Brooks: "KB" Adjusts To New Surroundings, Life In The Buffs Lane

BOULDER – A little less than three months ago, Kabion Ento's world took a dramatic tilt west.

Life, school, and football in Colorado were about as similar to him as a rain forest is to a desert. For a kid whose first 20 years were spent primarily in Arkansas (Pine Bluff) and Mississippi (Scooba), the Rocky Mountain West might as well have been another planet.

Welcome to Boulder and the University of Colorado, 'KB.'

"I'm s-o-o-o used to the South," Ento said Monday following another Buffs spring practice in which he was trying to soak up anything, everything that might help him earn playing time this fall as a wide receiver.

Continued Ento: "It's a whole new environment here. You've got beautiful winter weather . . . you don't get that in the South. It snows maybe one time (a winter) in the South and if it doesn't you're not going to miss it. It's way different here."

To find Southern cooking, Ento has visited the deli section at supermarkets. He's acclimated to other cultural shifts "just fine" and sees no problem settling in for two seasons of school/football at CU (he has three years to play two).

But there is a commonality – it varies level by level, of course – to his sport. "Football is football anywhere you go," he said. "They only thing is, you've got to learn the system before you can do anything. I'm just going to try to get better every day. It isn't a hard transition because I think my work ethic is pretty decent."

His athleticism is beyond that. At 6-3 and a shade under 180 pounds, he's squarely from the mold of tall, rangy wideouts that coach Mike MacIntyre said CU would begin targeting in future recruiting classes. Ento, said co-offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren, "is a tremendous athlete" who through six spring practices has done what Lindgren and the offensive staff envisioned upon signing him.

"He's got the ability to go up and get it (ball)," Lindgren said. "He's made plays on the ball downfield and done some of those things you can't really teach. We've been pleased with him. But we can use as much practice time as we can to keep getting him better through the summer and fall."

Ento was all-state in three sports – football, basketball and track – at Dollarway High School in Pine Bluff before playing football for two years at East Central Community College in Scooba, Miss. In his final season at ECCC, he made 38 catches for 607 yards (16.0 yard average) and eight touchdowns.

He enrolled at CU for the spring semester, therefore getting him on the field for spring drills. He believes he's "fitting in pretty well . . . there's a lot of diversity at the wide receiver position now, speed and a lot of athleticism. I'm going to try and make sure I get a role, that I get touches. But it's definitely something you've got to work for with this wide receiver corps."

The Buffs' offense, co-coordinated by Lindgren and Darrin Chiaverini, has been thumbed up to warp speed in about everything being done now. Life in the Buffs lane can leave players gasping. It's among the big differences Ento is experiencing in his new world.

He describes it as "way more up-tempo" than anything he's played in, adding, "Of course the competition level is a lot higher with four-year players instead of two-year players. Here you have to work a lot harder. I mean some things you can get away with in JC that you can't here – especially with cornerbacks like Akhello (Witherspoon) and 'Chido' (Chidobe Awuzie) it's a big difference."

MacIntyre said Ento is beginning to "really starting to catch onto" the Buffs' high-intensity practices: "Every practice the light bulb goes a little brighter, a little brighter, a little brighter . . ."

Yet before it reaches its full wattage, the very basics such as learning the snap count, where to line up, routes and adjustments and checks off of those, must become second nature for Ento. Said MacIntyre: "Your head is spinning a little bit; anybody's would be."

But Ento says those RPMs are slowing down, and offensive graduate assistant Patrick Williams agrees. A former standout CU receiver and team captain as a senior (2008), Williams see more consistency as Williams' biggest goal for the rest of the spring and in August camp.

"The athleticism is obvious, he can jump out of the gym, has hands . . . his whole deal is being consistent play in, play out," Williams said. "That's the main thing. JUCO guys coming in, they've played against a certain level of competition but they're getting ready to go against the best of the best now.

"You've got to raise your game, really raise everything now. Some of the things we're asking him to do haven't really been asked of him before. It's been a learning curve, but he's able to handle it. We've put more on his plate. He has slipups here and there, but I think he's in a good place and is working hard."

Some junior college transfers arrive in four-year programs with an unfounded arrogance. Most need to have that edge filed down a bit before they can contribute.

Williams said Ento arrived humble and ready to absorb: "I think 'KB' is like a silent assassin really. He comes in so humble; it's 'yes, sir/no, sir' in the weight room and everywhere else. I think he's waiting for the consistency and confidence to kick in. I think the kid can do some damage."

ROBBINS SUSPENDED INDEFINITELY: MacIntyre confirmed that senior defensive tackle Blake Robbins has been suspended indefinitely from the football program due to an altercation over the weekend that resulted in his arrest and charges filed against him.

"I am deeply troubled by these allegations," MacIntyre said. "They don't represent the values of our university or football team. I've indefinitely suspended Blake Robbins from all team activities. I also offer sincere apologies to the victims in this case, including two Boulder police officers. We have a strong and collaborative relationship with the Boulder Police Department, and I am very disappointed in the Blake's alleged conduct."

NOTABLE: Monday was an NCAA-mandated non-tackle day, but Wednesday will be a full-contact/full-tackling practice. It also will mark the first major spring scrimmage and will be the last practice until the team returns from spring break on Monday, March 28. MacIntyre said he would be focused on the performances of young offensive and defensive linemen and how the team executed with no coaches on the field (they will watch from the sidelines or press box). "When the coaches aren't out there how do they handle it, how do they react?" MacIntyre said. "You always see a few things (to be corrected)." . . . . The Buffs were schedule to practice outdoors on Monday, but high winds in the Boulder area forced them inside their new indoor practice facility (IPF). MacIntyre called the indoor work "great, a lot was accomplished." . . . . Redshirt freshman Tim Lynott, Jr. is seeing extended work at center, and MacIntyre said the 6-2, 300-pound Lynott "is doing well. It's all still a little new to him; he's got to think a little more when (defensive) fronts start moving around. He had a good day (on Monday)." . . . . CU's defense has been under Jim Leavitt's tutelage for a full year now. The improvement is obvious, said MacIntyre: "The whole defense is in, now we're just 'repping it, repping it, repping it.' They're very astute now, especially the older group, understanding nuances you have to have in formations, sets. They're doing good job of moving forward." . . . . Former CU assistant Greg Brandon, now the head coach at the Colorado School of Mines, attended Monday's practice. He's acquainted with about half of the Buffs' current staff . . . . Business as usual birthday: MacIntyre celebrated No. 51 Monday.

Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU