CU Notes: Dorrell Has Been Steady Glue For Buffaloes
July 29, 2020 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — The Colorado Buffaloes are still planning on playing football this fall.
As for the when and where, the Buffs will leave that up to the decision makers.Â
"I control the controllables," CU senior wide receiver K.D. Nixon said Wednesday in a conference call with reporters. "I think my team is ready and I know for sure I'm ready."
A meeting of Pac-12 presidents and chancellors is set for Friday, when they are expected to settle on what reports have suggested will be a 10-game schedule that could start in mid-September. Pac-12 officials earlier in July announced that the league would definitely play a conference-only schedule.
A number of different schedule possibilities will be on the table at Friday's meeting, but a mid-September start would mean a mid-August date for the opening of fall camp.
The Buffs, meanwhile, will continue to do what they have been doing all summer — participate in voluntary workouts, work with coaches in position and team meetings and do their best to prepare to hit the field for fall camp — whenever that might be.
"Being back in the weight room setting and the workout setting has kind of refueled everybody's fire," linebacker Nate Landman said in Wednesday's call. "Hearing hopeful things from Coach (Karl) Dorrell … He's pretty positive that there will be a season. (He has been) keeping the guys rallied on the main goal and winning games and in the back of our minds that we will have a season and we're working toward something."
Dorrell has found himself in a unique position. Not only was he the final Division I hiring last winter — he was named to the spot on Feb. 23 — he was then hit with the Covid-19 pandemic whammy, which canceled spring football and all spring workouts. Thus, he has yet to see his new team practice.
But according to the players, Dorrell has been the glue that has held the team together during the pandemic circumstances that turned the college football world on its ear. He has maintained a positive attitude and has made sure that communication lines have always been open.
That, Landman said, has been a steadying influence.
"He's been committed to having team meetings and keeping the team together," Landman said. "He checks in with us and we're able to voice our concerns with him. His main thing is building trust. He didn't know us and we didn't know him, and especially the way we were left without a head coach and the way it happened, he knew it was going to be tough for us to trust him. But he has kind of reassured everything and been there for us when we have concerns with open honesty. He's been transparent and I think that goes a long way with a lot of the guys."
Nixon said Dorrell has stressed that once fall camp begins, competition will decide playing time. That, the CU senior said, is a welcome approach, especially for newcomers.
"Going into fall, let's see what we've got," Nixon said. "Nobody's got a starting spot. Let's battle. That's something you want to hear. You have the opportunity to play. I wish we had that opportunity my freshman year. It would have been a whole different story. Just by hearing Coach Dorrell say that nobody has a starting spot, you know he's serious. It's like the NFL. You're either going to play or you're not. It's a good thing for freshmen, for sure."
STAYING SAFE: One of the keys for the Buffs this summer — and every other college program in the nation — has been taking every possible measure to avoid exposure to Covid-19 whenever possible.
CU players, Nixon and Landman said, have been doing a good job in that regard.
"Coach Dorrell always says the safest place in Boulder is our facility because of how clean they keep it and they monitor everybody in and out of that building," Landman said. "Players are buying into what Coach Dorrell is preaching about having a winning season. Knowing we're going to have a season, players know that we've worked too hard. We have a goal of wanting to play this season and they don't want to put that in jeopardy by going out and doing unnecessary things."
YOUNG GUNS TO WATCH: Among the incoming freshmen who have turned heads are quarterback Brendon Lewis and linebacker Alvin Williams. Both enrolled in the spring.
Landman said Williams, a 6-foot-3, 230-pounder from Ellenwood, Ga., is "a completely different player than he was six months ago."Â Lewis, meanwhile, continues to impress with his physical tools and quick grasp of the game.Â
Both could vie for significant playing time right away.
DC CONTINUITY: While there was a change in the head coach's office, the Buffs defense will be under the direction of the same man who was calling the shots last season, coordinator Tyson Summers.
This year, though, Summers will coach inside linebackers, meaning he will work even more closely with Landman, who called the plays in the defensive huddle last year.
Landman said Summers' return is a key element for a defense that improved dramatically down the stretch last season.
"It's very important," Landman said. "Losing a head coach, you kind of lose that stability, that rock that's kind of holding the team together. But having the DC stay on and be able to lead this defense is huge, especially for some of the young guys that were recruited by Coach Summers. I think a lot of those young guys will be able to help us early. Having Coach Summers on and not having to put those young guys through a new defense will be one of the biggest things to help us this year."
ALUMNI NEWS: Former Buffs standout Tedric Thompson signed a one-year deal with the Kansas City Chiefs after spending his first three years in the league in Seattle. Thompson played in 29 games with the Seahawks and was a starter in his second year with Seattle but suffered a season-ending shoulder injury early last year. He finished with 80 tackles and three interceptions in his Seattle tenure.
Meanwhile, former Buffs star Nate Solder, now with the New York Giants, announced that he would not play this season out of safety concerns for him and his family. Solder, a cancer survivor, also has a young son who is battling cancer.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
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