← Matchups

Colorado

B12 · 2-0 · power +14.6 · #56
Our numberNU -8.0 no book has priced this game

Northwestern

B1G · 1-0 · power +17.0 · #48
Our side
MoneylineNU to win ours 59% · book 58%
Projected score 20–28 COLO – NU
2026-09-19 · 7:30 PM Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium · Evanston, IL Early season

The books 2 account books · tap any price — the ticket builds at that book

Book COLO spreadNU spread OverUnder COLO winNU win COLO TT overCOLO TT under NU TT overNU TT under
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The gold price is the best available on that side; a gold marks the side our number implies — a read, not a pick. TT is a team total — that team’s own points, not the game’s; columns are empty where no book hangs one. Send to book opens whichever book you tapped, not the one we would have picked. Prices are the books’ own.

Series Colorado and Northwestern split 2 (1–1) · 2 meetings since 1951
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game even 13 ranks apart
Colorado Buffaloes #200 rush offense Northwestern Wildcats #213 run defense
Pass game edge Northwestern Wildcats 46 ranks
Colorado Buffaloes #154 pass offense Northwestern Wildcats #108 pass defense
Run game edge Northwestern Wildcats 81 ranks
Northwestern Wildcats #79 rush offense Colorado Buffaloes #160 run defense
Pass game edge Northwestern Wildcats 75 ranks
Northwestern Wildcats #170 pass offense Colorado Buffaloes #245 pass defense
Colorado Buffaloes Balanced · 54% run Ball-control Dual-threat QB · 40 rush ypg Northwestern Wildcats Balanced · 56% run Ball-control
Deion Sanders · 16-21 David Braun · 19-19

Ranked by team-unit strength (rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265 D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the 2025 season.

The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above

Who carried each team in 2025
Colorado Buffaloes
DL Lamont Lester Jr. 7 tkl · 4.0 sacks · 5.0 TFL #19 DL
DL Toby Anene 6 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL #58 DL
DB Randon Fontenette 12 tkl · 1 INT #138 DB
QB Julian Lewis 490 pass yds · 5 TD · 0 INT #44 QB
Northwestern Wildcats
DB Braden Turner 7 tkl · 3 PD #97 DB
DB Robert Fitzgerald 14 tkl · 1 PD #113 DB
DB Damon Walters 9 tkl · 1 PD · 1 INT #114 DB
DL Brendan Flakes 4 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 1.0 TFL #225 DL

Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no 2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.

Power breakdown
TeamPowerOffDefRank
Colorado BuffaloesB12 +14.6 +4.8 +9.7 #56
Northwestern WildcatsB1G +17.0 +3.6 +13.3 #48

Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).

Where the number comes from
Colorado offense vs Northwestern defense-8.5 pts
Northwestern offense vs Colorado defense-6.1 pts
Travel · context onlyAway team travels 926 mi
Altitude · context only1,454 m lower than the visitor's home elevation
Rest · context onlyHome team on 7 more days rest

An efficiency adjustment from season-to-date EPA and success rate applies once teams have played enough games; before then it is 0 and the number is the power rating alone.

Situational spots are shown for context, not baked in: travel, altitude and rest were tested against 6,000+ games and the power and efficiency ratings already account for them. Adding them again would double-count.