Football blood flows throughout the family tree that includes Colorado senior defensive end David Goldberg. But there is one particular strain of genes that David seems to share with a famous uncle.
“Bill (Goldberg) is a wild man,” David’s father, Michael, said of the former world-champion pro wrestler known simply as “Goldberg” to fans of that sport.
“David has that same desire and drive. But he’s more of a controlled wild man.”
It’s that “motor” that caught the eye of a new Colorado coaching staff last spring. Uncle Bill, now pursuing a career in show biz, could relate to David having become something of an overnight success. After a redshirt year and then toiling mostly on special teams for three seasons, Goldberg, a former walk-on, finally became a starter midway through his final year.
That must make his father (who played at Minnesota) and uncles Bill (Georgia) and Steve (Minnesota) feel proud.
“They’ve always been supportive, even when I was going through some tough times, a lot of ups and downs,” David said.
Undersized for a major-college defensive lineman at 6-foot-1 and 245 pounds, Goldberg relies on quickness, tenacity and technique to get past blockers who might outweigh him by 60 pounds.
His ability to pressure the passer and also play the run could be instrumental today for visiting Colorado (2-9, 1-6 Pac-12) against UCLA (5-5, 4-3), beginning at 5:30 p.m. in the Rose Bowl.
UCLA’s offensive line includes one of Goldberg’s pals, senior center Kai Maiava, who played as a freshman at Colorado before transferring.
“It’s going to be good to go against Kai,” Goldberg said. “They’ve got a big offensive line (averaging 314 pounds per man), and they’re good. . . . They bring a powerful offense. If you’re not careful and implement your will on them, they’ll do it to you.”
Goldberg is scheduled to make his sixth consecutive start today — that compares with getting in for just 17 snaps on defense in 2009 and 2010 combined. His three quarterback pressures this season ties him for third- most on the team.
“David does a lot of things that don’t show up in the box score,” CU coach Jon Embree said. “I’m really happy for him. He has earned everything he’s gotten.”
Another reason to feel a sense of pride: David Goldberg and CU reserve offensive lineman David Clark are regarded as the only players from Aspen High School to play major-college football. David’s father and uncles played high school ball in Tulsa, Okla.
“It’s mostly hockey players that come out of Aspen,” said David, who also played that sport through high school.
Goldberg was buried well down the CU depth chart for three years until he caught the eye of defensive line coach Kanavis McGhee in the spring. At the urging of McGhee, Goldberg was placed on athletic scholarship.
“As a new staff, I told players in the spring that this was a fresh slate,” McGhee said. “David came in and worked his butt off. He impressed me and all the other coaches. He’s a pleasant surprise that we didn’t expect — until we saw that he’s a workhorse.”
That’s an understatement, said former CU and NFL linebacker Chad Brown, who works with Goldberg as a personal trainer and coach. “I’ve had to tell David to be careful to not do too much,” Brown said.
During the summer, Goldberg would often get with Brown at about noon after having already worked for two hours on conditioning at CU and then taking lessons in muay thai, a demanding martial-arts discipline that involves kickboxing and other moves.
“David has the work ethic to do whatever it takes,” Brown said. “That shows up on the football field. He goes all out on every play. Some people may be surprised by what he’s done this year. I’m not.”
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
