Pupunu Likes Progress Of Buffs Tight Ends
April 19, 2019 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Here's your statistical anomaly for the day: the number of tight ends on the 2019 Colorado football roster (eight) is more than the number of passes caught by Buffs tight ends in the entire 2018 season (six).
Now here's a good bet for the 2019 season: that won't be the case next fall. The Buffs are utilizing at least one and oftentimes two tight ends on a regular basis, and it is clear that the position will be an integral part of CU's attack under head coach Mel Tucker and offensive coordinator Jay Johnson.
Five of CU's tight ends are scholarship players: returnees Brady Russell, Darrion Jones and Jared Poplawski, along with graduate transfer Jalen Harris (Auburn) and converted running back Beau Bisharat. The group also includes Legend Brumbaugh, Derek Coleman and C.J. Schmanski.
But the key part to the puzzle is new tight ends coach Al Pupunu, whose job is to make sure his players understand the nuances and intricacies that their position requires in the new attack.
The report thus far: so far, so good. Pupunu likes what he has seen from his group, but also knows there is plenty of work to be done before next fall.
"Technique-wise we're coming around, which is good," Pupunu said after Wednesday's practice, the Buffs' 11th of the spring. "We have to get better at a lot of things and a there's lot of things we need to correct, but that's why we practice, so we can get better at it."
For the last several years, Colorado's tight ends were utilized mainly as blockers in the run game, and even then, not on a regular basis.
Now, their duties have expanded. The 6-foot-4, 255-pound Harris — who caught just four passes in three years at Auburn (two for touchdowns) — presents a big target in the passing game, as does the 6-6, 255-pound Jones.
"Jalen's starting to come around," Pupunu said. "When he was at Auburn, he was more of a sniffer (H-back) type of guy. Now we're putting him out to play some real tight end. He's starting to grab some concepts so that's a positive thing."
Jones is also starting to make plays in the passing game, while Russell has the size (255 pounds) to play a variety of roles. Russell caught five passes last year and has made several nice catches in spring ball and he has the mentality to tangle with defensive linemen and linebackers in the run game. Poplawski, coming back from an injury, has been hampered this spring as well.
"Brady (Russell) can do quite a few things, but there are a lot of things we have to continue to get better at," Pupunu said. "He can be the move guy, he can be on the ball as well. Right now, we're just working on fundamentals and technique."
Russell has caught the eye of Tucker simply through his work ethic.
"Brady is one of our hardest workers," Tucker said. "It's important to him. He always is on top of his assignments. He just plays really hard. He's a gritty guy and he's making the most of his opportunities right now."
Bisharat, meanwhile, is already proving to be a reliable receiver, and his background as a running back is helping him when he lines up as an H-back and serves as a lead blocker in the run game.
"Beau's got a lot of things that can help us," Pupunu said of the 225-pound senior. "Obviously he's not a bigger sized tight end, but he can be more of the flex guy and a guy that's inside, the sniffer. He's still raw right now because he was a running back and all the technique is new for him. But he's athletic and natural at it and I think he can help us."
Pupunu, who played nine years at tight end in the NFL (Chargers, Chiefs, Giants and Lions) has seen his group improve their receiving skills in the spring, as well as continue to develop the technique necessary to play a position that also requires blocking skills.
"What I really like is we've got good competition," he said. "We have a few more practices left, and then we'll come back in the summer and get better, then see where we are in the fall."
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
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