Colorado University Athletics
Brooks: Offense's Mantra: 'In Tight Ends, We Trust'
September 26, 2012 | Football, B.G. Brooks
BOULDER - Last Saturday's headliner among Colorado's tight ends was obvious - Nick Kasa and his 70-yard touchdown reception that launched the Buffs' comeback at Washington State.
But taken as a whole, the afternoon turned in by CU's tight ends was exactly what position coach J.D. Brookhart had been wanting for the season's first month. Actually, he'd been waiting for it for over a year.
Against WSU, Brookhart's guys made 11 of CU's 29 receptions, worth 167 yards and a TD. That's a collective position best in Brookhart's season and a half on coach Jon Embree's staff, and the timing was opportune not only for what it contributed to the Buffs' first 2012 win but because it added another element to CU's offense.
Said Brookhart: "It was a needed step . . . we had been very one-dimensional throwing the ball. Where we are as a team, we have to have ability to get the job done at all positions - receivers, running backs and tight ends.
"We're trying to give the quarterback a different comfort level in not just throwing to outside, which we've done for the last year and a half. That's our job - to prove they can trust us. It's kind of what we've set out to do."
CU's offensive mantra this week: "In Tight Ends, We Trust."
Kasa is a converted defensive end still feeling his way through the offense. Quarterback Jordan Webb calls him "a freak of an athlete," and at 6-6, 260 with oh-my speed Kasa is showing why. Brookhart wondered in August camp when/if Kasa would make that one long reception that would force defensive coaches to think twice about assigning a linebacker in coverage.
"There it is," Brookhart said of the 70-yard score against the Cougars. Kasa finished with three receptions for 87 yards, but not to be lost were DaVaughn Thornton's five receptions for 60 yards and Kyle Slavin's three catches for 20 yards.
In CU's first four games, Brookhart's tight ends accounted for only four receptions - two by Slavin, one each by Kasa and Vincent Hobbs, the only one of three freshman tight ends not scheduled to redshirt. He missed the WSU game to be in Texas with his father, who underwent major surgery.
From more than a receiving standpoint, the afternoon in the Palouse was satisfying for Brookhart. "I know the stats showed what they did," he said, "but the nice part was that they all graded out well overall - not just in the passing game." CU rolled up season highs in rushing (186 yards) and total offense (531), with blocking by the tight ends a factor in both categories.
Of Kasa's productivity, Brookhart said, "That's what he's capable of doing. We've got to try and put him in those positions to do it a number of times during the year. What that does is change things for the receivers; (the defense) has to be more aware of the tight ends too, which they haven't had to do here for a while."
Added Webb: "Our defensive guys are always talking about how fast he is . . . you don't see big guys move like he can. I knew he was capable of it, but it was great to see him put it on tape. We can get a lot of favorable matchups with him as far as linebackers and safeties covering. He can usually run by those guys and he's probably going to be more physical than most of them. I think that'll be a matchup we're going to look at very often."
Kasa put in time on defense (end, tackle) before switching sides last year. During spring drills and August camp, Brookhart said more than once that Kasa's challenge was to cram four years of learning a new position into preparation for his senior season.
So even with superb athleticism and a body type that senior defensive lineman Will Pericak calls "prototypical" for a tight end, Kasa will be a work in progress through November. Said Pericak: "He's always been one of the most athletic guys on the team. He's really got the build and the prototypical body type for it. But he's really picked up the little things, catching the ball and how to block."
Kasa's confidence took a quantum leap last weekend in only his fifth at the position, but he concedes, "I'm still not nearly what I could be; I've only had a full year now to grasp stuff. But I'm getting a lot more comfortable. That game definitely helped me out with confidence and understanding the position."
All in all, Kasa called last Saturday "huge" from a team and personal standpoint. "It was the first win of my senior year," he said. "I'd like to be here with these guys for another year, but I can't do it. We lost a few games we shouldn't have, but now we need to just move forward. We've got tough teams, a lot tougher than maybe we've had. We just need to keep the winning going."
That's a possibility if the tight end productivity can be continued. Slavin, said Brookhart, "has a good understanding of what we're doing. I can completely trust Kyle. He's still got to get better in the physical aspect, but he's better at that, too . . . he's a smart, dependable kid."
At 6-4, 245, Slavin, a sophomore, says he's "definitely come a long way" in strength and physicality, but admits he can be better in those areas. Receiving, he says, "has always been one of my strong points, but anything I can do to contribute to the team, I'll do. I've learned little nuances on how to help myself get open.
"My thing is, I've always been in the playbooks, inside and out. If you want me to play receiver, I can play receiver. I know every single thing; I'm not just focused on my book, but on the big scheme of things."
Brookhart hopes that work ethic rubs off on Thornton and Hobbs. The 6-3, 240-pound Hobbs - a receiver until his final two high school seasons - must develop "the willingness to learn and spend the extra time" in his playbook, Brookhart said. "The challenge is to make the defense believe we can run the ball when he's in there; that's where he has to grow. The passing game is starting to slow down for him."
Like Kasa, Thornton has bounced from position to position - but only on offense. He was recruited as a tight end, moved to receiver, then returned to tight end. Said Thornton, a junior: "I'm a tight end at heart. I came in as a tight end, I want to be a tight end, I want to finish here as a tight end."
His stint at receiver, he said, was beneficial and still can be for the offense when "they sometimes bring me in to block on the edge with a bigger body (6-4, 230) in the running game."
Against the Cougars, Brookhart said Thornton "did a decent job in the run game, which is a big improvement for him. From footwork, to pad level, to assignment, he was good. That obviously is helpful. He runs well and catches well. For him it's always, does he get the details of it? There are some things he's not suited for. But that's what he's been working on and he's done a nice job with it."
To gain Brookhart's confidence, Thornton knows he must be more detail-oriented. "He's said he just wants to trust me," Thornton said. "I'm pretty sure I gained that trust a little bit (on Saturday). That's part of being a football player; I know you've got to be a detail guy . . . 'EB' (Eric Bieniemy) says it a hundred times in his offensive meetings."
With their contributions in the passing game last weekend, Thornton believes the tight ends "really stepped up. We're supposed to make the plays we made and that took a little slack off the receivers. That's a positive and a negative because now (defenses) are going to be looking for us. We've just got to get better day-by-day, week-by-week. We want to be that key group of guys on offense that can make plays when they need to be made."
Last Saturday, they made them as a group - for the first time in nearly a season and a half. As was CU's win, call it impressive, but also recognize both for what they were - a start.
BUFF BITS: Embree won't know the status of injured players for UCLA until after Thursday's practice. "We'll see how some guys respond from practicing (Wednesday)," he said . . . . Unless there are academic conflicts for some players, the entire Buffs squad will attend Thursday night's Parade of Buffs/Shoulder to Shoulder Rally at the 1st Bank Center in Broomfield. The event, which is free and open to the public, features former CU coach Bill McCartney and a number of former players. Also in attendance will be CU athletic teams that are not scheduled to travel for out-of-town competition this weekend. Doors open at 6:30 p.m . . . . Embree said it would be beneficial for his players to be around past players: "Anytime you're part of a program like this and have great players come through here, it's good to see them. When (his players) see how important it is to them - the former players and what their time here meant - I think it will help them appreciate and enjoy the situation they're in now and not think about the NFL and those other things. It's about what you do here; it'll be with you a lot longer and mean a lot more to you."
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU
