BOULDER — The formula sounds forbidding: a thinned-out, youthful secondary squaring off against perhaps the most notorious pass-first program in the country.
Well aware of that challenge, Colorado is seeking a speedy recovery from one cornerback, hoping a one-game crash course against Baylor was enough to prepare another defensive back, and is prepared to lift the redshirt off a third.
Already without injured starting safety Anthony Perkins for the remainder of the season, the Buffaloes lost NFL prospect and Senior Bowl invitee Jimmy Smith to a concussion against Baylor. The cornerback, though, believes he’ll be ready for Saturday’s Big 12 matchup against Texas Tech (3-3, 1-3).
“More than likely I’ll go,” Smith said at midweek. “It’s just a regular concussion. I’ve had one before. Just time off and rest is going to heal it.”
Playing against Texas Tech essentially means using an additional defensive back anyway, as the nickel package generally becomes the base defense against the air-inclined Red Raiders. That means Jered Bell, who started for Perkins at strong safety against Baylor, will maintain that role, while fellow true freshman Terrel Smith also will be in the mix.
Terrel Smith, a free safety, hasn’t played this season. That means the Buffaloes (3-3, 0-2) will be discarding his redshirt if he makes his way onto the field. With free safety Travis Sandersfeld and cornerback Paul Vigo still shelved by injury, that possibility has transformed into a near-definite.
“He’ll play unless there’s some miracle with Travis or Paul, but he’ll play,” defensive backs coach Ashley Ambrose said.
Ambrose said Smith is a quick-to-the-ball player who “packs a punch,” and that the team gave him the option of whether to burn his redshirt. The choice was easy for Smith.
“There are pros and cons, but I’m looking at the better side,” Smith said. “I’m ready to play the Red Raiders and hit some people.”
Ambrose indicated that Smith figures to join the secondary as a regular member, because a one-game audition wouldn’t justify sacrificing his redshirt.
“If the kid plays, you have to find a role for him,” Ambrose said. “You can’t just play him one game and that’s it. We know there will be some way to get him on the field with different packages, special teams and things like that.”
The uncertainty in the secondary is a stark contrast to the start of the season, when the unit was considered the Buffs’ strength.
Cornerback Jalil Brown, one of the few healthy defensive backs, believes last week’s trial against Baylor will help. The Buffs struggled with Baylor dual threat Robert Griffin III but will be facing a more classic passing attack against Texas Tech quarterback Taylor Potts.
“When you get a quarterback who doesn’t have the ability to run as much, you can kind of focus on the pass and screens and things like that,” Brown said.
Granted, the Raiders are a bit more balanced under Tommy Tuberville than during the Mike Leach days, but the pass is still their bread and butter.
CU coach Dan Hawkins said he’s “fired up” to see how the new blood in the secondary reacts to the challenge.
Three questions for CU
1. Will Colorado’s defense perform better than it did last weekend against Baylor? CU’s “D” had, for the most part, played consistently and admirably this season until yielding 543 yards to Baylor. The Buffs were particularly hurt by the option reads of Bears quarterback Robert Griffin III. At least Texas Tech quarterback Taylor Potts is not considered much of a running threat.
2. Texas Tech averages 33.5 points per game, so if it’s a shootout, can CU keep up? Another touchdown and CU would have defeated Baylor. The Buffs must find a way to regularly score 30 points against the explosive teams of the Big 12. Since the beginning of the 2008 season, Colorado has reached 30 points in just three Big 12 games. Conference foes have accomplished it 11 times during that span.
3. Will the Buffs continue their recent success against Texas Tech? Dan Hawkins- coached teams stand 2-0 against the Red Raiders, and both wins were memorable: Hawkins’ first victory was a 30-6 surprise in Boulder in 2006, and the last CU victory outside the state was a 31-26 decision in 2007 at Lubbock. CU is 4-0 at Folsom vs. the Red Raiders, dating to 1981. Tom Kensler, The Denver Post
