BOULDER — Prayers may have been answered Thursday during Colorado’s first intrasquad scrimmage of August camp when the Buffaloes watched a new wide receiver stretch the defense and make some plays.
But who could have guessed it would be Will Jefferson?
A Californian who until last week thought he might have to play at a junior college, Jefferson worked with the No. 1 offense for much of the two-hour controlled scrimmage and looked poised, comfortable and quick. The 6-foot, 195-pound freshman caught two passes for 27 yards and looked like he belonged.
Jefferson has moved ahead of two other scholarship freshman wideouts, tall Texans Jarrod Darden (6-5) and Terdema Ussery (6-4), who spent the summer in Boulder to work 7-on-7 drills and get a head start. Another receiver recruit expected to make an immediate impact, junior college transfer Andre Simmons, has not been cleared academically.
“Will is a real natural ball catcher,” junior quarterback Cody Hawkins said. “We were real fortunate to get him. I mean, he’s been here, what, a week? He’s come a long way. And he’s only going to get better.”
Apparently passed over during winter recruiting because of confusion over his transcripts when he changed high schools, Jefferson signed a letter of intent with CU on Aug. 4, just two days before players reported for fall camp.
“He’s a very good learner,” said coach Dan Hawkins, who also is handling the wide receivers this season. “How he processes things . . . That has helped him a lot.”
“The guy is very intelligent,” added offensive coordinator Eric Kiesau. “He doesn’t go back and play Xbox all night. He takes the playbook and takes notes.”
Jefferson said he isn’t sure why he has moved ahead of Darden and Ussery. “I just know that I’m asking a lot of questions and having fun,” he said.
QB battle.
Kiesau said neither of the quarterback contenders, Hawkins and Tyler Hansen, did anything to gain separation from the other in the battle for the starting job. Hawkins completed 21-of-29 passes for 184 yards. Hansen went 10-for-15 for 137 yards and led all rushers with five scrambles for 58 yards.
Hansen’s ability to make things happen with his feet is an asset, Kiesau said, but sometimes coaches would rather the sophomore remain more patient in the pocket.
Footnotes.
Showing good hands, sophomore tailback Darrell Scott led receivers with six catches for 47 yards. He added 26 yards rushing on seven carries. . . . Because this was the only scrimmage with spectators, Cody Hawkins described the offense as “vanilla.” He estimated that only 5 percent of the offensive playbook was used. . . . Much of the controlled scrimmage was spent on third-down situations and only two touchdowns were scored.
Tom Kensler, The Denver Post
