BOULDER — In no particular order, Colorado strong safety Daniel Dykes rates Arizona State’s Brent Miller and the Oklahoma duo of Joe Jon Finley and Jermaine Gresham as the best tight ends he has faced.
That will change Saturday when Missouri’s Martin Rucker (6-feet-6 and 255 pounds) and Chase Coffman (6-6, 245) come calling, Dykes said.
Colorado (5-4, 3-2 Big 12) hosts the ninth-ranked Tigers (7-1, 3-1) in a 4:30 p.m. game at Folsom Field.
“The two Missouri guys will be the best we’ve seen,” Dykes said. “They both are good athletes with good hands. They’re big bodies who can get open.”
Fortunately for the Tigers, Rucker and Coffman eschewed family ties to other Big 12 schools and signed with Missouri. They have become favorite targets of quarterback Chase Daniel.
Rucker, a senior from St. Joseph, Mo., is the younger brother of former Nebraska defensive end Mike Rucker, now with the Carolina Panthers. He leads Missouri receivers with 54 receptions and is tied for the team lead in touchdown catches with four.
Coffman, a junior from Peculiar, Mo., has scored three touchdowns and is tied with wideout Jeremy Maclin for second on the team in receptions with 39. Coffman’s father, Paul, played tight end at Kansas State before an 11-year NFL career. Chase’s younger brother, Carson, is a backup quarterback at K-State as a redshirt freshman.
Rucker considered turning pro last winter following his junior season.
“My brother told me to not go out unless I’d be at least a second-rounder, and I was projected for something like the fifth round,” Rucker said in July during the Big 12 football media days. “I’m glad I stayed. We could have a great year.”
Rucker and Coffman sure look like future NFL players to anybody who has watched them make defensive backs look helpless. It’s not unusual to see them in the lineup together.
“With the spread offense, we can put them wherever we want,” Missouri coach Gary Pinkel said. “That makes us diverse.”
CU defensive coordinator Ron Collins said the Buffs must treat Rucker and Coffman like they are wide receivers. They often split out in the offensive formation.
“They put a lot of stress on a defense because they don’t play a traditional tight end position,” Collins said. “They play outside the core.”
Footnotes. CU coach Dan Hawkins stresses special teams play and laments the fact the 2007 Buffaloes have not blocked a punt or returned a kickoff or punt for a touchdown. “We’ve typically been a team that blocks four or five kicks a year,” Hawkins said, referring to his years at Boise State. “You’d like to think we could block one.” … Saturday’s game will pay tribute to the armed forces. Special events include a pregame flyover by Navy fighter jets. … Missouri is the third- least penalized team among major colleges (32.63 yards per game), bettered only by Navy (31.25) and Penn State (31.33). Colorado averages 50.78 yards per game in flags.
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
