Colorado University Athletics
Buffs Begin Preparation For Saturday Homecoming Vs. Stanford
November 04, 2019 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Colorado Buffaloes coach Mel Tucker isn't one to sugarcoat a situation.
When the Buffs returned to practice Monday in the wake of a 31-17 loss to UCLA — CU's fifth straight defeat — the message was simple. The burden is on everyone, from the head coach on down, to continue to step up their game.
"I've talked to the coaches and the players," Tucker told the media after practice. "We all understand what's required. We're going to have to step up and do a better job coaching, do a better job playing."
One of the essential elements, Tucker said, is that the Buffs' top players put forth top performances, and it starts in practice. If the Buffs (3-5 overall, 1-5 Pac-12) are going to end their skid Saturday in a 1 p.m. matchup against Stanford (4-4, 3-3), they will need a solid week of preparation.
"One of the big keys is that your good players play good," Tucker said. "That's performance and that's behavior. In order to do that, preparation is going to be key for us. Everything that we can do to get ready, we're going to do. It's going to be a relentless effort from our coaches and our players."
Tucker's confidence in his team hasn't wavered. With three games remaining, there are still opportunities ahead to create some success, beginning with Saturday's game against the Cardinal.
"We didn't get the results that we wanted last week, however there's opportunities to grow from it," Tucker said. "That's really what my focus is. We have to have the discipline to do our jobs on a consistent basis. Consistency and performance is how you become successful. Until we do the things that we need to do to be consistent, we're not going to get where we want."
FIRST LOOK STANFORD: It's been an up-and-down season for the Cardinal. After winning just one of four to open the year, Stanford has rebounded to win three of its last four, including wins over Washington (then ranked No. 15) and Arizona.
Now, after a bye week, David Shaw's team might be as healthy as it has been since early in the year.
The Cardinal is led by senior quarterback K.J. Costello, who returned from an injury two weeks ago against Arizona to throw for a season-high 322 yards and three touchdowns. He has capable receivers in wideouts Connor Wedington (40 catches, 371 yards) and Michael Wilson (32-for-365), and a big target in 6-foot-7, 250-pound tight end Colby Parkinson (31-for-358).
But as usual, Stanford leans heavily on its run game, with senior Cameron Scarlett carrying most of the load with 159 carries for 700 yards and five touchdowns this season.
Defensively, the Cardinal has been inconsistent. Stanford gave up 45 points to USC in an early season loss and 34 to UCLA in a mid-October defeat. But Stanford also shut down Washington in a 23-13 win, then held Arizona to just seven points in the second half of a 41-31 win.
MANGHAM IMPROVING: CU true freshman running back is coming off the first start of his career, one that produced career highs in carries (17) and yards (77).
Mangham was starting in place of injured sophomore Alex Fontenot, who could be back for this week's game.
Still, his performance was a bright spot for CU coaches.
"I thought he played really hard," Tucker said. "He's a good young player and he's getting better. I have confidence in him that he can get the job done when called upon. There's still some things he has to work on but that's why we're practicing. He knows what those things are and we're really tightening the screws every way imaginable to get the most out of our players."
Mangham, a 6-foot-2, 215-pounder, might be CU's most physical back, and he seldom is tackled for a loss.
"He has physical style of running," Tucker said. "He fell forward on several occasions for a couple yards, finishing runs, things like that. He's a good young player who's got a lot of promise. We have to continue to work with him and get him better."
TUCKER ON MONTEZ: Asked whether he is considering getting one of his backup quarterbacks more work down the stretch, Tucker said senior Steven Montez is still the guy.
"I'm very confident that Steven gives us our best chance," Tucker said. "We'll work with him to get him better. He's obviously got to make great decisions, got to take care of the football. He missed a couple throws, had a couple of poor reads, but he also made some good plays. We have to play better around him. Everybody's got to be on the same page and doing their job in order for us to get the job done."
Montez finished 21-for-38 for 195 yards, one touchdown and one interception. As Tucker noted, he missed some early throws, but was also victimized by some dropped balls early that prematurely ended drives.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
