Brooks: Montez Makes QB Strides; Webb Takes A Closer Look

BOULDER – When Steven Montez was going through his progressions and looking downfield, Davis Webb was gazing at the entire field, trying his best to take a pocket view from the sidelines of what's to come at the University of Colorado.

Both were at Folsom Field on a sunny but brisk Wednesday morning – Montez directing CU's revamped, up-tempo offense while Webb watched and undoubtedly filled a mental notebook on the team he will join later this spring.

In his estimation and that of coach Mike MacIntyre and co-offensive coordinator Darrin Chiaverini, Montez had a credible scrimmage in the Buffs' seventh spring practice – the halfway point of spring drills and the last until the team reconvenes following spring break on Monday, March 28.

MacIntyre said the 6-5, 230-pound Montez's comfort level is on the rise and that he enjoyed some “really good moments” but also experienced “a couple of tough moments too.” Chiaverini added that he has “really been pleased with Montez's development. He's doing good things in the pocket, out of the pocket, making some good throws.”

As for Montez, a self-critique of his first seven spring drills went like this: “Definitely, I've made great strides, learned a lot. It seems that seven practices have gone by really quick . . . I've tried to be a sponge in meetings and soak it all up and then come out in practice and apply what we've learned.”

Montez said the Buffs “came out struggled a little bit, then picked it up and settled down” in Wednesday's scrimmage. “We need to keep improving and doing the little things, know where we're going with the ball.”

The offense's increased tempo is becoming more familiar to him, and prior to the last eight spring practices he plans to review the playbook. “You can never be too familiar with the playbook; I'm going to keep learning that,” he said.

In Boulder for the past four days while Texas Tech is on spring break, Webb was at Folsom Field mainly for a look-see at the retooled offense that bears more than a slight resemblance to the Red Raiders' attack that Chiaverini helped direct and, along with co-coordinator Brian Lindgren, has introduced to the Buffs this spring.

Webb is scheduled to graduate from Tech on the weekend of May 20-21 and plans to be in Boulder ASAP shortly thereafter, beginning conditioning work at altitude long before he takes the field in August camp. When camp starts, he'll compete with Montez, Jordan Gehrke and incumbent starter Sefo Liufau, provided Liufau's Lisfranc (mid-foot) injury is healed enough to allow him on the field.

The familiarity that Webb recognized Wednesday in CU's offense is exactly what cemented his decision to come to Boulder.

“That's the biggest thing,” he said. “Looking around at a lot of places in the SEC and Pac-12, I didn't really know the offense. This is very similar to Texas Tech's. It would have been kind of hard to come into a place without having spring 'reps. I feel like I'll have a pretty good (grasp) of this coming back here this summer.”

That's what the Buffs are hoping. He and Chiaverini were close in Lubbock and Webb admitted “Chev's” presence on the CU staff was “instrumental.” Plus, when Webb suffered a 2014 shoulder injury in September against Oklahoma, he said Chiaverini offered constant encouragement.

“He told me I just had to keep working, that success is never a straight line, it's very squiggly,” Webb recalled. “But at the end of the day, he said hard work can get you to the top. That's a good outlook to have. I really respect 'Coach Chev' and that's why I came here. I wasn't coming on blind faith, I knew him and knew I would be given a chance to compete here.”

FIRST-HALF SPRING REVIEW: Overall, MacIntyre said the Buffs “got almost everything in on offense and defense” in the first seven spring practices. The final eight practices, he added, would consist of reviewing and polishing what has been installed – particularly in fundamentals – and perhaps “moving some people around” after Wednesday's scrimmage is reviewed by the coaching staff.

Typically, he said, offenses usually are “a little behind” defenses in spring drills, especially when “young quarterbacks are running it . . . we're in the process of getting everything moving together. They'll make a big jump the second half of spring.”

Wednesday's scrimmage – the Buffs' longest thus far this spring – tilted toward the defense, but coordinator Jim Leavitt wasn't pleased with an end-of-scrimmage TD: “We weren't sharp enough, but we got about six takeaways, which I was happy with. Should have gotten the seventh, should have stopped them there (at the end). Couple of mental mistakes . . . but we're close, we're getting there.”

Chiaverini said the offense “still has leaps and bounds to go but I'm seeing some progress from practice one to practice seven.” He added that receivers Shay Fields, Devin Ross, Lee Walker and Jay MacIntyre have shown “flashes. They're showing up and making some plays.”

In the second half of spring drills (the spring game is Saturday, April 9), Chiaverini hopes to build on fundamentals taught in the first seven practices and “take it to the next level. We'll kind of reinstall our offensive packages. Then it's a matter of being able to do those things at a more elite level.

“That's the key to this offense – get that first first down and start playing with tempo, then let your playmakers make plays in space. We've got some good players; it's going to start to come together at the end of spring and summer. And we've got some more pieces coming too. It's exciting.”

He added: “There's not a long ways until we play our first game, but the good thing is we don't play next week.”

KEEPING THEM AWARE, HONEST: A huge difference between CU's spring drills in 2015 and 2016 is the overall improvement of Leavitt's defense.

If last spring was mostly 15 days of getting acquainted and overriding confusion, these spring drills – with help of last summer's work and the 2015 season – have seen the 'D' latch on to Leavitt's scheme. As a result, CU's offense is being tested in ways that weren't possible last spring.

Said Chiaverini: “Coach Leavitt is throwing a lot of stuff at us right now with his pressures . . . that's good for our offense to see those things.”

For his part, Leavitt has been “really happy to be honest with you. Our 'ones' are doing some good things – the 'ones' and a few other guys. I don't know if we'll get to a two-deep this fall, might not. I haven't in 30 years, so I don't know why we would now. But if we could find 15 or 16 guys we can really trust . . . the guys with the 'twos' are young guys – just learning and I'm proud of them. A lot of those guys won't be ready this fall but they're trying. But I'm really happy; we're doing a lot of stuff now, a lot of stuff and the guys are handling it well.”

As for the night-and-day difference in last spring and this, Leavitt said, “Oh, Lord yes . . . didn't do a lot (last spring), but the summer was pretty good.”

After spring break, Leavitt's goal is simple: “We want to get better . . . we're not good enough.”

GAMBOA GETTING ATTENTION: MacIntyre and Leavitt said it was difficult not to notice sophomore inside linebacker Rick Gamboa in Wednesday's work.

Gamboa, CU's leading tackler (96, 58 solo) last season, “is 'steady Eddie,” MacIntyre said. “He made some nice plays today, a lot of tackles . . . we're trying not to get him in too much, take every snap.”

But, added Leavitt, the 6-0, 230-pound Gamboa “is our guy . . . (he) had an unbelievable day. Unbelievable. He's a good football player.”

CU's linebacker corps is short two regulars – Addison Gillam, Kenneth Olugbode – this spring because of injuries. Both will return in August, with Leavitt expecting Gillam to report at about 240 pounds. Gillam is pushing 230 now, according to Leavitt.

“BIG PLAY SHAY”: Fields' play-making abilities have been obvious in his first two seasons and were again on Wednesday. MacIntyre calls the junior-to-be “Big Play Shay” and says Fields has recovered nicely from the ankle injury he suffered in mid-October against Arizona and hampered him for most of the remainder of the season.

The Buffs signed five receivers in their Class of 2016, but MacIntyre said the arrival of new competition wasn't necessarily a motivator for Fields: “(He's) always motivated, really confident. He'll rise to the occasion and keep working.”

That's the individual and collective blueprints for good football teams, said MacIntyre: “. . . you can look over your left shoulder and that guy can beat you out, you can look over your right shoulder and that guy can beat you out. We're starting to get to that point where we have that much depth. If guys are coming who are good players that gives everybody a push. It makes for better competition and a better team.”

NOTABLE: Long-time CU assistant Brian Cabral, now the associate head coach/defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Indiana State, attended Wednesday's scrimmage while the Sycamores are on spring break. On Tuesday, Cabral, former Buffs head coach Bill McCartney and former player Mike Tanner toured CU's new facilities. Cabral, entering his fourth season at Indiana State, called the facilities improvements “long overdue” and “beyond amazing . . . they really did it right.” . . . . Also attending Wednesday's scrimmage was Emery Moorehead, Cabral's teammate at CU and again with the 1985 Super Bowl champion Chicago Bears. Moorehead was accompanied by his son, Aaron, who coaches wide receivers at Texas A&M.

Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU