Top 5 Reasons Colorado Lost: Washington State Edition

Mainly, CU is not very good.

Colorado is not very good. It seemed for a minute like that might not be the truth, but seven games into the season it is evident. The Buffaloes are an OK team. The kind of team that might make a bowl game or might not, and no more. 

We all must accept that. 

As for the specific reasons Colorado lost to Washington State on Saturday:

5. Steven Montez played bad

Montez threw two first-half interceptions, and the second one was especially hurtful. It came late in the second half, with Colorado in the red zone on a promising drive. Had the Buffaloes scored a touchdown, it would have been 21-10 and would have felt like a real game, which until that moment it had not. 

Instead, Montez threw a pick in the end zone. Last week, I urged fans not to be too hard on him because the defense is so bad that there is a ton of pressure on the offense (read: Montez) to score touchdowns on every possession, and I think that played into Saturday's game as well. But what do you want me too say? 

He stunk. 

4. The defense is rekt

The Colorado defense is in shambles after a series of injuries. Most significantly, safety Aaron Maddox missed Saturday's game because of some undisclosed situation. He spoke to the press on Tuesday so this is a bit weird, and probably not an injury. But in any case the defense was in no shape to mount any sort of defense against one of the most prolific passing offenses in the country, and you can see the result. 

3. The weather was way too good

Temperature at kickoff was 38 degrees, and gloomy. But the weather needed to be a lot worse than that to screw up Washington State's passing game. This needed to look more like a blizzard, but the Buffaloes weren't so lucky. 

2. Mel Tucker kicked field goals

Come on, dude. Who did you think you were playing?

1. Colorado is not very good

Look, we've got to face reality. Colorado is not very good. It's not very bad, either. But it's not every good. Colorado is an extremely "OK" football team. Could it beat a top 10 team? Probably! Could it lose to the worst team in the country? Just as possibly. 

This is the situation. It isn't going to change the rest of the season.