Utah Utes football: Buffaloes again pledge to end streak

SALT LAKE CITY — It's been a long road for the Colorado football team.

In fact, success away from the Centennial State has been as nonexistent for the Buffaloes as noontime bargains will be for Black Friday shoppers who sleep in Friday.

For those who are counting — and Colorado's seniors are — this program hasn't won a road game in four seasons.

The last one came at Texas Tech in 2007.

Twenty-three road losses ago.

"It's crazy," Colorado first-year coach Jon Embree said, "but that's what we're staring at right now."

Added Embree: "I really haven't discussed with the players the path of what has happened, why they think this is or isn't. My whole thing has been we have this stain on the program and we have to get it off somehow."

Senior David Goldberg believes the Buffaloes will find the detergent and elbow grease Friday at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

At least he hopes so. The defensive end is one of 26 Colorado seniors who've never experienced a victory as a visitor.

"Speaking for the seniors, we aren't going out on a losing note," Goldberg told the Denver Post this week. "We're going to end that (road) losing streak."

Bold prediction considering Colorado lost its previous six road games (not counting its rivalry game against Colorado State in Denver) this season by an average of 29.8 points. Its closest road loss was a 34-17 defeat at Hawaii.

Not to mention the former Big 12 squad is taking on a red-hot Ute team that has won four straight and is scrapping for a spot in the Pac-12 championship.

"They said they're going to stop their losing streak this week, so we've got to get after them," Utah running back John White IV said. "They're coming out there to stop something and to kill our shine, so we've got to come out there and bust them right in the face and get after it."

Embree knows snapping the road streak in Utah will be a challenge. He respects the Utes' offensive and defensive lines, White and especially defensive back Brian Blechen, whom he said can "single-handedly wreck things for you."

But he's hoping his football players will find a way to win for the team's seniors. He's reminded his outgoing guys this is their last chance to make a memory — and perhaps their final football game ever.

Embree's message to his seniors: "When you talk to your kids when they're growing up and they ask … what it was like when you played, what are you going to tell them?

Are you going to tell them, 'Well, daddy never won on the road.'

"Or," he added, "are you going to say, 'You know what? It was a difficult time, but we had this streak and our last game we won it and here's what happened."

Colorado lost to UCLA last week, 45-6, after beating Arizona, 48-29, for its second win the previous week. The Buffs (2-10, 1-7 Pac-12) have lost at Arizona State, Washington, Stanford, Ohio State and Hawaii.

Utah (7-4, 4-4) has won three of its five home contests this season.

"At the end of the day," Embree said, "to end the streak you have to play better than the team you're playing."

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