Arizona vs. Colorado score predictions

Will the Wildcats pick up their first Pac-12 win on Saturday?

Coming off a bye week, the Arizona Wildcats will travel to Boulder, Colo. to take on the Colorado Buffaloes on Saturday at 5 p.m. MST.

The Buffs (3-2, 0-2 Pac-12) opened as 6.5-point favorites, but can the Wildcats (2-2, 0-1 Pac-12) pull off the upset to pick up their Pac-12 win?

Our staff made their predictions, and you can make yours in the comment section below.

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Ryan Kelapire — Colorado wins 31-21

This is Arizona’s first road game against a decent team, and I think the defense will experience some regression as a result, even though it had two weeks to prepare for this game. Basically, I expect Phillip Lindsay to have a big game.

And unless Brandon Dawkins can complete a few throws downfield, I don’t think Arizona will have enough offense to win in Boulder.

Brandon Combs — Arizona wins 31-28

I feel the Wildcats will not want to lose this one after shooting themselves in the foot in a winnable game against Utah.

Coming off a bye week and looking pretty healthy, UA has had two weeks to prepare for the Buffaloes. I think they’ll be able to pull it off in a close game.

Alec Sills-Trausch — Colorado wins 34-27

I’m on the fence for this one. Lucky for the Cats (and fans) they get this game in before Boulder gets hit by some wintry weather. (Sorry guys, that was random but I feel I was a weatherman in a former life.)

Having a bye week was definitely nice and the Buffs are coming off two straights losses to Washington and UCLA so they aren’t exactly rolling high right now. As much as I’d love to see UA win, I don’t feel it in my gut. It’ll be close but Arizona’s inability to stretch the field plus the elevation could slow the run game in the second half, and give CU the edge.

Gabe Encinas — Colorado wins 24-20

I don’t think Colorado is that good compared to Utah and a bye week helps some, but it doesn’t fix the offense and that has been the problem. The defense is going to do all that it can keep Arizona in this game. Like Houston and Utah, special teams will probably play a big role as well.

I won’t be surprised if Arizona comes away with a win on the road, but I do think it is asking for a bit too much from this team right now. Just have to look forward to Oregon State and Arizona State.

Christopher Boan — Colorado wins 28-17

Arizona has a challenge on its hands in trying to navigate the tricky confines of Folsom Field on a Saturday evening. I don’t see how Arizona’s defense, while markedly improved, can stop dual-threat quarterback Steven Montez and smashmouth back Phillip Lindsay, who are amongst the best backfield combos in the Conference of Champions.

I see Arizona hanging in there for a half or so, before Brandon Dawkins commits a fatal mistake that gives Colorado enough points to cover the spread at home.

Jason Bartel — Colorado wins 27-21

Admittedly, I’ve only seen two Colorado plays all year, and they were the last two against UCLA, so I don’t know anything about them. What I do know about this game is that if Arizona ran the ball every single down, they’d win. But Rich Rodriguez is stubborn, and the passing game will burn this team somehow.

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Arizona-Colorado coverage

• Three keys to an Arizona victory over CU
• Injury report: DeAndre’ Miller likely to debut vs. Colorado
• Expert previews the Colorado Buffaloes

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