Arizona vs Colorado Prediction, Odds
| Arizona Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-9.5 -110 | 55 -110o / -110u | +285 |
| Colorado Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+9.5 -110 | 55 -110o / -110u | -365 |
Below, we have a college football prediction, odds and a pick for Arizona vs Colorado.
It feels like the secret is finally out: Arizona is very good.
The Wildcats (6-3) could still somehow backdoor themselves into the Pac-12 Championship Game, and with games at Colorado, at Arizona State and a home matchup versus Utah, it’s not inconceivable that Arizona closes the regular season on a six-game winning streak.
And the secret is out on Colorado (4-5) too. The Buffs are really bad.
Deion Sanders’ team has dropped five of six, and heads have begun to roll on the coaching staff. Sanders fired Colorado’s best coach, offensive coordinator Sean Lewis, and it shockingly paid zero dividends as Colorado was held to three offensive points through almost 50 minutes of game time against Oregon State.
Entering a conference game as a favorite is virtually uncharted waters for Arizona. Are the Wildcats deserving of being double-digit favorites?
Read on for our Colorado vs Arizona Prediction, Pick, and Odds.
Arizona Wildcats
It’s not going to happen, but there are three games left in the season, and Arizona has not been eliminated from Pac-12 contention. It’s been that type of overachieving season in Jedd Fisch’s third year.
The balanced Arizona offense has excelled in both facets of the game, ranking fourth and 11th in Run and Pass Success, respectively. Noah Fifita, who replaced an injured Jayden de Laura earlier in the season, is playing like the fourth best quarterback in the conference.
In each of the last two games against UCLA and Oregon State, Fifita has had near-identical impressive performances, completing 25 of 32 passes for three touchdowns and one interception. He threw for 300 yards against the Bruins and 275 against the Beavers, two of the better defenses in the Pac-12.
The Wildcats offense has held their side of the bargain, but so has the Arizona defense. The Wildcats are fifth in the conference in total defense and shut down a strong UCLA rushing attack last week, holding a Bruins team that averages 204 yards rushing to just 114.
Getting to Shedeur Sanders will be paramount this week. Arizona is sixth in the conference with 23 sacks.
Colorado Buffaloes
To say Week 1 of the Pat Shurmur offense didn’t go as planned would be a massive understatement. Colorado had just 78 yards of offense and five points through three quarters against Oregon State, before the Buffaloes put up two late touchdowns and a bunch of garbage-time yardage.
No matter how good Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter have been in their first season playing Power Five football, there’s only so much they can do with one of the worst offensive lines in the nation. The Buffaloes average the seventh most yards through the air in the country (320.6), but Sanders may not make it healthy through the end of the season at this rate.
Colorado ranks 96th in Havoc Allowed, and only Old Dominion has allowed more than the Buffaloes’ 46 sacks. Last week against Oregon State, Colorado finished with -7 rushing yards, despite a banner day by Colorado standards of only allowing four sacks.
Colorado’s defense has been nearly as bad as its offensive line. The Buffaloes are last in the Pac-12 in total defense (469.0 yards per game), and they get torched through the air, ranking 126th in Success Rate Allowed.
Whether it’s luck or skill, the Buffaloes have been extremely good at generating turnovers. Colorado’s 18 turnovers gained are the 11th most in the country.
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Arizona vs Colorado
Matchup Analysis
Toggle the dropdowns below to hide or show how Arizona and Colorado match up statistically:
Arizona Offense vs. Colorado Defense
 | Offense | Defense |  Edge |
| Rush Success | 4 | 108 | |
| Line Yards | 36 | 74 | |
| Pass Success | 11 | 115 | |
| Havoc | 61 | 112 | |
| Finishing Drives | 34 | 101 | |
| Quality Drives | 10 | 99 | |
Colorado Offense vs. Arizona Defense
| Offense | Defense | Edge |
| Rush Success | 85 | 95 | |
| Line Yards | 48 | 24 | |
| Pass Success | 41 | 54 | |
| Havoc | 93 | 36 | |
| Finishing Drives | 24 | 34 | |
| Quality Drives | 87 | 41 | |
Pace of Play / Other
| | |
| PFF Tackling | 60 | 58 |
| PFF Coverage | 105 | 107 |
| Special Teams SP+ | 52 | 86 |
| Middle 8 | 62 | 95 |
| Seconds per Play | 28.1 (87) | 22.7 (7) |
| Rush Rate | 48.3% (105) | 41.1% (132) |
Arizona vs Colorado
Betting Pick & Prediction
For just the second time this season, Arizona is favored against Power Five competition, and rightfully so.
Noah Fifita has given the Arizona offense an element of stability that Jayden de Laura never could, and he has a really talented receiving duo in Tetairoa McMillan and Jacob Cowing that should feast on this Colorado secondary.
Fifita also avoids the killer mistakes that plagued de Laura and have kept Colorado in some of the games it's covered the spread.
Colorado is not nearly as good as some of its recent scorelines would indicate, accumulating most of its points and yardage once the opposition has called off the dogs. Arizona is 8-1 ATS, and I like them to beat the Buffs by two touchdowns.
Pick: Arizona -10.5 (-110)
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