Woelk: Takeaways From Buffs Win Over Washington

BOULDER — It was just one year ago, after the Colorado Buffaloes had fallen to 5-6, that CU athletic director Rick George determined a coaching change had to be made.

Saturday evening at a rollicking Folsom Field, the Buffaloes improved to 5-6 and Buffs faithful — and CU administrators — are smiling.

The difference in trajectory could not be more pronounced. In the span of less than a year, Mel Tucker has breathed new life into the program. Recruiting is trending up, fan support is doing the same and Tucker's Buffs are playing a brand of football that is making the rest of the Pac-12 sit up and take notice.

Don't take our word for it.

Ask Stanford's David Shaw, who brought his Cardinal to Boulder two weeks ago and saw the Buffs beat him at his own game, hammering Stanford in the trenches. Ask Washington's Chris Petersen, who saw the Buffs finally turn the tables on the perennial power from the North and bully the bullies all night long in Saturday's 20-14 Colorado win.

Then ask the Buffaloes, who have fully embraced the culture change Tucker has brought to Boulder. They believe, and it shows.

Remember, it was just more than two weeks ago that Colorado was mired in a five-game losing streak. Parallels were being drawn to last season's seven-game season-ending slide that precipitated the coaching change.

But Tucker and his staff refused to allow this year's slump to become a season-defining spiral. Instead, they stayed the course. They refused to panic. They refused to allow chaos and discord to creep into the equation.

Now, no matter what happens next week in Utah — the Buffs head to Salt Lake City with an opportunity to become bowl eligible — the future looks bright after Saturday night's win.

Our weekly takeaways:

1. The Buffs are showing improvement down the stretch, a rarity in recent years. This is, of course, what all good teams should do — play better as the year progresses. But far more often than not, "the games they remember are played in November" has been a phrase Buffs fans have tried to forget.

Figure this: over the previous seven years, Colorado's record in November was 5-23. Take the 4-0 mark in 2016 out of the equation, and it's a 1-23 record in the other six seasons.

But this year, the Buffs are 2-1 in November, just the third time in the last 15 years they have won even a pair in the final month of the season.

It's because the CU coaching staff never wavered. They came in with a plan, they implemented it and they stuck to it. Now the culture shift that was so new last spring is taking hold. Players know the baseline standard. Details, sense of urgency, discipline, hard work, drive, a relentless attitude — all the things Tucker requires — are non-negotiable.

It has made a difference. It is why, in November, the Buffs' defense has turned into a force, dominating opponents and coming up with big fourth-quarter stops with the game on the line. It is why the offense has delivered time-consuming, game-winning drives that took the will out of their opponents.

Most of all, it is why Buffs faithful are smiling.

2. Player development has been a huge factor. Twice a week, the Buffs set aside extra time to give young players a chance to get in some 11-on-11 work. It's Tucker's belief that a team is only as good as its depth.

Those "Ghostbuster" periods are paying off, as CU youngsters continue to make more and more of an impact down the stretch.

Saturday night, it was true freshman defensive back Mark Perry who turned heads with three tackles — all for loss — including two huge sacks on third down. Perry didn't even play in the first three games of the season, but got his time in the developmental periods and is now making a difference.

Perry isn't the only one. Cornerbacks Tarik Luckett and K.J. Trujillo have stepped up in key roles. Others have added important time as reserves. It is a staple of Tucker's philosophy and the results are showing up.

3. Defensive coordinator Tyson Summers is dialing up some serious stuff. Remember when the Buffs were having trouble containing opponents for an entire game? Stanford and Washington don't. That's definitely not what they saw.

Just a few weeks ago, Summers and Tucker both said they saw improvement in CU's defense, even though the numbers didn't show it — yet.

Now those numbers are there. In the last two games, the Buffs have held opponents to an average of 79.5 yards per game on the ground while recording seven sacks and seven more quarterback hurries, and allowing just a 33 percent third-down conversion rate (9-for-27).

Summers is doing it by conjuring up pressure from every possible angle. Seven different Buffs recorded either a sack or quarterback hurry on UW's Jacob Eason. As one Buffs fan conveyed Sunday morning, CU had Eason "looking out of his earhole."

But it's more than pressure on the pocket. Summers and his assistants have slowly but steadily put together a solid front seven that has played very well against the run the last two weeks. The Buffs held Stanford to 127 yards on the ground, then bottled up Washington's running attack to the tune of 32 yards on 32 carries (a number admittedly boosted by the sack totals). D-line coach Jimmy Brumbaugh's group has made big strides in this area and has improved its pass rush as well.

It hasn't been an easy journey. The staff has coaxed improvement out of young players and veterans alike while dealing with a long list of injuries. The strides made by senior linebacker Davion Taylor over the last six weeks have been outstanding. CU's wet-behind-the-ears corners have grown up in a hurry. Safety Derrion Rakestraw has become a steady contributor. A host of young defensive linemen have stepped in and made a difference, with Terrance Lang becoming more and more of a force.

Meanwhile, vets such as linebacker Nate Landman and cornerback Delrick Abrams Jr. have added an element of stability.

And there is one more stat we shouldn't forget. Kind of the most important one. In the last two games, the Buffs have given up just 13 and 14 points, respectively. Before these last two weeks, CU hadn't held two Pac-12 opponents under 20 points since 2016.

4. The offensive line has become a solid, cohesive unit. When the season began, not many folks thought this group would be a big strength. While CU did have three starters returning, plus a grad transfer, it was still a relatively young bunch overall and depth was a huge question mark.

But O-line coach Chris Kapilovic has coaxed, cajoled, pushed and pulled this group into one that has imposed its will on two good defenses in consecutive weeks. The Buffs have opened big holes consistently for the run game — CU has averaged nearly 190 yards rushing the last two games — while also allowing just two sacks.

Senior center Tim Lynott Jr. has been a mainstay and his Buffalo Heart Award was no doubt well-deserved. Tackles Arlington Hambright and William Sherman have turned into solid bookends. Inside, guard Kary Kutsch has developed consistency down the stretch while Jack Shutack — a senior walkon — has stepped in and provided good relief, along with freshman Casey Roddick.

But maybe our favorite stat from the offensive line? Guard Colby Pursell, who missed most of one game and five full contests because of gallbladder surgery, has played at least 20 snaps in five games. The Buffs are 5-0 in those contests.

5. Special teams have been dependable and critical. A shout-out here to assistant coach Ross Els, who handles inside linebackers and special teams. Els has transformed what was once a problem area into a weapon.

Punter Alex Kinney has been outstanding. His 62-yard coffin corner kick that pinned UW on the 1-yard line Saturday was a thing of beauty, but it is his consistency that will give him a chance to play at the next level. The CU senior is 21st in the nation with a 44.4-yard average, has landed 21 of his 67 attempts this year inside the 20 and has just four touchbacks all season.

Meanwhile, freshman Evan Price has stepped in and done an excellent job in place of injured James Stefanou, hitting all five of his attempts this season — and every one a critical kick.

CU's coverage teams have also been solid, and Els' coaching showed Saturday when Jalen Sami stayed "home" after a punt and stopped what could have been a game-changing UW punt return with a touchdown-saving tackle.

6. WR Laviska Shenault Jr. continues to amaze, Tony Brown is clutch and Dimitri Stanley has star potential. If you haven't seen Shenault's 39-yard touchdown catch from Steven Montez on Saturday, do yourself and track down a video.

It is, quite simply, unbelievable. Shenault turned a jump ball into the end zone — one that was nearly intercepted — into a touchdown by stealing the ball away from UW defender Trent McDuffie. It was such an outstanding catch that some fans didn't realize Shenault had scored until the referee's signal. When the CU junior then got up from the turf and delivered a Michael Jordanesque palms-up gesture, the crowd erupted. It was just the latest of a long line of Shenault moments that Colorado fans will pull from the memory bank for years and years to come.

But assistant head coach Darrin Chiaverini's wide receivers are by no means a one-trick show. Brown had another clutch night, showing his consistency in critical moments. Stanley, meanwhile, continues to display flashes of becoming a breakout player in the future, running precise routes, making tough catches and showing excellent burst.

7. Senior QB Steven Montez made his Folsom finale one to remember. Montez's touchdown throw to Shenault gave him a CU record 61 for his career, one of the more impressive records he will have in his possession before he throws his final pass for Colorado.

But Montez's toughness also showed late in the game, when he came back from an injury to guide CU's final, game-clinching possession. Montez took a vicious hit, missed three plays — then went back onto the field to rifle a key completion to Stanley that took CU into UW territory.

It was a fitting final home game for the senior and another memory that should resonate with Colorado fans long into the future.

8. Alex Fontenot is developing into an elite Pac-12 back. While the CU sophomore is still sharing some of his time with freshman Jaren Mangham, Fontenot is becoming more and more of a feature back.

Fontenot has a great nose for openings inside, sheds arm tackles and almost always falls forward for another yard or two. His instincts are becoming more and more apparent with each week — he had his third 100-yard game with 105 against the Huskies — and he has an excellent burst at the second level.

Tucker has made it clear the Buffs will run the ball on their terms. With Fontenot and Mangham as a one-two punch the next couple of years, they should have no problem making that happen.

9. CU's seniors will leave a legacy of which they can be proud. A number of the 17 Colorado seniors who made their final Folsom Field appearance on Saturday were part of the 2016 Pac-12 South title team. They will no doubt remember their roles.

But the role they served this year in helping implement the Tucker Era transition is one that may go down as their greatest contribution.

Coaching changes are never easy. But every one of the 17 seniors who suited up at Folsom on Saturday for the last time played a role in establishing the foundation that now makes Colorado's future look bright.

That's something that will be paying dividends for years to come, and also something of which they should be rightfully proud.

Here's hoping Colorado faithful won't forget.

Thus, one last time, the senior class of 2019:

— CB Delrick Abrams Jr.

— SN J.T. Bale

— TE Beau Bisharat

— WR Tony Brown

— S Lucas Cooper

— OLB Nu'umotu Falo Jr.

— QB Josh Goldin

— OL Arlington Hambright (graduate student)

— TE Jalen Harris (graduate student)