Christian Powell

Wyoming

Sep 20 (Sat)

TBA

Position:
Tailback
Height:
6-0
Weight:
235
Class:
Senior
Hometown:
Upland, Calif.
High School:
Upland

AT COLORADO: Career Notes—He finished his CU career ranked 17th all-time at the school in rushing yards with 2,040 (one of 18 to reach the 2,000-yard plateau). He scored 18 rushing touchdowns (tied for 20th), with his 108 points scored tied for 41st. He caught 33 passes, which tied him for 83rd in all-time receptions. He led the team in rushing his freshman through junior seasons (he was bidding to join Rodney Stewart (2008-11) as the only players at CU to lead the team four times) but was still just the 10th to lead the team three seasons. For his career, he had just five fumbles in 496 career touches (461 rushes).

2015 (Sr.)—He played in all 13 games, including three starts, in finishing second on the team in rushing with 339 yards; he averaged 4.8 yards per carry and scored four touchdowns. He also caught six passes for 64 yards, 10.7 per, with his career-long grab of 37 yards (on a pass he caught from Sefo Liufau versus Nicholls State). His top game of the year came against Massachusetts, when he had 105 yards on just eight carries, scoring two touchdowns; that was the fifth 100-yard game of his career. He was used more as a blocker the second half of the season (he had just 20 of his 71 carries over the last eight games of the year), out of both the tailback and fullback positions. His other touchdowns came against Nicholls State and Oregon In fact, he often played his best against the Ducks, with 55 carries for 280 yards and three touchdowns in four games). He also had a kickoff return for 15 yards and five knockdown blocks on the kickoff return unit. He was once again CU’s nomination for the Doak Walker Award which is presented to the nation’s top running back, and was one of two recipients of the Sal Aunese Award (for the most uncommon player), selected by the coaches for his effort during spring practices.

2014 (Jr.)—He played in 10 games, including three starts (he missed the Oregon State and UCLA games due to a concussion). In leading the team in rushing, he became the ninth player in school history to lead Colorado for three straight seasons (and the 10th to do it three times). He gained 448 yards on 85 attempts, his 5.27 per rush a team best as well, along with scoring four touchdowns. He had 10 carries of 10 yards or more, with 24 going for five-plus, while earning 20 first downs (19 rushing, one receiving). He also caught 12 passes for 64 yards. He was 5-of-5 converting third- or fourth-and-1s into first downs (8-of-12 overall; he gained 120 yards on third- and fourth down carries for a 10.0 average with one touchdown). His top games as a junior came against Arizona State (11 carries, 118 yards), Utah (10-75, three touchdowns) and at Massachusetts (19-80, one score). On special teams (kickoff coverage), he had two tackles, one inside-the-20, with a first downfield credit that altered a return. He was one of 53 players on the initial watch list for the Doak Walker Award. Lined up at fullback on several occasions as well over the course of the season.

2013 (Soph.)—Colorado’s leading rusher, with 562 net yards on 147 attempts, or 3.8 per carry; he scored three touchdowns; 47 of his tries gained five or more yards with 14 gaining 10-plus. He also caught eight passes for 71 yards (8.9 per). The coaches selected him as the John Mack Award winner, presented to the team’s outstanding offensive player. His top came at UCLA playing before family and friends, gaining 97 yards on 22 rushes. He also had 78 yards (20 carries) against Oregon, giving him 199 against the Ducks in the first two games of his career. He earned 37 first downs (33 rushing, four receiving), and converted 4-of-6 times with 1-yard to go on third and/or fourth down. He also saw special teams duty, and recorded seven knockdown blocks on the kickoff return unit to help clear the way for additional yardage. Lindy’s Football made him a preseason third-team All-Pac 12 team member, and he was one of 63 players nationwide on the official watch list for the Doak Walker Award, which is presented to the nation’s top running back. He worked hard in conditioning and lost 10 pounds from his frame from his freshman playing weight (240).

2012 (Fr.)—He earned honorable mention Freshman All-America honors (collegefootballnews.com) and honorable mention All-Pac 12 Conference honors (league coaches) in becoming just the fifth freshman to ever lead Colorado in rushing. He saw action in 10 games, including nine starts, missing two games to injury (Arizona State, Utah); he played fullback in the season opener but moved to tailback for the second game and remained there the remainder of the season. He had 158 attempts for 691 yards and seven touchdowns, numbers that were all the second-most by a CU freshman. He had three 100-yard games, tying the most ever by a CU frosh (joining Lamont Warren in 1991 and Rodney Stewart in 2008), with his 64-yard run for a touchdown against Sacramento State the fourth longest rush by a true Buff freshman. In the latter, he made his starting debut at tailback and had 28 carries for 147 yards and three scores, with the yards the eighth most by any CU player in a first career start and the three touchdowns tying the CU frosh mark. His other 100-yard games came on the road, at Arizona (32-137, 2 TD) and at Oregon (20-121, 2 TD); the 32 carries against Arizona also were the most by a CU freshman. He gained the bulk of his yards on first down plays (88 for 437, a 5.0 average), and converted 8-of-11 third/fourth-and-1 rushing tries for first downs. He also caught seven passes for 30 yards, had a kickoff return (13 yards), led the team in all-purpose yards (734) and was second in scoring (42 points). He earned 31 first downs (30 rushing) and 10 special team points on the strength of six knockdown blocks, two tackles (one solo), a forced fumble and a downed punt. He earned the team’s Lee Willard Award, an honor bestowed the most outstanding freshman.

HIGH SCHOOL—As a senior, he was one of the top-ranked fullbacks in the country, he was listed as the No. 3 prospect at the position by ESPN.com and No. 4 by Scout.com. SuperPrep slotted him as the No. 97 overall player in the Far West region and the No. 2 fullback out of the state of California; Rivals.com ranked him as the No. 55 athlete in the nation. He earned first-team All-CIF Southern Section Inland Division and All-Baseline League honors on the defensive line as both a junior and a senior. He also was named first-team All-Baseline as a fullback for his senior season, and as sophomore at Alta Loma High School, he garnered honorable mention All-Baseline League honor as a defensive lineman. In his senior season, he rushed 40 times for exactly 400 yards and seven touchdowns and had seven receptions for 116 yards, all while clearing the way for fellow CU signee Donta Abron to rush for 1,754 yards and 33 touchdowns. On defense, he recorded 90 tackles (50 solo), including 15 quarterback sacks, three safeties and two passes broken up. Top games as a senior included a game against Murrieta Valley in the first round of the playoffs, when he rushed three times for 83 yards and two touchdowns, breaking one for a career-long 53 yards. He also had six tackles in the 59-21 victory for the Highlanders. Another top game from his senior season was a 54-27 win versus Norco when he had a career-high 17 tackles. As a junior, he had 63 tackles (36 solo), eight sacks, five forced fumbles, and an interception on defense, while toting the ball four times for 45 yards and catching two passes for 17 yards and a touchdown on offense. His best performance as a junior came in a 41-14 win against Glendora, when he sacked the quarterback four times and recorded six total tackles. In his sophomore season with Alta Loma, he had 104 tackles (51 solo), three sacks, two fumbles caused, and two recovered fumbles. On the other side of the ball, he rushed 27 times for 150 yards and four scores, while catching seven passes for 42 yards. . Upland was 12-1 (Baseline League champions) as a senior and 8-4 as a junior under coach Tim Salter. He also lettered in track (shot put), and was the Baseline League champion as a junior.

ACADEMICS—He is majoring in Communication, with a minor in Education at Colorado (and was on schedule to graduate in May 2016). He earned honorable mention Pac-12 All-Academic Team honors as a sophomore with a 3.00 grade point average. He was a member of the Honor Roll in high school.

PERSONAL—He was born March 3, 1994, in Loma Linda, Calif. His hobbies include working out and relaxing. He was high school teammates with fellow CU 2012 signees Donta Abron and Marques Mosley.

RUSHING							High Games
Season	G	Att	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	Att	Yds
2012	10	158	691	4.4	7	64t	32	147
2013	12	147	562	3.8	3	21	22	97
2014	10	85	448	5.3	4	55	19	118
2015	13	71	339	4.8	4	35t	15	105
Totals	45	461	2040	4.4	18	64t	32	147

RECEIVING							High Games
Season	G	No.	Yds	Avg.	TD	Long	Rec	Yds
2012	10	7	30	4.3	0	13	1	13
2013	12	8	71	8.9	0	22	4	33
2014	10	12	64	5.3	0	11	4	26
2015	13	6	64	10.7	0	37	3	50
Totals	45	33	229	6.9	0	37	4	50