Mistakes overshadow gaudy offensive stats

BOULDER» Ready or not, here comes No. 6 Washington.

And after watching the Colorado Buffs play to the level of the competition while repeatedly stubbing their own toes through a win over Northern Colorado, it’s difficult to argue the Buffs are ready. At all.

Yes, the Buffs are 3-0, and anyone glancing at Saturday’s final score of 41-21, as well as some of the gaudy final offensive totals, could easily be led to believe that CU cruised against an FCSlevel foe in the team’s final tuneup before Pac-12 play begins. Consider those numbers window dressing over some unsightly blemishes the Buffs won’t get away with in the coming weeks.

On the other side of those impressive numbers — 569 yards of total offense, quarterback Steven Montez’s career-high 357 passing yards, Phillip Lindsay’s 151 rushing yards — was a litany of errors unbecoming of a squad hoping to defend its Pac-12 divisional crown.

There will be those who believe it’s nothing but nitpicking to analyze the shortcomings of a squad that has outscored opponents 95-27 so far. If winning is the only thing that matters, it’s tough to argue with 3-0. But last year’s 10-4 season that was christened with the nickname “The Rise” even before a game was played set a new standard at Folsom Field. The Buffs expect to compete with the Washingtons of the college football world. And right now, they just aren’t there.

Pick your poison from the UNC victory. Fourteen penalties for 114 yards. Two turnovers while marching into scoring position. And two ejections via the always popular targeting rule, one of which will cost the Buffs the services of a key interior defensive lineman, Chris Mulumba, for the first half of the Washington game.

Instead of putting away an overmatched foe in the third quarter, CU was flagged for holding three times by three different offensive linemen.