TUCSON, Ariz. – On a day when Stanley Burrell showed up to hang out with Deion Sanders, it was the Buffs who put the (MC) hammer down.

“CU has a real chance in the Big 12 (title race),” Erik Garcia told me enthusiastically as we stood outside the Buffs’ locker room at Arizona Stadium early Saturday night.

Garcia believes, baby.

Did we mention that Erik is a…? Arizona fan?

Yes. Tucson increased. Tucson proud. Almost four decades of #BearDown are in his blood.

“Have you ever waited for the coach of a visiting team?” I asked.

“No, never,” he replied. “For the first time.”

Garcia was among the few people dressed in red and blue Wildcats gear who joined the CU faithful who crowded like sardines outside the visiting locker room after the Buffs decimated Arizona 34-7.

Just for an autograph. A selfie. A wave. A look. anything,

“The Buffaloes bring a lot of obvious reasons for this,” explained Garcia, who had longed for a chance to rub shoulders with Deion, Shedeur or Shilo Sanders. He wore a huge, comically oversized red Arizona hat and a huge necklace with the Wildcats' famous “A” dangling at the end. “(They) have Deion, his children.

“They are a good team, a quality team. I mean, they sell tickets. As a loyal U of A fan, I obviously grew up with Deion. I came to see him. Even if he’s on the (other) sideline.”

Remember the old newsreel footage of fans screaming at the Beatles pressed against various fences whenever they landed at airports in the early '60s? Saturday looked very similar. Actually it looked like this Exactly so.

All the stars were out. Burrell, better known as legendary rapper MC Hammer, made a point to seek out Coach Prime, his old music partner, during pregame warmups. Former Arizona QB Khalil Tate, a perennial Buffs killer, was the Wildcats' honorary captain.

But the focus Saturday was almost entirely on CU's defense. The Buffs (5-2, 3-1 Big 12) racked up seven sacks, the most by CU since 2010, and absolutely dominated an offensive line that had given up just six total in their first six outings prior to this weekend.

“Honestly, it came from us playing together, just rushing the line with the four of us,” reflected Buffs defensive end Keaten Wade, a transfer from Kentucky who picked up two of those sacks. “I felt like it was really important… (in) one game we have to put in a collective effort and see how it turns out. “I'm just glad we got that many sacks.”

As impressive as CU's 48-21 win at UCF late last month was, Saturday in Tucson might have surpassed it. Arizona, which boasts a future NFL wideout in Tetairoa McMillan, managed just 138 passing yards and 245 total yards on the day. The Wildcats entered the weekend averaging 273 passing yards, sixth-best in the Big 12, and 414 yards of offense per week.

Did we mention they did all of this for the most part? without Travis Hunter?

Yes. After going down against Kansas State at Folsom Field last week, Hunter played the first half against U of A somewhat cautiously – at least by his standards.

But just the threat of him being on the perimeter on offense was enough to earn the Buffs a pass interference call that gave them a quick 14-0 lead. With CU leading 28-7, Coach Prime wisely decided to shut him down at halftime.

No. 12 watched the final 30 minutes drenched in sweat as his teammates methodically and clinically shut down the hosts after halftime, stifling QB Noah Fifita at almost every turn. Despite trailing by three points, the Cats somehow managed fewer passing yards after halftime (51) than they had in the first two stanzas (87).

Like UCF's Gus Malzahn, new Zona coach Brent Brennan was outwitted, outscheduled and outwitted by Sanders and coordinators Robert Livingston (defense) and Pat Shurmur (offense). The Wildcats' decision to open the game with an onside kick – CU recovered, then scored in five plays and just 2:21 to secure a lead they never lost – seemed a particularly desperate decision.

“A little disrespectful,” Coach Prime remarked.