CU coach calls upset
BOULDER, Colo. -- Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops envisioned it going down to the wire. Colorado's Dan Hawkins had a hunch his team would pull off the big upset.
Both coaches turned out to be correct, and Hawkins' Buffaloes (3-2, 1-0) dealt a serious blow to the Sooners' (4-1, 0-1) national-title hopes when Kevin Eberhart kicked a career-long 45-yard field goal as time expired to send Colorado past No. 3 Oklahoma 27-24 on Saturday.
"I told them all week they're going to win the game," Hawkins said. "Not because I'm 'The Swami.' I've done this for 25 years and you just know. You know when your team's ready, you know when you're poised."
His players certainly didn't doubt his weeklong declarations of this impending upset.
"He just reinforced what we already knew," defensive tackle George Hypolite said.
This was the Buffaloes' first victory over a top-five team since Dec. 1, 2001, when they bested Texas in the Big 12 title game, and their most significant victory in Boulder since a 62-36 drubbing of second-ranked Nebraska a week before that Texas win.
"They outplayed us and outcoached us," Stoops said. "They fought their way to a heck of a win."
After Eberhart's kick cleared the crossbar, the Sooners, who had blown a 24-7 second-half lead, walked off dejected, trying to avoid the onslaught of Buffs fans storming the field in celebration of what they hope is a revival of the once-proud program.
"My helmet got jacked and (wide receiver) Stephone Robinson took one in the eye," Buffs quarterback Cody Hawkins said. "I've been to some crazy concerts, but that was worse than all of them. … I think people smelled a lot better at the concert. Those people had been sweating for a long time."
Not so the Buffs, who didn't flinch when they fell behind by 17 points in the second half.
"To me it was long overdue. I mean long, long overdue," Buffs senior cornerback Terrence Wheatley said. "To get a big win against a big team in the national spotlight? I think it's good for us so people can realize we're a good team."
Good? Linebacker Jordon Dizon cringed.
"We're on the verge of being great," he suggested.