Freshman QB Byrd Ficklin dominates in debut as Utah crushes Colorado 53-7

Tyler Tate/AP

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah’s newest star may have just arrived. True freshman quarterback Byrd Ficklin dazzled in his first career start, accounting for three touchdowns as the Utes steamrolled Colorado 53-7 on Saturday night. Filling in for injured starter Devon Dampier, Ficklin looked anything but inexperienced. He torched the Buffaloes’ defense for 291 total yards, including 163 rushing yards and a touchdown by halftime. The Utes (6-2, 3-2 Big 12) piled up a season-high 422 rushing yards, becoming bowl eligible after struggling through just two conference wins a year ago. “I told the offensive line before the game, ‘If we go out there and have fun and play our game, we’re gonna do something great,’” Ficklin said. “And that’s what we did. We had something to prove.” Wayshawn Parker added 145 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries, leading a relentless ground attack that buried Colorado early. Utah averaged 12.8 yards per carry in the opening quarter, exploding for 167 rushing yards and two scores to grab a 17-0 lead. Ficklin ignited the offense with a 63-yard touchdown run on Utah’s second play, then Parker broke loose for a 58-yard score later in the first quarter. Ficklin added two touchdown passes in the second — a 22-yard strike to JJ Buchanan and a 20-yard back-shoulder throw to Larry Simmons — giving Utah a commanding 43-0 halftime advantage.

“Hard to find negatives in that game,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. “Offense, defense, special teams – all hitting on all cylinders. That first half was about as good of football as we’ve played here.” For Colorado (3-5, 1-4), it was a nightmare from start to finish. Quarterback Kaidon Salter managed just 37 passing yards on 9-of-22 attempts and threw an interception. The Buffaloes totaled only 140 yards of offense and averaged 2.1 yards per play, suffering their worst loss ever to Utah. “I watched over 10 hours of film, and a lot of the pressures that came up today were nowhere on tape,” Salter said. “They schemed up this pressure just for us.” Colorado coach Deion Sanders didn’t mince words after the game.“This is probably the worst beating I’ve ever had, except when my momma whooped me as a kid,” Sanders said. The Utes’ defense was just as dominant, sacking Salter five times before halftime and holding Colorado to minus-18 yards in the first half — their worst performance before halftime since 2012.Ficklin’s start wasn’t even guaranteed until pregame warmups. Dampier, who injured his ankle a week earlier against BYU, was listed as probable but wasn’t ready to go.“Had he felt up to the task, it would have been a tough decision,” Whittingham said. “But he was not feeling it.”

Ficklin finished 10-of-22 passing for 128 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Despite early jitters and five straight incompletions, the freshman rebounded to lead Utah on five first-half touchdown drives. Five of Utah’s nine scoring drives took less than a minute, including three two-play drives and one single-play strike.

“Sometimes you’re just dumbfounded, man,” Sanders said. “You just look at this day and say, ‘Wow, what happened?’ There’s no way.”

Up Next:

• Colorado: Hosts Arizona on Saturday.

• Utah: Hosts Cincinnati on Saturday.