How Colorado Buffaloes Players Approached Untimely Second Bye Week

Although it still resulted in a loss, the Colorado Buffaloes still flashed plenty of good against the West Virginia Mountaineers last weekend. Freshman quarterback Julian "JuJu" Lewis performed well, and the defense took a step forward after a pair of embarrassing performances the two weeks prior.

Ideally, Colorado would've had an immediate opportunity to build on those positives this weekend. But the scheduling gods had already granted the bye, giving coach Deion Sanders' Buffs another seven days to stew in their current three-game losing streak.

"We've done a tremendous evaluation. I wish we didn't have a bye because I want to keep working," Sanders said after the West Virginia loss, per BuffsTV. "We'll probably work to Thursday, and then let them go. They probably won't go home because you're holding them to Thursday. So they'll still be around. But I want to see them study perhaps more because you've got to make some decisions."

Julian Lewis' Bye Week Mindset

How Colorado Buffaloes Players Approached Bye Week Football Julian Lewis Omarion Miller Yahya Attia Deion Sanders ASU Big 12 — Nov 8, 2025; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Julian Lewis (10) runs out of the pocket during the third quarter against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images | Ben Queen-Imagn Images

Lewis, who threw for 299 yards and two touchdowns against the Mountaineers, confirmed that he'll stay in Boulder to prepare for the Buffs' next test against the Arizona State Sun Devils on Nov. 22. Unlike "Coach Prime," the former five-star prospect admitted he's looking forward to getting an extra week to watch film and work with his receivers.

"It's a blessing having this off week to sit around. I'm not going home or anything like that," Lewis said. "I'm gonna sit in the facility, watch film, try to grow and get better. I'll try to keep all the receivers back out there so we can keep building that connection and get ready for next year."

Playing For Pride

While the Buffs haven't played well as a team in recent weeks, wide receiver Omarion Miller impressed with 281 receiving yards and three touchdowns in losses to Utah, Arizona and West Virginia. The junior shared that Colorado will continue to fight in its final two games despite falling out of bowl contention.

"We're playing for pride," Miller said. "Win, lose or draw, no matter what, we still fighting. In our wide receiver room, we're not gonna quit."

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Colorado Continuing To Work

Another offensive player who has found some success in recent weeks, lineman Yahya Attia added that Colorado will maintain its same work ethic in hopes of grabbing at least one more win.

"We're just working," Attia said. "We worked last bye week, too. We're just gonna do what we keep doing. We still believe, I still believe. I feel like 5-7 is much better than 4-8 or 3-9, so I'm just approaching it like I'm doing it, and the rest of the team is gonna do the same stuff."

Time and television for Colorado's home finale against Arizona State on Nov. 22 is set to be revealed Sunday.