Colorado Sports Hall of Fame historian David Plati has compiled nearly 2,000 memorable sporting moments in Centennial State sports history. Here are memorable dates in football from September 1 through September 6.
September 8, 1979 – With the fanfare of Colorado hiring Chuck Fairbanks as head coach, the first college football game selected to be televised by ESPN (which went on the air the night before) was Oregon at CU; the Ducks defeated the Buffaloes, 33-19, with Jerry Gross and Colorado’s Irv Brown calling the action (the game was tape delayed later in the day). Brown was inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.
September 9, 1989 – In Joe Glenn’s first game as head coach at Northern Colorado, the Bears upset I-AA Idaho State, 19-17. It was the first of 98 wins at UNC, a run that eventually included two Division II national championships in 1996 and 1997. Glenn was inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 2018.
September 10, 2011 – Colorado Mesa linebacker Connor Wright records six quarterback sacks (for 37 yards in losses) in a 52-30 win at Dixie State. He had 12 tackles (11 unassisted), with five of the sacks in the second half.
September 11, 1971 – The sophomore-heavy Colorado Buffaloes traveled to Baton Rouge to take on the No. 9 Tigers, shocking the football world with a 31-21 victory in the season opener. Cliff Branch’s 75-yard punt return for a touchdown early in the second half gave Colorado a 17-7 lead, and LSU never had the ball on offense trailing by one score. The sophomore-laden Buffs debuted several star players in the game, including Charlie Davis, who rushed for 174 yards and two touchdowns, and quarterback Ken Johnson, who opened the scoring with a 7-yard TD pass to Willie Nichols. John Stearns made two interceptions on defense to set up a pair of scores.
September 11, 1971, through December 28, 2024 – Dating back 54 seasons of Colorado Buffaloes radio broadcasts, only three have served in the football play-by-play role: Larry Zimmer (337 games, 1971-81, 1985-2003), Wayne Larrivee (33, 1982-84) and Mark Johnson (255; 2004-present); includes postseason (but not spring games). Zimmer did miss five games when travel conflicts with the Broncos arose, but assorted KOA staffers filled in. Zimmer was inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.
September 11, 1982 – Colorado State linebacker Jeff Harper records a school-record 32 tackles in a 9-3 win versus Wyoming. Midway in the fourth quarter, he had a fourth-down stop at the CSU 11, a key play as the win snapped a 14-game losing streak by the Rams and was the first win for head coach Leon Fuller.
September 11, 2001 – The terrorist attacks on the East Coast postponed all sporting events. At first, the NCAA was incorrectly informed that the White House said all games should go on, but with air travel suspended indefinitely, all September 15 games were eventually postponed or canceled; Utah at Air Force and CSU at UNLV were postponed until later in the year; CU was to travel to Washington State but was eventually canceled. All RMAC games were as well.
September 11, 2004 & 2009 – A pair of Colorado players blocked two punts in a game. Tyrone Henderson had two blocked punts in a game versus Washington State on September 11, 2004; and Douglas Rippy blocked his punts at Toledo on September 11, 2009.
September 12, 2024 – In the latest round of college conference realignment, Colorado State is joined by Boise State, Fresno State, and San Diego State in moving from the Mountain West to what remained of the Pac-12, Oregon State and Washington State, effective July 1, 2026. Eventually, Texas State and Utah State also came on board, and Gonzaga joined in all sports except football.
