Colorado’s margin for error is gone, and Saturday in Tempe looks like the kind of game that tells you whether a season still has a pulse or is simply hanging on by a thread. The Buffs need three wins from their final four games to reach bowl eligibility, which means this trip to Mountain America Stadium is not a throwaway. It is a test of nerve, discipline and basic survival.
And Arizona State is not exactly offering a soft landing. Kenny Dillingham confirmed that Jake Fette is getting another start against the Buffs after making his collegiate debut against BYU last week. That alone makes this matchup interesting. Arizona State is leaning into a young quarterback, but it is also a team that has been particularly strong when it leads or is tied at halftime under Dillingham. If Colorado lets this one drift early, it may not get much of a say in how it ends.
The Buffs cannot afford another sloppy night
There is a larger problem looming over Colorado too: the discipline is still a mess. The Buffs sit 133rd in the nation with 643 penalty yards, and that is not some cosmetic issue you can wave away with a motivational speech. It is the sort of number that turns close games into frustrating losses and turns manageable situations into self-inflicted crises. If you are chasing bowl eligibility, that kind of waste is criminal.
The timing of the recent results only sharpens the pressure. Colorado finally snapped a five-game losing streak last week with a win over Kansas State, but that does not erase the broader reality. The Buffs last won a conference game on the road on Nov. 9, 2024, which is exactly the kind of stat that follows a team into uncomfortable territory. Road wins do not appear by accident. They require control, composure and a level of execution Colorado has too often lacked.
Fette gives Arizona State a fresh wrinkle
Fette’s second start is a small storyline on paper, but it matters because it changes the shape of the challenge. Last year, Arizona State beat Colorado 42-17 in Boulder, and the Sun Devils have already shown they are capable of making the Buffs look ordinary when the game tilts their way. Now they get Colorado at home, with another chance to set the tone through halftime and force the visitors into chasing the game.
The betting market seems to expect a competitive contest, with a 48.5 over/under attached to the game. That suggests points are available, but it also hints at uncertainty about how clean either side will be. Colorado cannot afford to be the team that turns uncertainty into chaos. Not with the bowl picture this tight. Not with a young Arizona State quarterback getting another shot. Not in a building where early momentum can quickly become the whole story.
So yes, this is a game about Jake Fette’s second collegiate start. But for Colorado, it is about something far more basic: whether the season is still alive, or whether the Buffs are once again running out of road before they ever get to their destination.
