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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Colorado football program hasn’t won a league title since 2001, sputtered to a 1-11 mark last season and has hibernated on the south side of mediocrity for the better part of two decades.

Despite that, Colorado has somehow managed to become the most compelling program in all of college athletics. Deion Sanders’ arrival as head coach has coincided with the school positioning itself as a potential linchpin for the next round of conference realignment.

Keeping Up With Colorado has been the sport’s smash hit of the offseason — Louis Vuitton luggage coming in, waves of players heading out and school officials mulling a new conference partner. Welcome to the college football offseason in 2023 — reality television plotlines becoming the industry’s reality.

With the season’s kickoff still nearly three months away, Colorado’s conference affiliation has become the centerpiece of realignment speculation. Here in the dog days of June, the periscopes of paranoia from campuses and conference offices around the country are locked in on Boulder.

How will the Pac-12’s impending TV deal impact Colorado and the Big 12? When will the SEC and Big Ten think about more expansion? And what’s going on with the ACC? Here’s a peek at some potential answers to realignment’s biggest questions after talking to power brokers in all corners of the college sports industry.

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Big 12 expansion | Pac-12 TV latest
What’s next for Big Ten, SEC | ACC latest

What will Colorado do?

Here’s the bottom line on Colorado. It has met with the Big 12. It has been in the Big 12 in a prior life, leaving after the 2010-11 season.

It remains improbable the Buffaloes leave for the Big 12 until the Pac-12 presidents get a firm sense of what their next television deal is going to look like. Colorado chancellor Phil DiStefano has said as much. However, sources told ESPN that Colorado’s patience has waned, which prompted the in-person meeting with the Big 12 back in May.

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No. 7 Georgia Tech down 3 starters vs. Syracuse

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No. 7 Georgia Tech down 3 starters vs. Syracuse

No. 7 Georgia Tech will be without three starters — wide receiver Malik Rutherford, center Harrison Moore and nickelback Jy Gilmore — against Syracuse on Saturday.

All three were ruled out on the ACC availability report after suffering injuries during last week’s win over Duke.

Rutherford is tied for the Yellow Jackets’ lead with 23 receptions and two receiving touchdowns this season and ranks third on the team with 202 receiving yards.

With cornerback Ahmari Harvey out for the second straight week, Georgia Tech will be down two key secondary members against an Orange passing game that is averaging 294.3 yards per game (15th in the NCAA).

The Yellow Jackets are 7-0 for the first time since 1966, while their No. 7 ranking is the school’s highest since 2009.

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Utah QB Dampier now probable to face Colorado

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Utah QB Dampier now probable to face Colorado

Utah quarterback Devon Dampier has been upgraded to probable for the Utes’ game against Colorado, according to the updated Big 12 availability report released Friday night.

The junior quarterback has dealt with a lower leg injury this season, and coach Kyle Whittingham said Dampier “got beat up in this game pretty good” after the Utes’ 24-21 loss to rival BYU last weekend.

Dampier was initially listed as questionable Wednesday but progressed throughout the week and took reps in practice, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

The 5-foot-11, 210-pound junior, a transfer out of New Mexico, has started every game despite the injury and ranks sixth in the Big 12 in total offense with 1,375 passing yards, 442 rushing yards and 18 total touchdowns.

True freshman backup Byrd Ficklin played four snaps against BYU and would be in line to start if Dampier is unavailable Saturday against the Buffaloes (10:15 p.m. ET, ESPN).

Utah wide receiver Tobias Merriweather and defensive tackle Dallas Vakalahi were downgraded from doubtful to out against Colorado. Merriweather ranks second among Utes wideouts with 130 receiving yards on eight receptions this season.

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UNT QB Mestemaker has record 608 yards in win

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UNT QB Mestemaker has record 608 yards in win

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Redshirt freshman Drew Mestemaker passed for a school-record 608 yards with four touchdowns as North Texas scored 37 unanswered points to beat Charlotte 54-20 on Friday night.

Mestemaker completed 37 of 49 passes with one interception in breaking the record.

He covered 80 yards with three passes — the final one a 41-yard scoring strike to Cameron Dorner — on the game’s first possession to put North Texas (7-1, 3-1 American) up 7-0.

Charlotte (1-7, 0-5) answered with Liam Boyd‘s 24-yard field goal and Grayson Loftis‘ 33-yard touchdown pass to Javen Nicholas to take a 10-7 lead into the second quarter. Loftis and Nicholas then teamed up for a 64-yard score in a one-play drive and Charlotte led 17-7.

Kali Nguma followed with a 29-yard field goal and Mestemaker hit Caleb Hawkins for a 6-yard score to tie it 17-all at halftime.

Charlotte had a drive stall at the North Texas 3-yard line to begin the third quarter and settled for Boyd’s field goal and a 20-17 lead. It was all Mean Green from there.

Mestemaker passed to Tre Williams III for a 30-yard gain to the Charlotte 1 and Kiefer Sibley ran it in on the next play to put North Texas ahead. Nguma added a 41-yard field goal for a 27-20 advantage after three quarters.

Mestemaker connected with Hawkins for a 7-yard touchdown, and Wyatt Young turned a short pass into a 70-yard score and a 20-point lead after the 2-point run failed. Sibley added a 45-yard touchdown run, and Ashton Gray scored on a 32-yard run to polish off the rout.

Young finished with nine receptions for 190 yards. Dorner caught seven passes for 117 yards, and Landon Sides hauled in five for 114.

Loftis totaled 295 yards on 20-for-36 passing for the 49ers. Nicholas had seven catches for 187 yards.

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