Rarely do teams from the same conference cross paths in bowl games. In the fairly recent past, such an occurrence has even caused a mini scandal.
However, 2024 is an unprecedented season in so many respects. College football leagues are so big that such a development is no longer verboten, and thus Big 12 foes Colorado and BYU will meet in the Alamo Bowl Saturday for the first time since the 1988 Freedom Bowl.
That's not to say the game won't be a compelling one, though—the Buffaloes and Cougars aren't that far apart (an eight-hour drive), and Colorado has two top-10 Heisman finishers in cornerback Travis Hunter and quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
As the anticipation builds, here's a look back at the Buffaloes' and BYU's respective postseason histories, with a spotlight on a few notable matchups.
SEASON
BOWL
OPPONENT
RESULT
1937
Cotton
Rice
L 28–14
1956
Orange
Clemson
W 27–21
1961
Orange
LSU
L 25–7
1967
Bluebonnet
Miami
W 31–21
1969
Liberty
Alabama
W 47–33
1970
Liberty
Tulane
L 17–3
1971
Bluebonnet
Houston
W 29–17
1972
Gator
Auburn
L 24–3
1975
Bluebonnet
Texas
L 38–21
1976
Orange
Ohio State
L 27–10
1985
Freedom
Washington
L 20–17
1986
Bluebonnet
Baylor
L 21–9
1988
Freedom
BYU
L 20–17
1989
Orange
Notre Dame
L 21–6
1990
Orange
Notre Dame
W 10–9
1991
Blockbuster
Alabama
L 30–25
1992
Fiesta
Syracuse
L 26–22
1993
Aloha
Fresno State
W 41–30
1994
Fiesta
Notre Dame
W 41–24
1995
Cotton
Oregon
W 38–6
1996
Holiday
Washington
W 33–21
1998
Aloha
Oregon
W 51–43
1999
Insight
Boston College
W 62–28
2001
Fiesta
Oregon
L 38–16
2002
Alamo
Wisconsin
L 31–28
2004
Houston
UTEP
W 33–28
2005
Champs Sports
Clemson
L 19–10
2007
Independence
Alabama
L 30–24
2016
Alamo
Oklahoma State
L 38–8
2020
Alamo
Texas
L 55–23
2024
Alamo
BYU
TBD
A word to describe Colorado's postseason life would be "streaky." The Buffaloes were late to the Big Eight and its forerunners (they didn't join until 1948) and it took them some time to win. When they did, sustained success was difficult—Colorado went without a bowl win from 1971 to '90 despite several quality seasons.
But what a win the Buffaloes' '90 victory was—a thrilling, controversial 10–9 win over Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl that secured Colorado's share of the national championship (a Fighting Irish touchdown was negated by a clipping penalty in the final minute). The '90s were good to the Buffaloes, who won six straight bowl games from 1993 to '99.
Right now, Colorado is in the midst of a fallow period, having lost four consecutive postseason games. The Buffaloes' last bowl victory came in 2004, when they rallied past a strong UTEP team 33–28 in the Houston Bowl.
SEASON
BOWL
OPPONENT
RESULT
1974
Fiesta
Oklahoma State
L 16–6
1976
Tangerine
Oklahoma State
L 49–21
1978
Holiday
Navy
L 23–16
1979
Holiday
Indiana
L 38–37
1980
Holiday
SMU
W 46–45
1981
Holiday
Washington State
W 38–36
1982
Holiday
Ohio State
L 47–17
1983
Holiday
Missouri
W 21–17
1984
Holiday
Michigan
W 24–17
1985
Citrus
Ohio State
L 10–7
1986
Freedom
UCLA
L 31–10
1987
All-American
Virginia
L 22–16
1988
Freedom
Colorado
W 20–17
1989
Holiday
Penn State
L 50–39
1990
Holiday
Texas A&M
L 65–14
1991
Holiday
Iowa
T 13–13
1992
Aloha
Kansas
L 23–20
1993
Holiday
Ohio State
L 28–21
1994
Copper
Oklahoma
W 31–6
1996
Cotton
Kansas State
W 19–15
1998
Liberty
Tulane
L 41–27
1999
Motor City
Marshall
L 21–3
2001
Liberty
Louisville
L 28–10
2005
Las Vegas
California
L 35–28
2006
Las Vegas
Oregon
W 38–8
2007
Las Vegas
UCLA
W 17–16
2008
Las Vegas
Arizona
L 31–21
2009
Las Vegas
Oregon State
W 44–20
2010
New Mexico
UTEP
W 52–24
2011
Armed Forces
Tulsa
W 24–21
2012
Poinsettia
San Diego State
W 23–6
2013
Fight Hunger
Washington
L 31–16
2014
Miami Beach
Memphis
L 55–48
2015
Las Vegas
Utah
L 35–28
2016
Poinsettia
Wyoming
W 24–21
2018
Potato
Western Michigan
W 49–18
2019
Hawaii
Hawaii
L 38–34
2020
Boca Raton
UCF
W 49–23
2021
Independence
UAB
L 31–28
2022
New Mexico
SMU
W 24–23
2024
Alamo
Colorado
TBD
The Cougars' first bowl trip may have been to the Fiesta Bowl, but ask fans of a certain age and they'll tie BYU forever to one game: the Holiday Bowl.
A 20-year association between the WAC and the game enabled the Cougars to practically establish permanent residency in San Diego. BYU played classic after classic in the game: a thrilling loss to Indiana in 1979, a miracle comeback against SMU in 1980, a clutch victory over Missouri in 1983, and a 1984 win over Michigan that all but locked up the Cougars' only national championship. The program has played in the game 11 times—six more than any other team.
BYU has meandered bowl-wise since its exit from the WAC. The Cougars became a Las Vegas Bowl frequent flier in the 2000s, playing in that bowl game five straight years against a quintet of Pac-10 teams. BYU returned to the game in 2015, falling 35–28 to Utah in the era when the two rivals were in different conferences. The Cougars' last bowl win came in 2022, when they downed the Mustangs 24–23 in the New Mexico Bowl.
Here's how the two teams' bowl records compare.
TEAMS
WINS
LOSSES
TIES
WINNING PERCENTAGE
Colorado
12
18
0
.400
BYU
17
22
1
.438
Both programs have had to weather lengthy bowl losing streaks at various points, and will look to add a feather in their caps Saturday in which should be an entertaining affair.
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Patrick Andres is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in December 2022, having worked for The Blade, Athlon Sports, Fear the Sword and Diamond Digest. Andres has covered everything from zero-attendance Big Ten basketball to a seven-overtime college football game. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a double major in history .
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