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Colorado is the new Utah in Pac-12 football.

At the risk of using an angle I should save for the potential deciding game in the Pac-12 South race, I'm marveling about Colorado's transformation into a team that's winning via defense and special teams. That's exactly what the Utes have done in this conference, disregarding Washington's controversial punt-return touchdown last week.

The Buffaloes beat UCLA 20-10 on Thursday night in Boulder and have allowed a total of 15 points (counting an intentional safety vs. Stanford) in their last two games. On multiple levels, it is stunning to note that UCLA has lost a 52-45 game to Utah and a 20-10 contest to Colorado in the Bruins' last two outings.

The takeaway is that Colorado has an excellent defense that held the Bruins to 210 total yards and now leads the Pac-12 in total defense with a 296-yard average.

That's amazing for a program that struggled defensively for several years. Players have improved, and the coaching of defensive coordinator Jim Leavitt obviously has made an impact. Leavitt, formerly South Florida's longtime head coach and then a San Francisco 49ers assistant under Jim Harbaugh, took the job two years after Utah native Kent Baer moved to UNLV.

If the season ended today, Colorado's Mike MacIntyre would be the runaway choice for Pac-12 Coach of the Year and his staff would deserve tremendous credit, especially Leavitt.

All kinds of scenarios remain in play for Utah, Colorado and USC in the South. Mathematically, the Buffs could clinch the title before they meet the Utes on Nov. 26 in Boulder. Yet everything points to that contest deciding the South's contestant in the Pac-12 championship game, and it could even help create a genuine rivalry (or restart one, for those who remember the early 1960s).

In any case, Colorado is following Utah's blueprint to Pac-12 success. The Buffs' climb in the conference has come both more slowly and more suddenly, if that's possible. Colorado finished last in the South in each of its first five years in the league, having joined Utah as new members. The Buffs' conference record from 2011-15 was 5-40 — and they're 5-1 (7-2 overall) this season.

Utah's biggest jump in the Pac-12 era came when the Utes went from 2-7 in 2013 to 5-4 the following season.

Colorado limited Stanford's Christian McCaffrey in a 10-5 win and controlled UCLA quarterback Mike Fafaul, even as their own offense was inconsistent. The Buffs barely topped 300 total yards, but Isaiah Oliver's 68-yard punt return provided the clinching touchdown after an earlier return led to a field goal.

The Buffs will visit Arizona next week and host Washington State on Nov. 19. Utah (4-2) plays Thursday at Arizona State and then hosts Oregon. USC (4-2) plays Oregon on Saturday, then travels to Washington and UCLA to conclude Pac-12 play.

Colorado needs to rediscover its offense to win the South title, but that defense will give the Buffs a chance to win each of their remaining games. MacIntyre was upset with his team's four turnovers and 13 penalties Thursday, saying that performance was not good enough to get Colorado to the Rose Bowl.

Even so, just hearing that phrase from Colorado's coach is remarkable enough.

Twitter: @tribkurt