Colorado Buffaloes


The Colorado Buffaloes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Colorado Boulder. The university sponsors 16 varsity sports teams. Both the men's and women's teams are called the Buffaloes or, rarely, the Golden Buffaloes. "Lady Buffs" referred to the women's teams beginning in the 1970s, but was officially dropped in 1993. The nickname was selected by the campus newspaper in a contest with a $5 prize in 1934 won by Andrew Dickson of Boulder.
The university participates as a member of the Big 12 Conference at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision.
Fernando Lovo was announced as the seventh athletic director in the program's history on December 29, 2025, following the resignation of Rick George. Colorado has won 30 national championships in its history, with 21 in skiing, the most recent coming in 2024. It was ranked #14 of "America's Best Sports College" in a 2002 analysis performed by ''Sports Illustrated.''

History

Competitive football began on the Boulder campus in 1890. Early games, which bore more resemblance to rugby than modern football, were played against the School of Mines and Utah. The football stadium, originally "Colorado Stadium," was opened in 1924 and was officially renamed Folsom Field in November 1944 to honor Coach Fred Folsom, one of the most respected college football coaches of his day.
In 1934, the university's intercollegiate teams were officially nicknamed the "Buffaloes." Previous nicknames used by the press included the "Silver Helmets" and "Frontiersmen." The final game of 1934, against the University of Denver, saw also the inaugural running of a bison in a Colorado football game. A bison calf was rented from a local ranch and ran along the sidelines.
The year 1947 marked key point in race relations on campus. The Buffaloes joined the Big Eight Conference. However, Missouri and Oklahoma had rules which would not have allowed them to challenge teams with "colored" players. A student outcry, led by campus paper Silver and Gold, led to a movement against these Jim Crow restrictions which expanded to all the campuses of the Big 7 and eventually led to their repeal.
On June 10, 2010, the Buffaloes announced that they would join the Pacific-10 Conference, soon renamed the Pac-12 Conference, in all sports beginning on July 1, 2011.
On July 27, 2023, the Buffaloes announced that they would rejoin the Big 12 Conference in all sports beginning in the 2024–25 academic year.

Varsity sports

The University of Colorado was a member of the Colorado Football Association in 1893, and became a charter member of the Colorado Faculty Athletic Conference in 1909, which changed its name a year later to Rocky Mountain Faculty Athletic Conference. Colorado left the RMFAC to become a charter member of the Mountain States Conference in 1938. CU joined the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1947, then commonly known as the Big Six, changing the common name to the Big Seven. In 1958, the conference added OSU to become the Big Eight Conference. It remained the Big 8 until 1996, when it combined with four member schools of the defunct Southwest Conference to create the Big 12 Conference.
On July 1, 2011, the school joined the Pac-12 Conference, along with Utah. A total of 12 of CU's 17 varsity sports competed in the Pac-12, except the ski teams, indoor track & field teams and the lacrosse team. The ski teams participate in the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association, of which it has been a member since 1947, along with fellow Pac-12 newcomer Utah. Both continue to house skiing in the RMISA. The indoor track & field teams participated in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation as the Pac-12 didn't sponsor indoor track. With the Big 12 sponsoring indoor track, CU now competes in that conference. Women's lacrosse was added in the spring of 2014; that team competed in the MPSF until the Pac-12 Conference added women's lacrosse as a sport for the 2018 season. Women's lacrosse now competes in the Big 12, following the conference's decision to add the sport starting in the spring 2025 season.
Colorado is one of two Big 12 schools and one of only five Power Four schools that do not sponsor baseball, along with fellow Big 12 member Iowa State, SMU, Syracuse, and Wisconsin. CU does not have a women's softball program, one of five Big 12 members opting not to participate.

Football

The Colorado football program is 16th on the all-time NCAA Division I win list and 22nd in all-time winning percentage. Since Folsom Field was built in 1924, the Buffaloes have been at home. The Nebraska game in 2006 was CU's 1100th football game. Bill McCartney is the most famous head coach, leading Colorado to its only national championship in 1990. Current head coach Deion Sanders was approved by the university's board of regents in December 2022.
Beginning competitive play in 1890, Colorado has enjoyed much success through its history. The team has won numerous bowl games, 23rd, 8 Colorado Football Association Championships, 1 Colorado Faculty Athletic Conference, 7 RFMAC Championships, 4 Mountain States Conference Championships, 5 Big Eight conference championships, 1 Big 12 conference championship, 4 Big 12 North Championships, and an Associated Press national championship in 1990. The team holds rivalries with Nebraska, Colorado State, and Utah.
Colorado football also has two Heisman Trophy winners:
  • Rashaan Salaam
  • Travis Hunter
There have also been 9 unanimous All-Americans:
There are seven players and one coach in the College Football Hall of Fame:
They play at the CU Events Center on campus and are 465–179 at home, through the 2020-21 season, including 139–24 in 11 years under coach Tad Boyle.
¹ Invitations

Women's basketball

Women's Basketball started at Colorado in 1975. The team has had seven coaches and the current coach is JR Payne.

Skiing

The CU ski team competes as a member of the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association, as CU is one of two members of the Big-12 along with Utah that competes in skiing. Colorado is one of the dominant programs in the NCAA in skiing, winning 21 total national championships, including 20 NCAA Championships, most recently in 2024. The Buffaloes have won 29 RMISA championships, most recently in 2024. The Buffaloes have had 53 individuals connected to the school participate in the Olympics 85 times. Colorado has had 105 individual national champions, including Magnus Boee men's Nordic titles in 2021, and 2024, Cassidy Gray winning the women's GS championship in 2021, and Magdalena Luczak sweeping the alpine events in 2024.

Cross country

Boulder's high elevation of adds aerobic stress to distance runners and is known to produce a competitive edge when altitude-trained athletes compete at sea level. The 1998 cross country team was the subject of a book, Running with the Buffaloes, which documents the team's training regimen under long-time coach Mark Wetmore. Colorado has won five NCAA Men's Cross Country Championships and three NCAA Women's Cross Country Championships. The men's team also has won four individual titles, while the women's side has won two.
The men won the first twelve Big 12 Conference titles in the conference's history and the women won 11 of the first 12, with the two teams combining for 23 of the 32 championships awarded before the Buffs left the Big 12 in 2011 to join the Pac-12. Since joining the Pac-12 Conference, the Colorado men won their first six conference titles and the Colorado women have claimed four conference titles, including three consecutive following a shot lapse.

Baseball

The Colorado Buffaloes baseball team was discontinued after the 1980 season. Baseball, wrestling, men's and women's gymnastics, men's and women's swimming, and women's diving comprised the seven programs that were discontinued on June 11, 1980, due to Colorado was the only Pac-12 school and one of only five Power 4 schools that do not sponsor baseball, the other four being Iowa State, SMU, Syracuse and Wisconsin.

Men's golf

The men's golf team won three Big Eight Conference championships: 1954, 1955, 1968. Hale Irwin won the 1967 NCAA Championship.

Club sports

Colorado has a very active and developed club sports system with over 30 sports.
  • Baseball
  • Crew
  • Cycling
  • Dance
  • Diving
  • Equestrian
  • Fencing
  • Field hockey
  • Fly fishing
  • Freestyle skiing
  • Men's ice hockey
  • Women's ice hockey
  • Kayaking
  • Men's lacrosse
  • Women's lacrosse
  • Racquetball
  • Roller hockey
  • Men's rugby
  • Women's rugby
  • Running
  • Snowboarding
  • Men's soccer
  • Women's soccer
  • Women's softball
  • Swimming
  • Taekwondo
  • Co-ed tennis
  • CU Triathlon Team
  • Men's ultimate
  • Women's ultimate
  • Men's volleyball
  • Women's volleyball
  • Water polo
  • Men's wrestling

    Men's rugby

Colorado's rugby program was founded in 1967. The Buffaloes play in the Western Division of Division I-A, where they play against local rivals such as Colorado State and less localized teams like the New Mexico and Utah State. The Buffaloes are led by head coach Murray Wallace, assisted by John Barkmeier Chris Dyas, Justin Holshuh, Conor Sears, and Steve Brown. Kevin Whitcher coaches the Buffaloes sevens team.
The Buffaloes have consistently been ranked among the top college rugby teams in the country.
Colorado's best run was 1984–1985, when it reached the 1984 national finals before losing 12-4 to powerhouse Cal, and finished third in the 1985 national playoffs losing again to eventual champion Cal, this time in the semifinals. More recently, in 2008 the Buffaloes went 15-3 and reached the semifinals of the national championships. Colorado won the 2011 Pac-12 rugby sevens tournament, defeating Utah 14–12 in the final, to qualify for the 2011 USA Rugby collegiate rugby sevens national championship. Colorado finished the 2011–12 season ranked 14th in the nation. In the 2012–13 season, Colorado defeated Wisconsin 54-24 to advance to the national D1-A quarterfinals, before losing to St. Mary's. The Buffs also won the plate final in the 2015–2016 season at the Las Vegas Invitational 7s tournament in the college bracket. Most recently the Buffs lost in the plate final to Clemson in the inaugural international Red Bull University Sevens tournament.