gave his review of the hit being targeted.
“That was the most targeted I’ve ever seen. 2) Moore went unconscious. 3) That was disgusting for his teammates to just glance at him and walk away like that,” the comment read.
One fan was also not happy with Julian Lewis for making a pass that got Moore in a situation like this. The QB delivered the pass slightly behind and high over the middle. This could have forced Moore to extend completely and leave his midsection and head exposed right as the defender converged at full speed.
“Inexcusable pass from Lewis there over the middle getting his guy drilled,” a fan said.
After the game, Deion Sanders gave an update on Moore’s condition, saying that his WR was doing well. However, he has sustained a head injury.
“He’s a warrior,” Sanders said, as reported by National Football Post. “He was down like ‘you’re not bringing out a cart, you’re not bringing out a cart. I’m getting up and walking off.’ I admire that from him so much.”
Heading into the Baylor game, Moore had recorded 200 yards and a touchdown on 15 receptions. He came to Boulder through the January portal after spending his first three years at Texas.
Aside from the Moore injury, Coach Prime also had to answer for a sensational decision at halftime. Trailing 3-10 heading into the third quarter, Sanders benched Julian Lewis and replaced him with backup QB Isaac Wilson, who is the younger brother of NFL QB Zach Wilson.
In the first half, Lewis had completed 11 of his 16 passes for just 75 yards. However, the coaching staff’s issue was with the four sacks he took for negative 17 yards that stopped Colorado from getting any offensive rhythm.
At one point in the game, Colorado offensive coordinator Brennan Marion was seen screaming at Lewis, saying, “Stop playing scared.” That moment came after Lewis didn’t launch a pass into the middle of the field to an open wide receiver and held onto the ball for too long.
Coach Prime’s decision also paid off. Wilson went 12 of 25 completions for 156 yards and a touchdown. More importantly, he helped Colorado tie the game 13-13 early in the fourth quarter. But the Buffs couldn’t take advantage of that momentum and allowed the Bears to score 10 points on two drives to take hold of the game.
In his comments to the media after the game, Coach Prime explained the halftime decision. He said the change was made because the offense needed an “inspiration at that time, in some kind of way.” But that doesn’t mean that it’s curtains for Lewis as a starter.
“Don’t give up on JuJu,” Sanders said. “Don’t do that; don’t give up on JuJu. I think he plays with tremendous effort, tremendous heart and he’s not quitting. We’re not abandoning anybody.”
If the Buffs struggled to have QB stability against Baylor, the task isn’t going to get any easier going forward. In Week 5, they are hosting No. 11 Texas Tech at Boulder, followed by a visit from No. 15 Utah in Week 7.