Buffs Practice Report: Tucker Pleased As Both Sides Make Plays In First Scrimmage
August 10, 2019 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Colorado coach Mel Tucker put his Buffaloes through their first scrimmage of fall camp Saturday morning, a 96-play workout he described as overall "fairly sharp."
The Buffs worked on a variety of situations in their first full-contact, tackle-to-the-ground work of camp, conducted with a full crew of officials on hand. Along with regular drives that started deep in offensive territory, the Buffs also worked on red zone, short yardage, third downs and two-minute situations.
CU coaches mixed up the competition, giving the No. 1 offense time against the No. 1 and No. 2 defenses, and vice versa.
"The offense started really fast and then we got to the third down period and the defense was dominant," Tucker said. "Then it kind of went back and forth from there. We had 22 different guys catch passes today. We want to have balance and get the ball to all the guys that can make plays for us. … (Overall) I really like what I'm seeing, guys stepping up, developing, getting better. They were into it. We were very efficient today. We were on the field, we got out of there with a good clean scrimmage."
The scrimmage featured some big plays on both sides of the ball, including a couple long completions from Steven Montez to Tony Brown, a long run to the end zone from Deion Smith, an interception from safety Derrion Rakestraw and a sack by linebacker Carson Wells.
One area that is becoming more and more consistent is the run game, something that has been a priority for Tucker and his staff since they arrived.Â
"The offense made some plays in the run game, especially on the perimeter," Tucker said. "The defense was stout inside, but we have to do a better job on our perimeter run force."
CU continues to rotate running backs on a regular basis. Over the last few days, the trio of Smith, Alex Fontenot and Jaren Mangham have been the most consistent, but Jarek Broussard also flashed early in Saturday's scrimmage.
"We have a least three running backs that can get it done, and I saw Jarek Broussard step up today early in the scrimmage," Tucker said. "He's been coming on. In terms of having depth at that position, we're sound and solid."
The run game is starting to gel in large part because the offensive line is coming together.Â
"There's some cohesiveness there and they're being coached really hard," Tucker said. "I saw (sophomore center) Colby Pursell step up today as a leader. The offense started to sputter a little bit and I really saw him try to exert his will on that offensive line and the offense in general. That's the first time I've really heard him really step up like that. That was good. He's one of our toughest players. Mentally tough, physically tough. It was really good to see his leadership emerge. We're going to need that."
The Buffs are now just under three weeks away from their Aug. 30 season opener against Colorado State in Denver (8 p.m., ESPN). With nine practices now in the books and 16 to go, Tucker said his team is "pretty much where I thought they would be" at this point in camp.
 "We're starting to build an identity on offense running the ball," Tucker said. "We have some playmakers … Defensively, stopping the run we're more stout inside. Some of our young defensive linemen are showing up and helping us there and we needed some of those guys to come in. We've certainly become more sound and solid in our secondary. The communication is getting better. We're starting to get some takeaways, generating some. We're generating some minus yardage plays as well."
The Buffs will have at least one more full-contact scrimmage before the opener, tentatively set for next Saturday.Â
SCRIMMAGE NOTES: Linebacker Alex Tchangam has moved up the rep chart this week, getting some snaps with the No. 1 unit on occasion. "Alex is improving," Tucker said. "He's becoming more physical at the point of attack in the running game. We all know he has extraordinary athletic ability and the ability to get a pass rush for us. He just needs to continue to work to be more consistent in the run game. But I like what I've seen out of him." …
Tucker singled out several players as having solid days Saturday, including freshman corners K.J. Trujillo and Tarik Luckett, who moved from wideout to corner earlier this week. Trujillo had a couple nice plays on the ball in the end zone and Luckett has put himself in the mix in a hurry.
"K.J. showed up as a corner," Tucker said. "Tarik, that was his first time in a live situation for us and he showed he was a willing tackler, which was very positive. Deion Smith showed up big today, made some really good runs. I thought Steven (Montez) was sharp other than one play." … Â
Tight end Brady Russell had a couple of nice catches early in the scrimmage, and fellow tight end Jalen Harris made a big catch on the goal line and reached the end zone … K.D. Nixon had a scoring catch early to cap a long drive … Defensive linemen Austin Williams and Na'im Rodman both took snaps with the No. 1 unit … All three backup quarterbacks — Sam Noyer, Tyler Lytle and Blake Stenstrom — also looked sharp, with each having a good day in the accuracy department. Noyer and Stenstrom both had scoring passes … Defensive lineman Jalen Sami came up with a big stop behind the line in the red zone … Safety Mark Perry delivered a nice stop in the open field on Jaren Mangham after Mangham had broken through the line … Inside linebacker Quinn Perry is making plays ...Â
Linebacker Marvin Ham II took some snaps alongside inside 'backer Jonathan Van Diest … Two Buffs have moved from the offensive line to the defensive line. Va'atofu Sauvao and Spencer Short are both now lining up on defense … Along with Rakestraw's interception, defensive back Curtis Appleton came up with a fumble recovery for the defense. … Officials called eight penalties on the Buffs in the 96 plays.
SCHEDULE: The Buffs will have Sunday off, then return to work on Monday for their 10th practice of camp.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
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