Washington State 28, Colorado 0: Three things we learned

The sloppy game for the Colorado Buffaloes against the No. 15 Washington State Cougars was tough to watch in the downpour of rain and 40 mph+ winds. As the night went on and the Buffs continued to struggle, there were more abandoned opportunities than conversions and a possible quarterback controversy.

Here’s what you might have missed in ‘Pac-12 After Dark’ on Saturday night.

The Buffaloes need help in a bad way

Watching how the game was managed against Washington State one thing became very apparent — this team is not ready to compete. Not that the talent isn’t there for the Buffaloes or it can’t be developed, but the gameplan on both sides of the ball needs an overhaul. D.J. Eliot continues to take the majority of flack for the lack of effort with Colorado allowing a subpar 24.6 points per game. The offense isn’t much better and Brian Lindgren is taking some heat. Against Washington State, they went 1-for-17 on third down conversions and had only 176 total yards in CU’s first shutout defeat since 2012. It’s time for the Buffaloes find an identity with their bowl hopes on the line.

Montez or Noyer? Let the competition begin

After the game, coach Mike MacIntyre said Steven Montez and Sam Noyer will compete for starting job this week before the game with California. Montez started against the Cougars by missing the first seven pass attempts before being benched at the start of the second half. He finished the night going 4-of-13 with 21 passing yards. Noyer arguably looked worse than Montez, but it didn’t matter for MacIntyre, who ended the game with third-string walk-on Casey Marksberry. The weather conditions weren’t favorable for much of an offensive explosion in the passing game and we could chalk this up to learning experience for both young quarterbacks. Let’s see what direction the Buffs coaches go next week and how that decision could play a factor towards the end of the season. Stay tuned, folks.

MacIntyre needs to regroup and focus on the task at hand

It’s been a long season for Mike MacIntyre and the frustration came out in the worst way on Saturday night. After the Pac-12 referees struggling all game, MacIntyre blew up when they picked up a flag for pass interference penalty against Washington State’s secondary. MacIntyre moved towards the opposite end zone and preceded to verbally berate the back judge for far too long. It was a surprise he wasn’t ejected, let alone flagged. The one-sided confrontation lasted through the course of the next series and didn’t do any favors for the Buffs. MacIntyre can be admired for his heart and enthusiasm, but considering how the game was going it would have been better to let it slide. This isn’t the first altercation between CU’s coach and Pac-12 officials. MacIntyre was reprimanded and fined $10,000 for inappropriate conduct toward the referees following a 36-31 loss to Oregon State on Oct. 4, 2014.

The rest of Colorado’s season will be an effort to see if two more wins are possible. In the meantime, MacIntyre must remained focused on leading the program in the right direction and he needs help from the rest of the coaching staff.