BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Shedeur Sanders overcame a shaky start to throw three touchdown passes, LaJohntay Wester returned a punt 76 yards for a score and No. 18 Colorado pulled away late to beat Utah 49-24 on Saturday.
Winners of four straight, the Buffaloes (8-2, 6-1 Big 12, No. 17 CFP ) remain in the driver's seat for an appearance in the conference title game and possibly a spot in the College Football Playoff. They've doubled their win total from a season ago when they finished 4-8.
“We haven't even put it all together yet. We haven't played our best game," coach Deion Sanders said. “That should be, in itself, scary. When I said, ‘We comin',’ we still comin'. We never stopped comin'. We are comin'. We ain't nearly there yet."
Sanders threw an interception on his first pass of the game and later lost a fumble. But he settled in and finished 30 of 41 for 340 yards. He connected twice on TD passes with Will Sheppard. Sanders has thrown 27 TD passes, one away from matching the single-season school record set by Sefo Liufau in 2014.
Leading 35-16 early in the fourth quarter, the Buffaloes saw the Utes stage a late rally to make things interesting down the stretch. The comeback was thwarted by D.J. McKinney's interception and then a sack from Shilo Sanders that resulted in a fumble that Colorado recovered.
“I'm thankful for the defense,” Shedeur Sanders said. “I may have to take them out to dinner this week for saving me, for saving the team."
Two-way star and Heisman hopeful Travis Hunter stood out in his glittery gold cleats — and with an incredible 28-yard catch between two Utah defenders on fourth-and-8. He also had a 5-yard score with 2:22 remaining on a reverse to seal the win.
On defense, Hunter picked off a pass but also was beaten by receiver Dorian Singer for a 40-yard score. It's the first TD pass given up by Hunter this season.
In the eyes of Deion Sanders, Hunter is the clear Heisman frontrunner.
“It’s supposed to go to the best college football player. I think that’s been a wrap since Week 2,” said Sanders, whose program snapped a seven-game skid against Utah. “We got a wonderful display of cameras here, and I think we’re on national television every week."
The Utes (4-6, 1-6) dropped their sixth straight game behind an offense that sputtered early. They were limited to three field goals by Cole Becker before Isaac Wilson connected with Singer. Wilson later hit Caleb Lohner — and converted a two-point conversion — to make it 35-24 with 8:34 remaining.
“Right now, I'm in the ‘Twilight Zone,’” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. “It’s the most difficult year of my coaching career, hands down. Not even close.”
Among the guests for Fox's “Big Noon Kickoff” was Peggy Coppom, the Buffaloes' super-fan who turns 100 on Tuesday. The crowd of 54,646 — fourth-largest in school history — sang her happy birthday in the fourth quarter.
Utah: At 4-6, the Utes' streak of 10 straight winning seasons is in jeopardy. “Keep moving forward,” tight end Carsen Ryan said, “trying to make a bowl game.”
Colorado: The ground game found some traction. Isaiah Augustave had a 37-yard TD run, the longest rush for a score by a Colorado player since 2018. Tailback Charlie Offerdahl also scored his first career TD in the fourth quarter.
The Buffaloes haven’t been ranked better than 18th in the AP poll since the 2016 season.
Utah: Host Iowa State next Saturday.
Colorado: At Kansas next Saturday.
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Colorado wide receiver Travis Hunter, top center, flies in for a touchdown past, from left, Utah linebacker Johnathan Hall, cornerback Smith Snowden and safety Nate Ritchie in the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, in Boulder, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Colorado wide receiver Will Sheppard, left, pulls in a touchdown pass over Utah cornerback Cameron Calhoun in the first half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, in Boulder, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.
Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.
Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”
Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”
Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.
“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”
He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”
Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.
More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.
With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.
Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.
In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.
Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”
Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.
“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.
The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.
The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.
Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.
In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)
In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)
In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)
