Colorado will not be facing Arizona State in Week 0 of the 2023 college football season after all.

According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the Football Oversight Committee denied a waiver request sent by the Pac-12 that would have allowed Colorado and Arizona State to play a conference game in Week 0 so as to avoid putting a team or teams on the field for nine consecutive weeks. That waiver was denied, with the FOC citing a history of teams playing nine-game stretches without a break.

The Pac-12’s 2023 schedule has not yet been released, but it appears to be coming soon.

247Sports’ Brandon Marcello added some context to the story, reporting that the Pac-12 approached teams with an opportunity to play Colorado in a Week 0 game to “capitalize on (Deion) Sanders’ debut as the Buffaloes’ head coach” and that Arizona State “jumped at the opportunity.”

First-year CU head coach Deion Sanders hinted during an appearance on ESPN’s College GameDay broadcast before Monday’s national championship game that a season-opener against Arizona State “may happen.”

ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit said shortly after the title game wrapped up that CU would open the 2023 campaign in Week 0 against Arizona State.

Typically, teams that play in Week 0 have extenuating circumstances that would necessitate spacing out their schedule. For instance, last year Nebraska and Northwestern played in Week 0 due to the game taking place in Ireland. Teams that play at Hawaii can usually play in Week 0 as well.

The Pac-12 was hopeful to capitalize on the Colorado hype surrounding Sanders’ arrival in Boulder. The Buffs have the nation’s No. 2 transfer class as high-profile transfers have flocked to CU with Sanders in charge. The Buffs went 1-11 in 2022, but figure to be one of the country’s more improved teams in 2023.