Buffs' Focus On Stopping Run Puts Extra Pressure On Corners
October 25, 2018 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Despite the growing proliferation of passing attacks in college ball, despite rule changes that continue to favor offenses in general and the passing game in particular, there is still a rule of thumb when it comes to playing good defense:
Stop the run first. If you do that, it greatly increases your chances of winning games.
Thus far this season, the Colorado Buffaloes have adhered to that maxim. The Buffs are 5-2 in large part because of a defense that is playing well against the run — and as a result, is limiting opponents' trips to the end zone. Thus far this year, CU is holding opponents to just 142.6 yards per game on the ground and 21.4 points per game on the scoreboard (both fifth-best in the Pac-12).
It is something the Buffs want to make sure they are doing well Saturday when they play host to Oregon State in a 1 p.m. homecoming game at Folsom Field (Pac-12 Networks). The Beavers have the conference's leading rusher in Jermar Jefferson, who has run for 899 yards and 12 touchdowns. If the Buffs can force the Beavers to throw, they believe they can control the tempo of the game.
But when you focus on stopping the run, it usually means more pressure on your pass defense because extra defenders in the box can leave defensive backs without extra help on the back end.
It can be a lonely spot for those cornerbacks.
"I'm a firm believer that if you play good defense, you win championships, and a lot of defense is stopping the run," said Colorado cornerbacks coach Ashley Ambrose, who played 12 years in the NFL and finished with 42 career interceptions. "But when you have to put guys in the box, the guys on the edge are out there. They're out there by themselves, and it means you are more prone to giving up big plays once in a while. That's just the nature of the game."
The Buffs have also played well against the pass this year, giving up just 205.4 yards per game (compared to 240 last year). In terms of big scoring plays, CU has allowed just six touchdown passes of 20 yards or longer. But three of those six — two against Southern California and one against Washington — have been key plays in CU's two losses.
"Our corners have got to play better than they've played," said CU head coach Mike MacIntyre. "They know that. We know that. With what we do defensively, they're going to get thrown at. That's the way it is. If we can do that, then we'll be able to stop the run and play really good football. Those guys are good enough to do it."
Ambrose believes in his corners. Even with promising freshman Chris Miller out for the season with a hand injury, Colorado still has a talented group in Trey Udoffia, Dante Wigley and Delrick Abrams Jr.
"We have to become just a bit more consistent and make just a few more of those plays," Ambrose said. "If you do that, you end up being pretty good. But you have to be confident in yourself. You can't worry about a ball being caught once in a while."
Indeed, as MacIntyre noted on his weekly radio show, a cornerback can play 65 out of 67 plays almost perfectly — but if the two bad plays are big gains, he is in the spotlight.
"Our guys know they're out there on an island," Ambrose said. "That's just part of it, part of the position. They understand."
Thus far this year, the Buffs have improved in almost every defensive statistical category when compared to 2017. Their 21.4 points per game allowed is nearly a touchdown better than last year's average, and their passing and rushing yards allowed are down as well.
"We are playing much better defensively," Ambrose said. "We're doing a better job stopping the run and we're doing better than we were last year against the pass. They both coincide with each other. We just have to keep improving on both."
One thing Ambrose definitely wants his corners to do is to continue being aggressive in their man-to-man coverage.
"You're going to have some penalties — but that won't hurt as much as the big play," Ambrose said. "The ones that hurt us is when they hit those balls over the top. We have to be aggressive and at the same time keep the ball in front of us. If we can do that, we'll keep getting better."
PREPARING FOR TWO QBs — The Buffs still aren't sure who they will see at quarterback for Oregon State. Starter Conor Blount is undergoing concussion protocol, leaving Jake Luton, Jack Colletto and Aidan Willard taking snaps in practice this week.
Luton started the season as No. 1, but was sidelined early with an ankle injury and could be ready to return this week. Colletto, meanwhile, came in last week in relief.
Of the two, Luton is the more accomplished passer while Colletto is a bigger, more physical player capable of making plays with his legs.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
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