A scouting report of the Colorado Buffaloes and Central Florida Knights ahead of Saturday’s game in Orlando, Fla.

Colorado Buffaloes

Head coach: Deion Sanders, 2nd season (7-9, 34-15 career)

2024 season: 3-1, 1-0 Big 12

Last week: Beat Baylor, 38-31 in overtime, at home

Rankings: N/R

5 Buffs to watch

RB Dallan Hayden: After missing two games with an ankle sprain, Hayden is on the trip to Orlando and appears ready to go. He led the team in rushing through two games, with 52 yards on 14 carries.

CB/WR Travis Hunter: The Buffs’ two-way star is aiming for a sixth consecutive 100-yard receiving game, dating back to last season. He has 37 catches for 472 yards and five touchdowns already this year. On defense, he’s recorded 14 tackles, one interception and a forced fumble.

DL Chidozie Nwankwo: CU gets one of its best defensive linemen back in the fold this week. He has missed the past two games with a shoulder injury but is one of their top run-stuffers. He had three tackles and a tackle for loss in the first two games.

S Carter Stoutmire: Expected to get his third consecutive start in place of injured Shilo Sanders, Stoutmire has been exceptional. He’s recorded 13 tackles and two pass breakups this season.

WR LaJohntay Wester: Coming off his memorable Hail Mary catch against Baylor, Wester is heading back home to Florida. He still hasn’t had a huge game, but he’s been solid, with 18 catches for 226 yards and four touchdowns.

Central Florida Knights

Head coach: Gus Malzahn, 4th season (27-16; 104-54 career)

2024 season: 2-0, 1-0 Big 12

Last week: Bye

Rankings: Receiving votes in AP/Coaches polls

5 Knights to watch

RB RJ Harvey: Ranks fourth in the country with 149.3 rushing yards per game (448 yards, 8 TDs). Rushed for 1,416 yards last year and his 108.9 yards per game ranked 10th nationally. Since the start of 2022, he’s gained 2,660 yards on the ground.

WR Kobe Hudson: UCF’s leading receiver with 13 catches for 310 yards and two touchdowns. Had the best year of his career in 2023, as he caught 44 passes for 900 yards and eight touchdowns. A fifth-year senior who played his first two seasons at Auburn, he’s caught 147 passes for 2,494 yards and 21 touchdowns in his career.

DT Lee Hunter: Selected preseason All-Big 12, he has five tackles and a tackle for loss so far this year. The 320-pounder is a fourth-year junior who was a first-time starter last year. He was All-Big 12 honorable mention after posting 69 tackles (third on team), 11 tackles for loss (second) and three sacks (tied for third).

QB KJ Jefferson: Arkansas transfer is off to a good start, completing 32-of-51 passes for 563 yards and five touchdowns, while rushing for 135 yards and a score. A starter at Arkansas the past three seasons, Jefferson threw for 2,107 yards, 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions, while also rushing for 447 yards and two scores last year.

LB Deshawn Pace: Leads the Knights with 19 tackles and also has a tackle for loss and an interception. At Cincinnati last year, he led the Bearcats with 80 tackles and earned All-Big 12 honorable mention.

When Colorado has the ball

CU has shown a new emphasis on running the ball in the past two weeks, especially last week against Baylor. Freshman Micah Welch and sophomore Isaiah Augustave have carried the load in the backfield the past two weeks, rushing for a combined 159 yards. The Buffs get Dallan Hayden back in the mix, too. This offense still runs through quarterback Shedeur Sanders, though. Last week, he handled the ball on 60 of 83 offensive snaps (41 passes, 19 runs, including sacks). On the season, 73% of CU’s offensive plays have been either passes or runs by Sanders. He has been sacked 15 times, however, tied for the second-most in the country. “(Pressure on Sanders) is going to be a big key to the game, there’s no doubt about it,” UCF head coach Gus Malzahn said. “When you let the guy sit back there and have time, he does a good job. Matter of fact, he does a pretty good job even when he doesn’t have time. He’ll hang in there. It’s impressive to watch him on film. He’ll hang in there until the last second and take a lick, deliver the ball and get back up the next play. He does a really good job extending plays.”

When UCF has the ball

While it’s obvious the CU offense goes through Sanders, it’s just as clear what the Knights want to do on offense. So far this year, 73% of their plays have been on the ground. UCF is No. 1 in the country in rushing (375.7 yards per game), led by experienced running back RJ Harvey, one of the nation’s best. The Knights are loaded behind him, too. Harvey (7.6), Peny Boone (6.6) and Myles Montgomery (7.1) all average at least 6.6 yards per carry. Quarterback KJ Jefferson is a dual threat who has thrown for 563 yards and is second on the team in rushing attempts (29). “Tackle him hard and early,” CU safety Cam’Ron Silmon-Craig said of defending Jefferson. “KJ, he’s great with his legs, a lot of running from the (start). Just make sure everybody’s doing their jobs and getting to the quarterback, and when we get to him, make sure we make sure tackles on him. He’s a big ol’ guy.” When the Knights throw it, their top target is Kobe Hudson, a preseason All-Big 12 selection at receiver.

Special teams

This could be an interesting game on special teams, because neither team has been exceptional in that area so far this season. CU kicker Alejandro Mata did, however, hit a season-long 43-yard field goal last week and he’s 3-for-5 on the year. Punter Mark Vassett has had a couple of shanks but is averaging 43.7 yards per punt, and he’s put seven punts inside the 20-yard line. The Buffs haven’t had many return opportunities, posting a total of just 121 yards on punt and kick returns. UCF had three kicks blocked in its last game, at TCU. Malzahn said he believes they’ve fixed that, but it’s something to keep an eye on this week. Kicker Colton Boomer is 3-for-5 on field goals and 16-of-17 on extra points. All three misses were blocks vs. TCU. Since the start of last year, Boomer is just 16-of-26 (61.5%) on field goals. Punter Mitch McCarthy is averaging 43.6 yards per punt, a bump from 41.3 a year ago. Xavier Townsend has flashed some explosiveness as a returner.

Notables

• Colorado is hoping to get off to a rare strong start on the road in conference play. The last time CU won its first road game in conference was 2020, and the Buffs are just 4-12 in their last 16 conference road openers.

• CU is looking for its first Big 12 road win since Oct. 27, 2007, at Texas Tech. The Buffs lost their last 13 Big 12 road games before leaving for the Pac-12 in 2011.

• The Buffs rank ninth in the country in second-half points allowed this season, giving just 4.8 per game (19 in four games).

• CU’s Shedeur Sanders is one of only four active quarterbacks with at least 100 career TD passes, along with Miami’s Cam Ward, Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel and Washington’s Will Rogers. Of the four, Sanders is the only one with less than 20 interceptions.

• The Buffs are 4-9 all-time in the state of Florida. Eight of those games were bowls and nine of their 13 trips to Florida have been to Miami. This will be just the second game CU has ever played in Orlando, the first being a 19-10 loss to Clemson in the Champs Sports Bowl on Dec. 27, 2005.

• For UCF, this is the fourth time in four games that the Knights are playing an opponent they had never played before this season.

• This is Malzahn’s 14th season as a head coach. He’s led his teams to bowl games in each of his first 13 seasons as a head coach (Arkansas State in 2012, Auburn from 2013-2020 and UCF from 2021-23). Last year was his first losing season as a head coach (6-7).

• Since the start of 2017, UCF is 31-6 at home, including 2-0 this year. Five of those six losses came by one score. Four times in that stretch the Knights went undefeated at home.

• UCF is the only team in the country to rush for at least 140 yards in its last 16 games. The Knight have topped the 200-yard mark 12 times in that stretch (and 250 six times).

• In January, UCF hired Ted Roof as defensive coordinator/linebackers coach. He spent the previous two seasons as the defensive coordinator at Oklahoma but was fired in January. The Knights also hired a new offensive coordinator in Tim Harris Jr. He coached running backs at Miami in 2023 after serving as UCF’s co-offensive coordinator in 2021-22.

• One of the more active teams in the transfer portal this past offseason, UCF lost 27 players and gained 27 (among the top 10 nationally).