Buffs Notes: Abrams Aims High, Good Day For Jackson, RB Battle, QB Pressure
April 13, 2019 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER —
At a position where the Colorado Buffaloes struggled to find consistency last year, cornerback Delrick Abrams Jr. proved to be the steadiest of the bunch.
In his first season in Boulder, the junior college transfer started in eight games and played in 10, missing action only because of an injury. He finished with 44 tackles, but more importantly, led the team in pass breakups with eight. He also had a forced fumble, three quarterback pressures and six third down stops.
This spring, the long, lanky (6-foot-3, 185 pounds) senior has been a regular with the No. 1 defense at right corner as the Buffs install defensive coordinator Tyson Summers' new scheme. He is once again proving to be a consistent defender in coverage, and with a year of experience under his belt, has a chance to take the next step in his development under new cornerbacks coach Travares Tillman.
"My mindset is trying to be the best player I can be, the best player on the field," Abrams said after Friday's scrimmage, the first of the spring. "I feel like the only person who can stop me is me. I'm just a very competitive person."
Along with honing his one-on-one cover skills, another of Abrams' goals this spring is to become a more physical player — something that has been a point of emphasis for new head coach Mel Tucker. It is a message Tucker has stressed to his team every day since spring ball began.
"Every day, if you're not physical, you're not going to get on the field," Abrams said. "The key is be tough. If you're not going to tackle, you're not going to be on the field. Be physical every practice."
Abrams has had a good spring thus far, playing well against the deep ball as well as short and intermediate routes. He has added some speed thanks to CU's offseason fourth-quarter conditioning program, and his daily work against Colorado's quality corps of wide receivers has also improved his game.
"I just want to be the best player and best leader I can be for my team," Abrams said. "Whatever I can do for my team and help us win, that's the most important thing."
GOOD SPRING FOR JAYLON: Sophomore wide receiver Jaylon Jackson, who has battled injuries almost nonstop for the last three years, is healthy this spring and making plays. He had the play of the day in Friday's scrimmage, hauling in a 62-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass from Steven Montez, going up between three defenders to make the catch.
Jackson also had two other catches in the scrimmage, and finished with a team-leading 115 yards receiving.
"I feel like I'm having a pretty good camp," said Jackson, who has indeed been a regular playmaker over the last two weeks of practice. "I'm starting to get healthy and be able to run. Just feel comfortable getting more and more reps."
Jackson is getting snaps with the No. 1 and No. 2 offense this spring on the heels of a season in which he played in three games, finishing with eight catches for 44 yards, including a six-catch effort against Arizona. It was a year in which he was still hampered by the effects from an ankle injury and ensuing surgery, but he now hopes he is past that.
"It's a process," he said. "It takes weeks and weeks and eventually you're feeling good. In football you're never 100 percent. You have to find out how to make your 85 percent your 100, your 90 percent your 100."
When Jackson is healthy, he has the ability to be a difference-maker for the Buffs. He has excellent speed and quickness, and reliable hands.
"He just has to stay healthy," said wide receivers coach Darrin Chiaverini. "The kid can play football. He just needs to stay healthy and take care of his body. He's a smart football player, knows how to get open, has excellent speed, excellent ball skills. The kid can be a football player for us; we just have to keep him healthy."
RB BATTLE: One position that is showing all signs of being a competitive one well into fall camp is running back, where five players are getting snaps with the No. 1 and No. 2 units.
In Friday's scrimmage, redshirt freshman Jarek Broussard was the leading rusher, collecting 32 yards on seven carries, including a 22-yard scamper, the longest run of the day. Fellow freshman Deion Smith had five carries for 25 yards, including an 18-yard touchdown run, and sophomore Alex Fontenot had 30 yards on 12 carries, with a long of 9.
As for the true freshmen, Jaren Mangham had 22 yards on four carries and Joe Davis ran for 18 yards on four carries.
All bring something different to the table. Fontenot and Broussard also had a pair of catches, with Fontenot's day including a 15-yard catch. Broussard brings some "wiggle" to the backfield while Smith's speed makes him a threat to break a big run every time he touches it. Mangham, meanwhile, continues to develop and Davis has the patience and ability to find creases in a defense.
TIGHT END CATCHES: The Buffs have emphasized the use of their tight end all spring. But the tight ends who caught passes in Friday's scrimmage weren't the regulars with the No. 1 offense, Jalen Harris and Brady Russell.
Instead, Darrion Jones and Beau Bisharat each caught one pass in the workout. Jones' catch went for 4 yards while Bisharat, who made the move to the position from running back just last week, had a 6-yard catch.
The tight ends were, however, clearly a significant piece of the puzzle, especially in red zone and short yardage situations, when the Buffs' offense was able to punch in a couple of touchdowns.
NO TIME WASTED: Defensive coordinator Tyson Summers continues to utilize every available minute to get his players reps. That means even getting some in before practices in walkthroughs.
It's a strategy he used when working with George O'Leary at Central Florida, and one he saw in use at Georgia when he joined the staff there of Kirby Smart and Mel Tucker.
"We did a similar format when I was with Coach O'Leary at UCF, and what I thought Coach Tucker and Coach Smart and those guys did the best job of," Summers said. "You have a four-hour day on practice days. There's not a minute wasted, there's not a person standing around. We try to get out there each day and we're usually at about 48 walk-through reps before practice ever starts. We try to create challenging things and teach by that. During special teams each day I have walkthrough meetings with guys going over checks, things like that, trying to make sure we're over-communicating with our calls."
Summers said he has seen his defense benefit from the work as they continue to install their new scheme.
"How you manage the four hours you have each day is how you continue to see progress," Summers said. "I think that's what you've seen after nine days."
LEADING TACKLERS: Three of the four leading tacklers from the scrimmage were all inside linebackers, with sophomore Jonathan Van Diest leading the bunch with eight. Van Diest has been getting some reps with the No. 1 defense alongside Nate Landman, as has junior Akil Jones (five tackles). Coming up with six stops was another ILB, Chase Newman, while defensive back Ronnie Blackmon finished with five.
GETTING TO THE QB: One of the Buffs' priorities of the spring has been getting pressure on the quarterback, and they are doing it from a variety of areas. Along with quarterback sacks by defensive lineman Terrance Lang (two) and Jacob Callier (two), the defense also got one from safety Trey Udoffia.
Meanwhile, recording quarterback hurries were defensive backs Delrick Abrams, Ronnie Blackmon, Lucas Cooper and Hassan Hypolite; along with defensive linemen Jalen Sami and Melekiola Finau, and linebackers Callier and Davion Taylor.
SCHEDULE: With six practices remaining, the Buffs will practice three times against next week, with the second scrimmage of the spring set for Friday.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
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