BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — For the first time in 14 years, the Colorado Buffaloes will play a Big 12 league game. So don't even try to rain on the program's big weekend.

Colorado coach Deion Sanders quickly pulled out his phone to consult his weather app when told there was a chance of showers Saturday night against Baylor.

“We've got rain? What forecast you got?” Sanders said Tuesday at his weekly news conference. “I’m one of those good weather (people) — when you say 60% (rain), I say there's a 40% chance that it won't.”

Sanders was in a rather light-hearted mood coming off a 28-9 win over Colorado State last weekend. He downplayed an upcoming conference game having more meaning than any other game. To him, it's just another opportunity.

“We know we've got to win no matter who’s on the opposing side,” said Sanders, whose team finished its nonconference schedule with a 2-1 mark. “But no, we don’t say, 'Oh, this is a conference game. We’ve got to go harder.′ If you’ve got to go harder, you shouldn’t be going anyway.”

The last time the Buffaloes played a Big 12 conference game was Nov. 26, 2010, in a 45-17 loss at Nebraska. Colorado relocated to the Pac-12 in 2011 before returning to the Big 12 this season.

Baylor (2-1) has held bragging rights over Colorado for more than a decade courtesy of a 31-25 win in Boulder on Oct. 16, 2010. In that game, Baylor's standout quarterback Robert Griffin III threw for 234 yards and a score, along with running for 137 yards.

Sanders remains tight with Griffin.

“RG3, when he was at Baylor, it was poetry in motion,” Sanders said of Griffin, who won the Heisman Trophy in 2011. “I've got nothing but love for RG3, but I’m pretty sure he’s going to be conflicted inside because he wants us to do our thing, but that’s his alma mater. So I’m pretty sure he’s going to be wearing green with probably a gold necklace on.”

For the Buffaloes, this contest is all about carrying over what they did against the Rams. In Fort Collins, Shedeur Sanders threw for 310 yards and four scores behind an offensive line that's settling in. In addition, the running game found traction with freshman Micah Welch, and two-way star Travis Hunter shined on both sides of the ball.

It's a step in the right direction for a team that won the opener against FCS North Dakota State and struggled in a loss in Nebraska. On Tuesday, Sanders raised the issue of criticizing college players.

“Once upon a time, you guys never attacked college players,” Sanders said of the media. "Now they’re making more money than y'all, and some of y’all are envious and jealous about that. So you’re on the attack. It was hands-off a college player because he’s an amateur. Remember that guys? Now it’s hands-on — go at them any kind of way you want.

“I know you’re going to do your job and what you must do, but your job does not say attack. If they didn’t play well, leave it at that.”

Deion Sanders is trying to keep his players focused on the field and not what's being written or said.

“Our young men, we've got to do a better job of equipping them with the ability to just keep on going and don’t look either right or left," Sanders said. "Don’t look at the hate or the cheers. Just keep on going.”

Notes: Sanders wasn't sure of banged-up tailback Dallan Hayden's availability against Baylor. “I like to see it at practice before I see it in the game. So if he’s able to play, he’s going to play,” Sanders said. He added it's the same situation for injured defensive tackle Chidozie Nwankwo. ... Defensive lineman Taurean Carter underwent an undisclosed surgery and is “out, out,” Sanders said.

Sean Payton bypasses opportunity to go for onside kick under new rules after Colts, Niners try

DENVER (AP) — Sean Payton made the gutsiest call in Super Bowl history, ambushing Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts with a stunning onside kick coming out of halftime at Super Bowl 44 to nab the New Orleans Saints' only Lombardi Trophy.

Payton also ushered in the second chapter of his coaching career by attempting an onside kick against the Las Vegas Raiders in the Denver Broncos' opener last year.

It failed when cornerback Tremon Smith touched the football just before it had traveled the requisite 10 yards, and that may very well have been the reason Payton lost in his Denver debut. But it proved that he hadn't abandoned his risk-taking disposition when Greg Penner hired him out of Fox's broadcast studio.

The NFL's new kicking rule s have taken away coaches' ability to pull a fast one on unsuspecting opponents while also making them think long and hard about trying one when desperate times call for it.

Teams can only try it in the fourth quarter now and only if they're losing. And, most importantly, they have to declare their intention to try an onside kick.

Two teams tried and failed Sunday.

Green Bay’s Evan Williams recovered the Colts' onside kick with 1:47 remaining and the Packers ran out the clock in their 16-10 victory over Indianapolis.

Shortly thereafter, Minnesota's Nick Muse recovered the 49ers' onside kick with 1:12 left and Sam Darnold kneeled out the clock in the Vikings' 23-17 win.

It appeared the Broncos would become the third team to try it when they cut the Pittsburgh Steelers' lead to 13-6 on Wil Lutz's chip-shot field goal with 1:54 remaining in Denver.

But Payton elected instead to kick off even though he only had one timeout left and rookie quarterback Bo Nix has yet to find the end zone with any of his 77 passes, which rank as the third most in the league.

“We spent a lot of time going through it back and forth,” Payton said after Nix's second interception as time expired sealed the Broncos' loss. "It was just weighing the odds versus recovering an onside kick or getting the ball back with 26 seconds.

"We chose to kick off.”

The Steelers ran three times before newly signed punter Corliss Waitman, who played for the Broncos in 2022 and earned a “ petty game ball ” along with quarterback Russell Wilson and receiver Brandon Johnson afterward, booted a beauty of a 54-yarder to the Denver 10.

Marvin Mims Jr. returned the punt 9 yards, leaving the Broncos with 81 yards to go in just 9 seconds.

Josh Reynolds caught Nix's first down pass for 13 yards and as he was getting tackled he pitched it to Mims, who raced out of bounds at the Denver 34 with 1 second to spare.

With 66 yards to go, Nix lined up in the shotgun for one final play, stepped up and zipped his 35th pass of the game over the middle where Damontae Kazee easily intercepted it at the Steelers 40.

Shunning the onside kick was one of several eyebrow-raising calls by Payton.

Down 13-0 with 10:45 remaining, the Broncos were facing fourth-and-6 at the Pittsburgh 16 when Payton sent Lutz out for the chip-shot field goal that got the Broncos on the scoreboard but left them with the same two-score deficit.

“Time-wise we felt like we were still in a good position, looking at the clock," Payton explained.

The Broncos' biggest bugaboo has been their ineffective ground game. With scramble totals of 35 yards and 25 yards, Nix has been Denver's leading rusher in both of its games.

With rookie Audric Estime sidelined Sunday, the Broncos promoted running back Tyler Badie from their practice squad and on his first carry he reeled off a 16-yard gain midway through the second quarter.

He never got another handoff even though from that point on, Javonte Williams carried nine times for 10 yards, Jaleel McLaughlin ran once for 7 yards and Nix gained 5 yards on a designed run.

Asked Monday why Badie didn’t get another chance after providing the Broncos with their longest run of the game and second-longest of the season behind Nix’s 23-yard scramble in Seattle, Payton said, “It's about trying to find touches for the third back.”

“It’s much easier with a rotation of two,” Payton continued. "Getting the third back involved, sometimes it’s special teams, sometimes in the passing game, and it was a good run by him. It’s something we’re — you take notice of it, though. It’s something as a play-caller, as someone who’s looking at the game, I’ve got to be able to see that."

Vomiting victor

Baseball has its spitball and football has its ... puke pass?

At one point during Green Bay’s win over the Colts, Packers coach Matt LaFleur asked quarterback Malik Willis why he didn’t throw on a particular play. Willis explained that center Josh Myers had just vomited on the football.

Rockies beat Diamondbacks 3-2 on 9th-inning error as Senzatela returns from Tommy John surgery

DENVER (AP) — Brenton Doyle scored the winning run on a ninth-inning throwing error, and Colorado dealt a blow to the Arizona Diamondbacks' playoff chances with a 3-2 win Monday night in a game that marked the return of Rockies pitcher Antonio Senzatela from Tommy John surgery.

Ezequiel Tovar and Hunter Goodman homered for the Rockies, who beat the Diamondbacks for only the third time in 11 meetings this season.

“Pitching won for us today, and we had great performances from the bullpen,” Tovar said through an interpreter.

Ketel Marte hit a two-run homer for the defending NL champion Diamondbacks (83-67), who are in the second NL wild card position, one game ahead of the New York Mets and two in front of Atlanta.

Doyle singled off Ryan Thompson (7-5) leading off the ninth and stole second. Ryan McMahon was intentionally walked, Brendan Rodgers hit a grounder to Marte, and the second baseman flipped the ball to shortstop Geraldo Perdomo for a forceout. But Perdomo’s throw to first trying for a double play was wide of Christian Walker as Doyle scored.

“He just yanked his throw off the line,” Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. “It would have been a big double plays.”

Seth Halvorsen (2-0) pitched two scoreless innings.

Senzatela, a 29-year-old right-hander, allowed two runs and four hits in three-plus innings with two strikeouts and two walks. He threw 42 of 67 pitches for strikes and averaged 95 mph with 39 fastballs. He also threw 15 sliders, eight changeups and five curveballs,

Senzatela's 2022 season was cut short when he tore his left ACL on Aug. 18 during a game at St. Louis when he took a bad step rushing to cover first base on an infield grounder.

He returned last year and pitched on May 5 and 10, leaving the second start with a strained right elbow. He later was diagnosed with a torn UCL and had Tommy John surgery on July 26.

“I just want to say thank you to everybody who supported me during this long year, my teammates, my family, my trainers, my coaches,” Senzatela said. “It didn’t start very well, but it is what it is. I tried to to keep the game there for the team and at the end of the day we got a win and that’s all that matters.”

Corbin Carroll tripled leading off and Marte followed with his 32nd homer, a drive to straightaway center.

Arizona's Merrill Kelly gave up one run and two hits in six innings, allowing Tovar's 24th homer leading off the fourth.

Goodman tied the score in the seventh against Kevin Ginkel with his 12th homer.

“It’s frustrating, extremely frustrating, especially coming off the game yesterday where we had a lead and then gave up some costly runs,” Ginkel said. “With the Goodman at-bat, it was a slider. I think he was anticipating it. It wasn’t my best slider I’ve thrown, but it wasn’t horrible. I was not expecting that to be a home run. I was expecting maybe a double, if anything. So that part of it was extremely frustrating and allowed them to tie the game.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Diamondbacks: OF Lourdes Gurriel Jr., who has been sidelined with a left calf injury since Sept. 2, ran conditioning drills at 80% and is scheduled to go full tilt Tuesday in a game at the team's Arizona training facility.

Rockies: RHP Jake Bird was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque to make roster room for Senzatela, who was activated from the 60-day IL.

UP NEXT

Colorado RHP Ryan Feltner (2-10, 4.89) is set to make his career-best 28th start of the season Tuesday night. He’ll be seeking his first win in four career appearances against the Diamondbacks, who counter with LHP Jordan Montgomery (8-6, 6.25 ERA). Montgomery is 2-0 in his previous starts against the Rockies.