University of Colorado Athletics
Brooks: Thornton Hopes To Lend A Hand (Or Two) At TE
March 16, 2010 | Football, B.G. Brooks
Help was never that far away. Over the winter, veteran Luke Walters was granted a sixth season of eligibility, and at the start of spring drills Riddle said hello to former quarterback Clark Evans. He also was getting further acquainted with DaVaughn Thornton, a still-raw but highly promising redshirt freshman whose athleticism stood out during a season-long scuffle with the learning curve.
Midway through the 2009 season, Riddle said this of Thornton: "You watch him and you're pretty amazed . . . he'll be so much better when knows what he's doing."
That's changing. Thornton's grasp of the position is growing daily, and he's looking more and more like a tight end. Since playing his final basketball game for Denver East, he's gone from about 215 pounds to his current weight of 238, and CU coach Dan Hawkins envisions Thornton being able to put 10 or so more pounds on his 6-foot-4 frame.
"I think he can be a 245- or 250-pound guy who can run and catch," Hawkins said. "He's got great hands, can run and he's tough.
"In the fall, he was running the same route most of the time. But I think he's beginning to get a feel for things."
No question, CU's defense is feeling him. In Monday's practice, Thornton took a pass over the middle, bulldozed one defender and carried another couple for several more yards.
Thornton expects no less of himself on every reception, every snap.
"I'm trying to be the No. 1 tight end - the starting tight end on the field all the time," he said. "I came out to play football, and that's what I intend on doing. Whether it's a running play, pass play, whatever, that's what I want to do - be on the field."
During his first year at CU, he considered Geer "basically my mentor, my big bro on the field. He taught me everything - moves, the smoothest things you can do to get around a defender, all that stuff. He was here for five years, so who better to listen to?"
Besides Riddle, of course. His position coach says Thornton's blocking technique needs touching up, as does his on-field assignment recognition and execution.
"If you sit there and quiz him, he knows exactly what to do," Riddle said. "If it happens fast, sometimes he (hesitates and analyzes). But I'm very pleased with his progress.
"You would always like it to be faster and more perfect, but he's doing a nice job. His athleticism or his ability to want to do it have never been in question. He works hard, studies . . . but there's no magic formula to make up for experience."
Thornton believes he's moving past the point of on-field hesitation: "At first it was thinking, then doing it. Now it's just the 'doing it' part. I had a whole year to pick up on blocking techniques and assignments. Hopefully, I'm getting it now."
Thornton's high school athletic resume was impressive. In addition to lettering four times in basketball, he punted for East until CU teammate Zach Grossnickle joined the team. Then, Thornton transferred to the front end of the punting duty - long-snapping. He also snapped on placement attempts.
Currently, Thornton says he's practicing mostly with CU's second offense and getting occasional 'reps' with the first unit. The upper tier of Riddle's depth chart includes junior Ryan Deehan - Riddle calls him "Mr. Reliable - he knows exactly what he's doing'' - and the veteran Walters ahead of Thornton, Evans and redshirt freshman walk-on Alex Wood. There are two spring walk-ons, Matt Allen and Joe Fleming.
When CU utilizes an H-back/fullback in the backfield, the first call likely will go to the 6-5, 245-pound Deehan, who made 10 receptions for 91 yards last season but could be utilized more this fall.
"That's one of Ryan's real strengths . . . he's very good at it when we move him into the backfield," Riddle said. "He's very reliable (as a receiver) underneath and will catch everything. Plus, he's had a couple of big-time, down-the-field plays in the last couple of years."
The tight ends' weekly role in the offense still is being determined, Riddle said: "We're still trying to figure out where our strengths are . . . but all those guys have ability to catch the ball. Some are more vertical threats, some are bigger targets in the middle. We're trying to piece all that stuff together, especially when you're not game-planning things (as during the season).
"But they'll definitely be factors . . . Riar was a pretty good factor for us, and Pat for that matter. I'd say we'd build on what they did and try to continue."
Between them, Geer and Devenny accounted for 49 receptions (556 yards) and seven touchdowns last season. Geer posted 36 catches for 402 yards and four TDs, while Devenny caught 13 passes for 154 yards and three scores.
Both were former high school quarterbacks - and that didn't go unnoticed by Evans, who arrived at CU last summer as a quarterback but was queried about a position switch during his season-ending evaluation with Hawkins.
"He told me, 'you're athletic, we can find another position for you,'" Evans recalled. "Then, Coach (Eric) Kiesau talked to me and asked if I wanted to give tight end a try, and I said, 'I'll just go do it and become a full-time tight end.'
"I talked to Pat and Riar about the transition, and Pat said just to keep working at it and get better every day."
At 6-3, 225, and as much a runner as he was a passer at Los Alamitos (Calif.) High School, Evans already met most of the tight end size requirement, although he's hopeful of adding another 10 or so pounds.
The receiving part of his new position doesn't pose a problem; as a QB, Evans believes he's already caught more balls than most receivers during pitch-and-catch sessions in high school with other quarterbacks.
But blocking, he admits, is new territory and techniques must be learned.
"But I'm excited," he said. "I love playing football and just being out there. So far, it's been fun and coach 'Rid' has told me I'm doing well."
Riddle offered verification: "He's picking it up . . . when you sit there and quiz him, it's all good. Then, when things happen fast, there's a matter of getting it done correctly without hesitation. But that's going to come with experience."
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU
