Brennan Marion has heard enough questions about the Colorado Buffaloes’ run game. After two rough rushing performances, fans and media naturally have reason to keep asking.
A reporter asked Wednesday about riding the hot hand when running back Micah Welch gets going. Marion did not appear to like the premise.
“Yeah, I mean, the hot hand on the running back thing is like, I don’t know. I’ll try to be polite and answer the question without being an a--hole,” Marion said. “To me, I don’t know why I’m getting asked run game questions when we’ve rushed the ball for, I don’t know, a lot of yards of my whole career.”
Marion knows how to build a run game. Colorado has struggled to execute lately. Neither observation cancels the other.
Brennan Marion has plenty of history to point to
“We were like number one in the country last year. We were number one the year before, number two, number three,” Marion said. “So the run game will be fine. The running backs will be fine. They’ll get the ball when they’re supposed to get the ball, and they’ll make plays.”
The rankings he cited need context. Sacramento State averaged 262.6 rushing yards in 2025, third in the FCS. His system clearly can work.
Marion said in February that his Go-Go offense needs to close out games on the ground. Baylor coach Dave Aranda later praised its multiple-back looks. That makes the recent drop harder to ignore.
Colorado's two-game slump gives the question weight
Colorado ran for 183 yards at Georgia Tech and 180 against both Weber State and Northwestern. But the Buffaloes totaled 83 yards on 39 attempts at Baylor, then 78 on 32 against Texas Tech. Across those two games, that's 161 yards on 71 official carries, about 2.3 yards per rush.
College rushing totals include sack losses, so that figure does not isolate the backs. Still, Colorado lost September’s rhythm. Welch had a 55-yard touchdown against Weber State, while JaQuail Smith, Damian Henderson II and others give Marion options.
Against Texas Tech, Colorado attempted 48 passes, far from the balance Sanders wants. That puts another burden on the rushing attack: It has to produce enough early to keep the offense out of those long-yardage situations where running becomes a harder sell.
Sharing the ball makes sense. Figuring out when a back deserves a few consecutive carries is fair game, too.
Deion Sanders wants the ground game back
Colorado coach Deion Sanders wants 17 to 24 pass attempts against Utah.
“We can run the ball. We’ve proven that. We’ve got to rely on that,” Sanders said Tuesday. “Our linemen, they’ve taken on that responsibility to work their butts off this week so they can get back to that first and second-week type of running attack that we featured, as well as the third week as well.”
Utah just held Kansas to 58 rushing yards. Marion has every reason to trust his system. Colorado has to give him a reason to stop hearing about it.
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