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Colorado vs. Colorado State

88 of their 93 meetings are on file: they first met in 1893, and the earliest on file is 1902; officially, Colorado leads 69–⁠22–⁠2; as played, 64–⁠22–⁠2 in the games on file. Over the last 10 meetings it’s Colorado 8–⁠2, and Colorado has won the last 7. The winner takes home the Centennial Cup. Colorado holds it. The official count covers every meeting.

Official series
Colorado leads 69–⁠22–⁠2
Colorado wins on file
64
Colorado State wins on file
22
Ties
2
Earliest on file
1902 first met 1893
Longest streak
12 Colorado
Current streak
7 Colorado
Last 10 meetings
Colorado 8–⁠2
Most recent
2024

The series at a glance

’0’1’2’3’4’5’6’7’8’9W–L
1900s6–⁠0–⁠1
1910s6–⁠4
1920s6–⁠3–⁠1
1930s7–⁠3
1940s6–⁠2
1950s7–⁠2
1980s5–⁠1
1990s5–⁠1
2000s6–⁠4
2010s8–⁠2
2020s2–⁠0
Both ranked
1 meeting: Colorado 1, Colorado State 0
Average margin
16.5 points; 31 decided by one score (8 or fewer)
At Colorado
30–⁠9–⁠1 Colorado’s record at home
At Colorado State
7–⁠21–⁠1 Colorado State’s record at home
Neutral sites
13–⁠6 Colorado first
Shutouts
22

Every meeting on file, as played. Ranks are the AP poll’s going in.

Centennial Cup

Played for since
—
Held by
Colorado

Who holds it comes from the games on file: the winner of the latest regular-season meeting (bowl rematches aren’t played for it); a tie leaves it with the holder (the usual rule; the article doesn’t say). From Wikipedia’s list of rivalry games and the rivalry’s article (CC BY-SA). More on the Centennial Cup.

Games that tell the story

  1. Colorado’s biggest win1952: Colorado 61, Colorado State 0by 61 points
  2. Colorado State’s biggest win1919: Colorado State 49, Colorado 7by 42 points
  3. Upset1958: Colorado State 15, Colorado 14Colorado State had a 20% chance, by our ratings before kickoff
  4. Upset1912: Colorado State 21, Colorado 0Colorado State had a 23% chance, by our ratings before kickoff
  5. Upset1917: Colorado 6, Colorado State 0Colorado had a 24% chance, by our ratings before kickoff
  6. Ranked showdown1997: Colorado 31, Colorado State 21No. 24 Colorado State at No. 8 Colorado

Coach against coach

YearsColoradoSeriesColorado State
1911–⁠1915Fred Folsom3–⁠2Harry Hughes
1920–⁠1931Myron Witham7–⁠4–⁠1Harry Hughes
1932–⁠1934William Saunders1–⁠2Harry Hughes
1935–⁠1939Bunny Oakes5–⁠0Harry Hughes
1948–⁠1955Dallas Ward5–⁠3Robert Davis
1956–⁠1958Dallas Ward2–⁠1Tuffy Mullison
1983–⁠1988Bill McCartney4–⁠1Leon Fuller
1995–⁠1998Rick Neuheisel4–⁠0Sonny Lubick
1999–⁠2005Gary Barnett4–⁠3Sonny Lubick
2008–⁠2010Dan Hawkins2–⁠1Steve Fairchild
2015–⁠2018Mike MacIntyre4–⁠0Mike Bobo

Head-coach pairings with three or more meetings on file, the series read from Colorado’s side (Folsom 3–⁠2 against Hughes). A season split between coaches goes to the one credited with the game.

Both programs through the years

End-of-season Elo ratings of Colorado and Colorado State, 1902 on130015001700192019401960198020002020

Our Elo rating at the end of each season, a measure of how strong a team was, not a forecast; 1500 is an average FBS team.

Stars of the series

Biggest days

Paul Richardson Colorado10 catches, 208 yards, 2 TD2013 Receiving
Laviska Shenault Jr. Colorado11 catches, 211 yards, 1 TD2018 Receiving
Nate Landman Colorado16 tackles, 2 for loss, 1 INT2018 Defense

Biggest days: the week’s best individual games by our big-days rule, from box scores (2004 on).

From the newspapers

  • The Pueblo chieftain's story of the 1921 game: COLORADO AGGIES DEFEATED 70 TO I

    1921 · Pueblo chieftain, Nov 25, 1921

  • The Evening star's story of the 1933 game: Line-urs and Summary. Score by periods, Elon Randolph Macon. COLORADO AGGIES WIN

    1933 · Evening star, District of Columbia, Oct 22, 1933

Public-domain newspapers from the Library of Congress’s Chronicling America, found through the American Stories dataset (Dell and Harvard, CC BY 4.0). The earliest meetings with a story on file; each game’s page has the full text.

On television

ESPN’s College GameDay has broadcast from this game once: 2023.

College GameDay’s sites from Wikipedia’s list of its locations (CC BY-SA).

Photos

From the rivalry’s and its games’ categories on Wikimedia Commons (free licenses only, each credited).

Every game

Sep 14, 2024Colorado 28, Colorado State 9at Colorado State
Sep 16, 202318Colorado 43, Colorado State 35at Colorado
Aug 30, 2019Colorado 52, Colorado State 31Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Aug 31, 2018Colorado 45, Colorado State 13Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Sep 1, 2017Colorado 17, Colorado State 3Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Sep 2, 2016Colorado 44, Colorado State 7Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Sep 19, 2015Colorado 27, Colorado State 24Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Aug 29, 2014Colorado State 31, Colorado 17Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Sep 1, 2013Colorado 41, Colorado State 27Neutral site
Sep 1, 2012Colorado State 22, Colorado 17Neutral site
Sep 17, 2011Colorado 28, Colorado State 14Neutral site
Sep 4, 2010Colorado 24, Colorado State 3Neutral site
Sep 6, 2009Colorado State 23, Colorado 17at Colorado
Aug 31, 2008Colorado 38, Colorado State 17Neutral site
Sep 1, 2007Colorado 31, Colorado State 28Neutral site
Sep 9, 2006Colorado State 14, Colorado 10Neutral site
Sep 3, 2005Colorado 31, Colorado State 28at Colorado
Sep 4, 2004Colorado 27, Colorado State 24at Colorado
Aug 30, 2003Colorado 42, Colorado State 35Neutral site
Aug 31, 2002Colorado State 19, 7Colorado 14Neutral site
Sep 1, 2001Colorado 41, 24Colorado State 14Neutral site
Sep 2, 2000Colorado State 28, 23Colorado 24Neutral site
Sep 4, 1999Colorado State 41, 14Colorado 14Neutral site
Sep 5, 1998Colorado 42, 15Colorado State 14Neutral site
Sep 6, 19978Colorado 31, 24Colorado State 21at Colorado
Sep 7, 19965Colorado 48, Colorado State 34at Colorado State
Sep 9, 199510Colorado 42, Colorado State 14at Colorado
Sep 5, 199212Colorado 37, Colorado State 17at Colorado
Sep 9, 19899Colorado 45, Colorado State 20at Colorado
Oct 1, 1988Colorado 27, Colorado State 23at Colorado State
Oct 3, 1987Colorado 29, Colorado State 16at Colorado State
Sep 6, 1986Colorado State 23, Colorado 7at Colorado
Sep 7, 1985Colorado 23, Colorado State 10at Colorado
Sep 17, 1983Colorado 31, Colorado State 3at Colorado
Nov 22, 1958Colorado State 15, Colorado 14at Colorado
Nov 9, 1957Colorado 20, Colorado State 0at Colorado State
Oct 13, 1956Colorado 47, Colorado State 7at Colorado
Nov 26, 1955Colorado State 10, Colorado 0at Colorado State
Sep 25, 1954Colorado 46, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Nov 28, 1953Colorado 13, Colorado State 7at Colorado State
Nov 29, 1952Colorado 61, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Sep 22, 1951Colorado 28, Colorado State 13at Colorado
Nov 25, 1950Colorado 31, Colorado State 6at Colorado State
Nov 26, 1949Colorado State 14, Colorado 7at Colorado
Nov 20, 1948Colorado State 29, Colorado 25at Colorado
Oct 25, 1947Colorado 14, Colorado State 7at Colorado State
Nov 28, 1946Colorado 18, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Oct 13, 1945Colorado 21, Colorado State 6at Colorado State
Oct 24, 1942Colorado 34, Colorado State 7at Colorado State
Oct 18, 1941Colorado 26, Colorado State 13at Colorado
Oct 19, 1940Colorado 33, Colorado State 14at Colorado State
Oct 21, 1939Colorado 13, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Oct 22, 1938Colorado 31, Colorado State 6at Colorado State
Oct 23, 1937Colorado 47, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Oct 24, 1936Colorado 9, Colorado State 7at Colorado State
Oct 26, 1935Colorado 19, Colorado State 6at Colorado
Oct 27, 1934Colorado 27, Colorado State 9at Colorado
Oct 21, 1933Colorado State 19, Colorado 6at Colorado State
Oct 22, 1932Colorado State 7, Colorado 6at Colorado
Oct 24, 1931Colorado State 19, Colorado 6at Colorado State
Oct 25, 1930Colorado 7, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Nov 16, 1929Colorado 6, Colorado State 0at Colorado State
Nov 10, 1928Colorado 13, Colorado State 7at Colorado
Nov 19, 1927Colorado State 39, Colorado 7at Colorado State
Nov 13, 1926Colorado State 3, Colorado 0at Colorado
Nov 14, 1925Colorado State 12, Colorado 0at Colorado State
Nov 22, 1924Colorado 36, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Nov 28, 1923Colorado 6, Colorado State 3at Colorado State
Nov 4, 1922Colorado 7, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Nov 19, 1921Colorado 10, Colorado State 0at Colorado State
Nov 20, 1920Colorado 7, Colorado State 7at Colorado
Oct 11, 1919Colorado State 49, Colorado 7at Colorado State
Nov 28, 1918Colorado 16, Colorado State 13at Colorado
Oct 13, 1917Colorado 6, Colorado State 0at Colorado State
Nov 30, 1916Colorado State 32, Colorado 14at Colorado
Oct 9, 1915Colorado State 23, Colorado 6at Colorado
Oct 17, 1914Colorado 33, Colorado State 6at Colorado State
Oct 25, 1913Colorado 16, Colorado State 7at Colorado
Oct 12, 1912Colorado State 21, Colorado 0at Colorado State
Nov 11, 1911Colorado 31, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Nov 5, 1910Colorado 44, Colorado State 0at Colorado State
Oct 23, 1909Colorado 57, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Oct 24, 1908Colorado 8, Colorado State 0at Colorado State
Oct 19, 1907Colorado 17, Colorado State 13at Colorado
Nov 10, 1906Colorado State 0, Colorado 0at Colorado State
Nov 19, 1904Colorado 46, Colorado State 0at Colorado
Oct 10, 1903Colorado 5, Colorado State 0at Colorado State
Oct 18, 1902Colorado 11, Colorado State 6at Colorado

Every game is listed as played on the field.