Brooks: Clemons, Patterson Could Add New Dimension

(Note: This is the first in a series of position-by-position previews that will be posted through August camp on CUBuffs.com. Today: Wide receivers.)

BOULDER - Thanks to social networking, texting and twittering, college football players now move in very large circles. Although Toney Clemons and Travon Patterson grew up on opposite sides of the country, they share mutual friends and have more in common than the Colorado uniform they'll wear this fall.

Clemons and Patterson, new receivers auditioning for a new coach, figure to be integral in Robert Prince's plans. 'RP' is aware of Clemons' abilities, scrutinizing the Michigan transfer during last spring's drills. Of Patterson, a summer transfer from Southern California, Prince only knows what he's been able to glean from tape and the player himself.

Even so, that appears promising.

"He's focused, serious about being here, wants to contribute and wants to get better," Prince said. "I can't ask for much more than that."

CU's offense, though, is asking for much more from a position that hasn't been considered a team strength in far too long. The Buffs roster features a three-year starter and probable record-breaker in senior Scotty McKnight,. But probable game-breakers have been scarce - until now.

Maybe.

Clemons and Patterson could occupy that category, but both are cognizant of the collective question marks that follow them into preseason camp, which opens Thursday. Clemons has been on campus for almost a year and a half, Patterson for about two and a half weeks. But he's been welcomed "like a brother . . . like I'd been here before," he said.

"They don't know too much about me because they haven't seen me play yet - the only guy who's seen me play pretty much is Scotty. But when I get on the field, I'll be able to show them that I'm going to help them this year."

"He's like me," Clemons said. "He's going to get the chance to showcase what he didn't get to do at SC. We've both got the most to prove to our supporters - and our doubters."

In truth, Clemons' doubters might be smaller in number than Patterson's. Media covering the Big 12 Conference selected the 6-foot-2, 205-pounder as the league's newcomer of the year, an honor Clemons said "lets me know I'm appreciated and recognized for my hard work and talent. I want to formally thank the Big 12 (media) for the honor.

"It doesn't add any pressure, it only increases the high expectations I have for myself. I had set my bar high when I got on campus. 'RP' and my teammates have set it high, too. All that has just made me more motivated."

Patterson, meanwhile, is a 5-9, 175-pound speedster who grew up in Long Beach with the dream of playing football at USC. The middle son among five boys in a family with seven children, he credits his mother with keeping him on track and his older cousins with introducing him to football.

If all goes as he hopes in his first/only year in Boulder, which he mistakenly believed was "a country town" before his arrival, he'll become the first in his family to earn a college degree (sociology, in December) and a long, hopefully lucrative look from the NFL.

"I've dreamed of playing in the NFL, mostly to make my family happy and give something back," he said. "We had a lot of fun growing up and they've been great to me. I love them."

Had he stayed at USC for his senior season, Patterson believes he would contributed: "Yeah, I had a great feeling about it. I felt like I was going to play a lot."

There is a caveat, though, that brought him to Boulder. He didn't believe he would get the number of receptions he thinks he needs to catch the NFL's attention. In three previous seasons, he made seven receptions for 33 yards - not the kind of productivity he envisioned with the team of his childhood dreams.

"With it being my last year, I felt I really needed to expose myself," he said. "With all the guys there at SC, it was going to be hard for a one guy to singly do that. I felt like it would be a better opportunity going elsewhere."

Patterson's shopping list was small - CU and Cincinnati. He could play immediately at either school due to an NCAA ruling granting USC transfers that privilege because of sanctions recently levied against the school.

Patterson and Clemons were peripherally acquainted through a common former teammate. Patterson and defensive back Donovan Warren played together at Polytechnic High School in Long Beach. Ironically, Warren, now with the New York Jets, signed with Michigan and was Clemons' roommate in their freshman years in Ann Arbor.

Cincinnati previously had signed Vidal Hazelton, a former USC receiver who sat out the 2009 season and becomes eligible for the Bearcats this season. Not surprisingly, Hazelton had spoken with Patterson about joining him. But when he decided on CU, Hazelton called Clemons, a prior acquaintance, "just to make sure things would work for him out here," Clemons said.

"So I was familiar with (Patterson) through our mutual friends, He has to be an asset for us here; I'm glad to have him. He's an SC guy - you don't go there without talent."

When he arrived in Boulder, Patterson settled in with McKnight, an occasional workout partner in Southern California through their relationship with Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez, a former USC QB and one of McKnight's closest friends.

Patterson, who ran a 10.4 100 meters in high school and ran the lead-off leg in the 400-meter relays in one USC meet in 2008, hopes he can help CU as a kick returner as well as mentor some of the younger receivers. Aside from terminology, the Trojans offense is similar to the Buffs' - making his learning curve not quite so steep.

"I've played college ball for four years and I catch on quick; I know the game of football," he said. "I know I'm fast and I think I can bring a different dimension in the open field.

"I really don't have anything left after this year. It's the last year for me. I've got to be focused and go after my dream and help the Buffaloes win this year. Whatever it takes, if it means me staying after practice, getting extra studying in, I'll do whatever it takes in my last year to make it happen."

If Prince got a favorable first impression from Patterson, the sizing up was mutual. "From the jump, I knew he was a great coach," Patterson said.

Clemons exited spring drills with the same feeling. "He's a difference-maker," Clemons said of Prince. "He's brought in confidence from a pro aspect. He's coached at the highest level and seen the highest caliber athletes. He teaches detail and challenges us every day. He teaches us how to play faster and more natural - not as robotic as you might find somewhere else.

"I'm more prepared from just being around him and from my time in the film room than I've ever been. He's elevated my game."

Whereas Clemons has spent the entire off-season preparing for 2010 with his teammates and Patterson has been in their company for less than a month, their observations are identical. In addition to ramped up accountability among players that became evident in summer work, Clemons said he sees "a lot more competitive culture," and a "senior class that wants to do something."

In Patterson's brief exposure to the Buffs, he's sensed that "they're more fired up this year than ever. They said they couldn't wait for camp. In previous years, they could (wait). That tells me they're hungry this year, they want it. I'm glad to be a part of it."

THE INSIDE LOOK AT . . .

Wide receivers

Coach: Robert Prince

Returning starter: Scotty McKnight, sr.

Returnees: Will Jefferson, soph.; Jason Espinoza, jr.; Andre Simmons, sr.; Mario Conte, soph.; Kyle Cefalo, jr.; Dustin Ebner, soph.; Jarrod Darden, RS fr.; Kendrick Celestine, jr.; Alex Turbow, fr.

Newcomers: Toney Clemons, jr.; Travon Patterson, sr.; Keenan Canty, fr.

Key losses: Markques Simas, transferred; Anthony Wright, medical disability.

Stat line: McKnight needs three catches to become CU's career receptions leader. He's also caught at least one pass in 37 consecutive games (including one postseason) - a school record and the longest streak among all NCAA players entering the 2010 season. McKnight has been CU's leading receiver for the past three seasons, but he needs help: He made 76 receptions last season, while the team's four other returning receivers contributed 24.

Bottom line: CU figures to be better at this position for three reasons: Prince, a firebrand who draws on an NFL background; Clemons becoming eligible after sitting out his transfer season; and the addition of the swift and savvy Patterson. Simas (43 receptions, 585 yards, three TDs in 2009) would have been a factor, but he routinely found ways to nullify his talent and ultimately found his way out of the program. Other players such as Jefferson, Cefalo, Espinoza, Celestine, Darden and Canty will battle for significant playing time.

Next: Defensive backs

Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU