# 1988 Colorado Buffaloes football team

The 1988 Colorado Buffaloes football team represented the University of Colorado at Boulder in the Big Eight Conference during the 1988 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by seventh-year head coach Bill McCartney, Colorado finished the regular season at 8–3 (4–3 in Big 8, fourth), and played their home games on campus at Folsom Field in Boulder, Colorado.
The eight wins were the most by the Buffaloes in twelve years, with narrow losses to ninth-ranked Oklahoma and #7 Nebraska.
Ranked twentieth in the coaches' poll, Colorado was invited to the Freedom Bowl in Anaheim, California, but was upset 17–20 by BYU of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), led by redshirt freshman quarterback Ty Detmer.

## Schedule

| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 10 | Fresno State* | | Folsom FieldBoulder, CO | KCNC | W 45–3 | 32,417 |
| September 17 | at No. 19 Iowa* | | Kinnick StadiumIowa City, IA | | W 24–21 | 67,700 |
| September 24 | Oregon State* | | Folsom FieldBoulder, CO | | W 28–21 | 41,297 |
| October 1 | at Colorado State* | | Hughes StadiumFort Collins, CO (Rocky Mountain Showdown) | | W 27–23 | 33,979 |
| October 8 | No. 13 Oklahoma State | | Folsom FieldBoulder, CO | KCNC | L 21–41 | 41,854 |
| October 15 | at Kansas | | Memorial StadiumLawrence, KS | KCNC | W 21–9 | 22,500 |
| October 22 | No. 9 Oklahoma | | Folsom FieldBoulder, CO | ESPN | L 14–17 | 49,716 |
| October 29 | Iowa State | | Folsom FieldBoulder, CO | KCNC | W 24–12 | 37,241 |
| November 5 | at Missouri | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | | W 45–8 | 36,931 |
| November 12 | at No. 7 Nebraska | No. 19 | Memorial StadiumLincoln, NE (rivalry) | KCNC | L 0–7 | 76,359 |
| November 19 | Kansas State | | Folsom FieldBoulder, CO (rivalry) | KCNC | W 56–14 | 32,617 |
| December 29 | vs. BYU* | | Anaheim StadiumAnaheim, CA (Freedom Bowl) | Raycom | L 17–20 | 35,941 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the game |||||||
    Source:

## Season summary
### Fresno State
### At Iowa

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Colorado | 14 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 24 |
| Iowa | 0 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
    Source:

### Oklahoma

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Oklahoma | 7 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 17 |
| Colorado | 6 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
at Folsom Field, Boulder, Colorado
* Date: October 22, 1989
* Game time: 8:00 p.m. EDT
* Game attendance: 49,716
* TV announcers (ESPN): Chris Fowler
Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | OU | CU |
| 1 | | | | | Oklahoma | Charles Thompson 11-yard touchdown run, R.D. Lashar kick good | 7 | 0 |
| 1 | | | | | Colorado | 35-yard field goal by Ken Culbertson | 7 | 3 |
| 1 | | | | | Colorado | 26-yard field goal by Ken Culbertson | 7 | 6 |
| 2 | | | | | Colorado | Eric Bieniemy 24-yard touchdown run, 2-point pass good | 7 | 14 |
| 2 | | | | | Oklahoma | Anthony Stafford 2-yard touchdown run, R.D. Lashar kick good | 14 | 14 |
| 4 | 8:15 | 14 | 71 | | Oklahoma | 22-yard field goal by R.D. Lashar | 17 | 14 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 17 | 14 |

### At Nebraska

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Colorado | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| • Nebraska | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
    Source: