WACO, Texas (AP) — DJ Lagway threw two touchdowns in his return to Baylor’s lineup, including the go-ahead score with 9:02 left as the Bears beat Colorado 23-13 in the Big 12 opener for both teams on Saturday.

Lagway, the Florida transfer and Texas native, had missed the past two games since an ankle injury in a season-opening loss to Auburn in his Baylor debut. He completed 19 of 39 passes for 221 yards and interception against Colorado.

Rhett Armstrong kicked three field goals for the Bears (3-1), whose three-game winning streak has pushed embattled seventh-year coach Dave Aranda’s record to 39-38 overall. Armstrong had kicks of 37 and 27 yards before making a 54-yarder with 4 1/2 minutes left.

“There’s a lot to clean up, and there’s a lot that we’re still fighting to get right,” Aranda said. “But the thing I’m proud about is that fourth quarter. The ability to close the deal is a goal for us every week. … That’s something we want to build off of. Excited for that.”

Colorado (2-2) struggled to sustain drives before tying the game 13-all with 11:04 left when backup quarterback Isaac Wilson threw a 17-yard touchdown to Joseph Williams to cap a 12-play, 95-yard drive.

The Bears then went ahead to stay ahead with a five-play drive that ended with two big passes, a 21-yard catch by Gavin Freeman and Jadon Porter’s 33-yard touchdown.

Freeman, a transfer who previously played at Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, had a 3-yard TD catch midway through the second quarter.

Colorado coach Deion Sanders made a quarterback change at halftime, going with Wilson. The younger brother of New Orleans Saints quarterback Zach Wilson completed 12 of 25 passes for 156 yards and the touchdown. Julian Lewis was 11-of-16 for 75 yards.

Sanders said he made the decision to turn to Wilson because the Buffaloes’ offense was too one-dimensional in the first half.

“We ran the ball well in the first half — that’s about it,” Sanders said. “I’ll take the responsibility for the decision that I made because I was trying to get us going.’”

Elliott Arnold made field goals of 46 and 24 yards for Colorado, which was coming off a 41-7 loss at Northwestern. The Wildcats then lost 29-23 at defending national champion Indiana on Friday night.

"I know it was a tremendous letdown last week — we flushed it,” Sanders said. “We found out last night that that (Northwestern) was better than you think. … It seems as though we’re better than our opponents. But the score does not indictate that. And that’s the fascinating thing about (how) we have to find out why.”

Knockout collision

Buffaloes wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. suffered an apparent head injury with 4:33 left in the second quarter. Moore was hit by Bears linebacker Travion Barnes while falling to the ground on an incomplete pass.

Moore laid motionless on the turf before receiving assistance. He limped off the field and into the locker room with significant help from a trainer and a teammate.

Sanders said Moore later returned to the sideline to cheer on the Buffaloes

Thunderfoot

The Bears don’t use him often due to aggressive playcalling, but All-America punter Palmer Williams continues to be a weapon.

Williams had seven punts for a 50.4 yard average. Four of those kicks were over 50 yards, and four landed inside the 20.

The takeaway

Colorado: The Buffaloes’ “go-go” offense struggled to produce for the second straight week. Colorado finished 3 of 15 on third down and used two quarterbacks.

Baylor: Lagway’s first start in Waco wasn’t the most efficient or inspiring, but he made enough plays for the Bears to win, thanks in large part to their defense. Baylor’s run game also continued its lackluster start to the season, averaging only 3.3 yards per carry.

Up Next

Colorado is home to play No. 11 Texas Tech (4-0, 1-0) next Saturday.

Baylor plays at Arizona State next Saturday.

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