Colorado University Athletics
Brooks: Simmons Watches, Waits
August 26, 2009 | Football, B.G. Brooks
BOULDER - A day after beginning fall semester classes, receiver Andre Simmons was on the field Tuesday with his Colorado teammates - but once again as a spectator.
Coach Dan Hawkins said it was possible that Simmons, a transfer from Independence (Kan.) Community College, could begin working with the Buffaloes on Wednesday.
"I was hoping it would have been the sixth (of August)," Hawkins said.
Simmons reported with the rest of the Buffs on Thursday, Aug. 6, but because of an eligibility issue was not allowed to work out with the team.
During the early portion of camp, he attended most practices and spent his time on the field studying drills and chatting with teammates - a routine he repeated Tuesday.
A 6-foot-3, 210-pounder from Blackville, S.C., Simmons is expected to bolster a receiver corps that has only one returning starter (junior Scotty McKnight) and will be minus suspended sophomore Markques Simas for the 2009 season's first two games.
"He'll give an instant boost to the wide receiver position, and not to take anything away from the current guys, but he's going to have that vertical speed," said Eric Kiesau, who recruited Simmons last season when Kiesau was passing game coordinator/receivers coach.
Continued Kiesau, now CU's offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach: "We've also got some other guys doing that well, but he'll give us that instant boost to get vertical down the field and behind the safeties with a bigger, stronger, faster guy."
Hawkins said Simmons has "kind of got the whole package . . . he's tall and he's fast and he's physical. He can run with the ball after he catches it. He's a return guy as well."
Whether he fills that role for the Buffs likely will depend on how fast he acclimates, said Hawkins: "We'll see how long it takes him to catch up."
As a return specialist, Simmons gained 544 total yards in both categories (kickoff and punt returns) in his two seasons at Independence. Rivals.com projected him as the No. 35 overall junior college prospect (No. 6 wide receiver) in last season's recruiting class.
But Simmons obviously will need a crash course in playing the game at this level to be ready to contribute when CU opens against Colorado State on Sept. 6 at Folsom Field (5 p.m., FSN).
Despite his inactivity, Simmons' spirits "are good," Hawkins said. "He's been battling,"
Kiesau knows how hard. From January until fall camp opened, Kiesau kept in almost daily - sometimes twice daily - contact with Simmons, who needed to pass nine junior college courses to meet CU academic requirements.
Kiesau said his overriding sentiment for Simmons is one of relief: "There were a lot of hurdles and he had to jump through a lot of hoops and go through a lot of steps. I'm just proud of him for sticking it out and staying with it because the circumstances were not great.
"He kept plugging away; this is what he really wanted to do. He set his mind to it a year ago and now it's coming to life. I'm just real proud of him."
There were times when Simmons' frustration was apparent, Kiesau said: "There were some bumps in the road. In the summer I was calling him pretty much every morning and night.
"I could tell in his voice there was some frustration. I tried to stay positive with him and get him to push through it. There's always in the back of your mind that doubt, but I think he was so motivated because he wants to prove a lot of people wrong.
"He had a chance to go other places, but he chose here - and I really think he wants to be here."
BUFF BITS: On the quarterback front, Hawkins was asked if he hoped to have a starter named going into the final scrimmage (Saturday) or if a No. 1 might come out of that scrimmage. "Yeah, probably (coming) out it . . . maybe," he said. After last week's scrimmage, Kiesau noted there had been no separation between junior Cody Hawkins and sophomore Tyler Hansen . . . . Freshman defensive end Nick Kasa said he still has considerable swelling in his left knee and remains uncertain whether surgery might be necessary to repair a partially torn medial collateral ligament. He said the knee "feel pretty good now," adding he hopes to be outfitted with a brace that will allow more movement . . . . Sophomore running back Rodney Stewart returned to practice after being held out with a slight hamstring pull . . . . Hawkins said Tuesday's work, which came after his team took its first two days off since Aug. 7, "wasn't bad, in general." . . . . Sophomore Anthony Wright, a former cornerback, was given a look at receiver last week and practiced there again Tuesday.
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU
