SAN ANTONIO, Texas – For a rare moment this season, No. 17 BYU won’t have the most explosive offense on the field Saturday when the Cougars face No. 23 Colorado in the 33rd annual Alamo Bowl.

But that doesn’t mean the Cougars (10-2) think their offense isn’t as potent as CU’s, even though the Buffaloes (9-3) have players like quarterback Shedeur Sanders and receivers Travis Hunter, LaJohntay Wester, Will Sheppard and others have Jimmy Horn Jr.

Kickoff at the Alamodome is Saturday at 5:30 p.m. MST and the Big 12 match will be televised by ABC.

“I personally think it’s people’s Big 12 championship,” BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff said somewhat ironically, but obviously referring to the fact that BYU, Colorado, Arizona State and Iowa State are competing together for the Big 12 Regular season titles contended with 7-2 records, but the Sun Devils and Cyclones were allowed to participate in the official title game due to some complicated tiebreaking procedures.

Whatever the case, it was widely touted as a showdown between CU’s high-powered offense and BYU’s stingy defense, and due to the presence of Heisman winner Hunter and dynamic Colorado coach Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders at the Sideline is also expected to attract huge television ratings and many fans to the 64,000-seat indoor venue.

BYU’s offense was pushed to the background, which only motivated the Cougars even more on that side of the ball.

“I would just say that our practice has been really targeted and focused, and I think everyone knows we’re playing an opponent that has a lot of national attention,” said BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick, pointing out that BYU actually scores more points per game of possession than Colorado. “I think our guys felt like they had a pretty good season and not a lot of people noticed that. And that’s why I think the chip on our shoulder is real.”

BYU scored 30 or more points against six Big 12 opponents in 2024 after reaching that plateau just twice last year. The Cougars average 30.7 points per game in conference play.

“We feel like we fit together well. We play slower than them. But in terms of points per possession, we are right there and even have a slight advantage over them,” Roderick said. “So if we just play our normal game and take care of the ball, we should be right there and have a chance to win.”

Colorado-BYU football preview

Roderick said taking care of the ball will be a big task, as turnovers against Kansas led to the devastating 17-13 loss that kept the Cougars out of the Big 12 championship game, and takeaways were the reason for many of the wins from BYU this season.

“They’re such a good offensive team that you don’t want to give them something cheap,” Roderick said. “I think another key is we need explosive plays. We have to be aggressive. We can’t waste possessions, waste snaps. We have to be aggressive and attack from the start.”

As for the Cougars’ perception of being overlooked, that’s really a thing, Roderick and several players said Thursday.

“We had the same record in the playoffs as a lot of these teams. We played a tougher schedule in the playoffs than a lot of these teams. And as we watched those games, I knew that a lot of our players felt like we performed better than some of the teams that competed,” Roderick said. “And this is another chance to show who we are and maybe try to put an exclamation point on this season and catapult us into next year.”

To win, BYU will need a big game from receiver Chase Roberts and a big second half from receiver Darius Lassiter, who will have to sit out the first half because he received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in the second half of the regular-season finale against Houston has.

“From the beginning of the season, we viewed ourselves as underdogs when it came to winter training, spring ball and fall camp,” Roberts said. “That’s the mentality we went into every game with and that’s the mentality we went into against Colorado with.

“We’re just excited to do what we do and show that we can play football, that we can take on anyone, that we can score a lot of points and stop them on defense,” Roberts continued . “I’m just excited to play against a talented team like Colorado and show what we can do. Every game has been a statement game, so we will make another statement this Saturday.”

Retzlaff’s numbers pale in comparison to Shedeur Sanders’ performance – both QBs have started all 12 games for their respective teams – but the BYU junior, known as the “BY Jew,” says it’s a team game and he has faith in the players around him him.

“I think we have the best pass defense in the country. “So I’m excited to watch them play and we’ll get as many points as we need to win the game,” Retzlaff said. “The bottom line is that as an offense we have to score more points than them. I know that will be Jay Hill’s mindset too. Whatever the game requires, we will be ready.”

Lassiter had three games with more than 100 receiving yards in 2024 – against Baylor, Arizona State and Oklahoma State. His touchdown reception in the final seconds helped BYU defeat Oklahoma State, a team the Buffaloes beat 52-0 on Nov. 29.

By comparison, Hunter, the Heisman and Biletnikoff winner, had seven receiving yard games of more than 100 yards.

“Whether we’re up 20 or down, I have to go in there and (make an impact),” Lassiter said. “I know what the coaches expect of me. As soon as I get the opportunity to go out there, I just have to go out there and execute.”

Lassiter, 24, could make a big decision when the game is over. He is one of five players on BYU’s roster who played junior college football and could return for another year since a federal judge has ruled in favor of Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, who has his junior college year cut aimed for.

“Yeah, we talked about it a little bit. But the main focus is that I’m ready for the bowl game and we’ll talk about that after the bowl game and if that’s something I’d like to do,” Lassiter said.