Colorado University Athletics
Football Practice Report: Aug. 5
August 05, 2015 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Bigger, stronger, faster — and a sense of urgency.
If you're looking for a quick way to describe the opening session of the Colorado Buffaloes' fall camp, that might be the most apt, as the Buffs hit the practice field Wednesday morning for their first of 29 workouts before the Sept. 3 season opener at Hawai'i.
The bigger, more powerful aspect shouldn't come as a surprise. The Buffs are coming off a long offseason conditioning program, and players are expected to gain at least a little strength and bulk in that period.
“We have guys that lost 10 pounds of fat and gained eight or nine pounds of muscle,” said head coach Mike MacIntyre. “That's pretty amazing. Our strength shows, our stamina shows — now we've just got to start working to polish it up.”
But the thing that impressed MacIntyre the most was an almost palpable sense of urgency. It's something the Buffs have been building up since the day last season ended with a heartbreaking loss to Utah, something that comes with an experienced team determined to move forward.
“With our team being more mature than last year, I sense that,” MacIntyre said. “I see guys getting on guys, I see guys talking about it, concerned about it. It's a maturity factor. Our leadership needs to take control and keep that moving.”
This is MacIntyre's third fall camp with the Buffs.
“We're way ahead of last year,” MacIntyre said.
Temperatures hit the high 80s by the end of the shorts-and-helmets practice. Along with plenty of positional drills, the Buffs also got in some 11-on-11 work with the top offensive and defensive units squaring off. Quarterback Sefo Liufau looked sharp; wide receiver Nelson Spruce made some nifty grabs of long balls; and virtually all of the running backs on the depth chart had a chance to work into the mix.
On the defensive line, junior college transfer Jordan Carrell and redshirt freshman Jase Franke got some time up front alongside Derek McCartney and Justin Solis, a position that will be watched closely as camp progresses.
“It's a pencil depth chart,” MacIntyre said. “That's what everybody needs to remember right now.”
The Buffs have a walk-through scheduled for Wednesday evening and will return to practice Thursday morning for another 8:35 a.m. workout that will be open to the public.
Spruced up: Spruce, the leading returning receiver in the Pac-12, told reporters he's confident in this year's group of wideouts.
“It's a good group,” Spruce said. “I want them to be as productive as they can be, because that will take a little attention away from me.”
Bell update: Safety Jered Bell, who was granted a sixth year of eligibility after a knee injury forced him to miss the 2014 season, was back on the field Wednesday. MacIntyre said Bell “looks fine,” and that they'll monitor his progress before deciding whether he'll take part in all of the team's two-a-day workouts. The Buffs have five days with two full workouts scheduled, with the first set for Tuesday.
Henington out: Defensive lineman Tyler Henington, who missed all of last year after suffering torn knee ligaments in practice, will miss all of this year after suffering a broken ankle and fibula in a freak accident last week. According to MacIntyre, Henington was walking home from dinner when he stepped in a hole and fell. “I've never had that happen before,” MacIntyre said, when a player is hurt one year in practice and misses a season, then misses the ensuing season because of non-football injury.
MacIntyre also said Henington will be a strong candidate for a sixth year of eligibility.
Smart attends practice: Former Buff linebacker Jeff Smart, who starred for the 2009 Buffs, attended Wednesday morning's practice, perhaps picking up a few pointers in the process.
Smart, a Boulder High graduate, is currently the outside linebackers coach at Penn.
Smart got into coaching at the urging of former Buff linebackers coach Brian Cabral. “He always told me, 'Jeff, you should coach. You'd be good one.' ''
Smart didn't get into coaching right away after college, but a year after graduating, he joined Jon Embree's CU staff as a graduate assistant. He spent 2½ years with the Buffs — including spring ball in MacIntyre's first year — before taking a position as inside linebackers coach at Columbia. From there, he moved on to Penn, thanks to a connection to defensive coordinator Bob Benson (former defensive coordinator at Colorado Mines).
“It's great,” Smart said. “It's a good situation and the staff is great to work with. The Ivy League is much different — a 10-game schedule and no playoffs — but we recruit nationally, and that's a plus.”
