Deion Sanders Gets Crushed for Baffling 4th Quarter Decision vs. NDSU

Colorado and head coach Deion Sanders survived a major scare from North Dakota State in their season opener, watching the Bison come within four yards of a huge upset on the final play of the game.

Despite the 31-26 win, Sanders is facing significant criticism for a head-scratching decision late in the game that gave the FCS opponent the chance to win.

Colorado had the ball with the lead and less than two minutes remaining, converting a 3rd-and-8 when quarterback Shedeur Sanders scrambled and threw deep, drawing a pass interference penalty. The call gave the Buffaloes the ball with 1:52 remaining and the chance to drain most of the clock, but Sanders called a pass play on first down that fell incomplete.

North Dakota State went on to force a Colorado punt and took the ball with 31 seconds remaining. They were able to advance the ball near midfield, throwing a Hail Mary that was caught by wide receiver Tyler Terhark short of the endzone. He was tackled on the 4-yard line as time expired.

The decision to call a pass on first down and stop the clock drew significant pushback for Sanders.

"Why is Colorado still throwing it?" ESPN's Albert Breer shared on X .

Others accused Deion Sanders of trying to help son Shedeur late in the game.

"Deion not running the clock out to pad his son’s stats and almost losing is hilarious," B.W. Carlin posted on X .

Sander was ultimately able to weather the questionable call and Colorado won its first game of the season -- and its first win overall since October 7 of last season.

Related: Deion Sanders Exposes Critical Errors That Plagued Colorado Last Season