Colorado University Athletics
Buffs Healthy, 'Excited' As Game Day Nears
August 30, 2015 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — The Colorado Buffaloes have finished most of the “heavy lifting” of fall camp. They've installed their game plan for Thursday's season opener at Hawai'i, they're working on what they believe they'll see from the Rainbow Warriors, and they're now in full-blown game week mode.
“The kids are excited,” head coach Mike MacIntyre said after Sunday's practice, a lively workout despite the 90-plus degree temperature. “You can kind of smell it in the air. We had a good day. It was a really good practice.”
The Buffs have just one practice remaining in Boulder — a Monday morning workout — before they depart for Hawaii, where they'll practice twice more before the season opener.
Already, this season has been a rarity for the Buffs, or any team, for that matter. The Buffs did not suffer a single season-ending injury in training camp practices.
“That's the first time I've ever gone through a camp that that has happened,” MacIntyre said. “Ever. Usually, you have a labrum or a knee … last year, we had a few, this year we haven't had any. That's been encouraging.”
The Buffs did lose defensive lineman Tyler Hennington for the season during camp, but that came when Hennington suffered a freak injury walking down the street. But otherwise, it's been a good fall in terms of injuries.
“That speaks of they know how to practice, they're in better shape, they're stronger, they're older,” MacIntyre said.
DEFENSE READY: While most coaches would always prefer a few more practices before a game, Colorado defensive coordinator Jim Leavitt isn't part of that group.
Leavitt is ready.
“I'm tired of practicing,” Leavitt said after Sunday's practice. “I'm ready to go.”
Defense was the biggest question mark for the Buffs headed into camp, as CU finished last season ranked at or near the bottom of the Pac-12 in nearly every statistical category. Leavitt was brought in to improve that defense.
“Are we where we thought we'd be? I don't think like that,” Leavitt said in response to a query about the Buffs' progress. “If I do, I start confusing myself. I just want to have a good practice today and get better than we were the day before. Most days, we've done that.
“Today we did some good things and some things we didn't do so well. We need to play a game. After the Hawaii game, we'll know if we made progress.”
PRACTICE NOTES: The Buffs are practicing in anticipation of playing in wet weather. While Hurricane Ignacio is now projected to track north of Hawai'i, it's still expected to produce rain the entire time the Buffs are in the islands. Thursday's forecast calls for a 70 percent chance of rain at game time.
In preparation, the Buffs have been utilizing a variety of tactics, including practicing with a wet ball.
“It's going to be raining,” MacIntyre said. “We've been working wet-ball drills and that type of thing. We do that anyway, but we've been doing it more because of the weather. … We're going to be ready for it.”
