Buffalo Bits: Kelley, Spruce Honored; Wednesday Notes

BUFFALO BITS

Wednesday, July 8, 2015

KELLEY, SPRUCE ON WATCH LISTS

BOULDER — Junior center Alex Kelley and senior receiver Nelson Spruce have been named to two prestigious national awards lists, both released this week.

Kelley, a 6-3, 310-pounder, is one of 63 centers nationally on the Rimington Trophy Committee' official preseason watch list. The award honors the nation's top center. In 2014, he started all 12 games at center, as he tied for the most snaps played on the team with 988, or all but eight of CU's 996 on offense. He had 571 “plus plays” on the year, giving him a 57.8 plus play percentage, and when including 290 even plays, he had an overall grade of 87.1 percent for the year. He had 19 knockdown blocks and three direct touchdown blocks while allowing only one quarterback sack, the low by the five offensive line regulars.

Spruce, 6-1, 195, is on the Maxwell Award list for the nation's most outstanding player. He set or tied 31 school receiving records in 2014, and overall, has his named etched into the record book 35 times total. He enters his senior year second in receptions (205), sixth in receiving yards (2,294) and tied for fifth in touchdown catches (19) all-time at Colorado. He is second only to J.D. McKissic of Arkansas State when it comes to players returning with the most career receptions (McKissic has 237). He was a second-team All-Pac 12 receiver last fall, with 106 catches for 1,198 yards and 12 touchdowns, the receptions and scores being CU single season records.

Spruce has also has caught at least one pass in 25 consecutive games, the fourth-longest streak in CU history (he has two or more in 24 of those games), and has the fifth-most 100-yard games (7). He had the honor of scoring CU's 25,000th point in school history when he scored on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Sefo Liufau at California on Sept. 27, 2014. He holds or shares 35 school records heading into his senior year. He is also a candidate for the Fred Biletnikoff Award which is presented to the nation's top receiver.

NOTES

All incoming freshman recruits qualified academically and all are already on campus taking part in Coach Mike MacIntyre's Summer Bridge Program (which he started when he was at San Jose State to help them assimilate into college life) ... Folsom Field's new Rooftop Terrace sold out quickly; how fast? On July 7, a combination of season and single game passes sold out quickly (the season ones in 31 minutes, the single gamers in seven hours) and an additional 100 for the six single game passes sold out between 10 minutes (for the Oct. 3 Oregon game) and three hours (the Sept. 26 Nicholls State game). The terrace is located atop CU's Champions Center, slated for completion in early August with the various departments moving in over the course of the entire month ... The Pac-12 Football Media Days are coming up (July 30-31 at Warner Bros. Studio in Los Angeles); CU will be represented by offensive tackle Stephane Nembot, who is from the area via Cameroon, and linebacker Kenneth Olugbode ... One summer football walk-on is Peter Lynch, a receiver out of Dallas Jesuit College Prep; his grandfather was the late Gary Nady, an end who played on CU's 1956 Orange Bowl champion team (and the second cousin of long-time major league baseball player Xavier Nady).

Congrats to former CU women's basketball assistant coach LaTonya Watson; she has been named to her first head coaching position, at the University of New Haven ... Good to see former Buff Steve Jones back competing on the Champions Tour, overcoming back problems which sidelined him for much of 2014 ... The opening athletic competition for the 2015-16 school year is only seven weeks from this Friday, when Danny Sanchez's women's soccer team opens the year at Colorado State (Aug. 21) in the first Colorado Cup Match; CU's home opener is to days later against Colorado College in the second round of the Cup.

Team USA begins play Thursday (July 9) at 6 p.m. MDT versus Mexico in the first round of the 2015 IFAF Championships. Two former Buff linebackers are on the team, B.J. Beatty and Derrick Webb, and the U.S. team is being coached by former CU head coach Dan Hawkins. He has former CU quarterback and current director of player personnel Darian Hagan on his staff as well as another former CU signal caller, Cody Hawkins. The US is the two-time defending champion, winning in 2007 and 2011. All games will be carried live on ESPN3.