BOULDER — Freshmen don’t have to play at Colorado anymore.
Third-year Buffaloes head coach Mike MacIntyre has controlled the attrition that seemed to be robbing the program of nearly half of every recruiting class before he arrived. There is plenty of depth and talent in place these days, allowing MacIntyre and his staff to redshirt most of each recruiting class.
But that doesn’t mean you won’t see freshmen on the field this season. There are several who have been impressive so far in preseason camp, and it’s going to be difficult to keep them off the field.
One of the most impressive members of CU’s 2015 recruiting class happens to play quarterback, a position the coaches feel good about with starter Sefo Liufau back for his third season. But they can see the future in freshman Steven Montez, a product of El Paso.
CU fans will get at least a brief look at Montez on Saturday during the first and only major scrimmage of preseason camp that is open to the public. MacIntyre once again is refusing to comment on true freshmen until after the season opener, and freshmen are not allowed to speak to the media until after that game.
Offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Brian Lindgren said everything the staff believed it had in Montez when he was still in high school has shown up on the field in his first college training camp. He is smart, has a gun for an arm and probably is the most athletic quarterback CU has had on its roster since Bernard Jackson played the position in 2006.
“We’re really excited about his athleticism as well as his arm,” Lindgren said. “Right now he’s learning the system. He’s kind of where Cade (Apsay) was last year. We threw a lot at him and he’s digesting that stuff. But, man, there will be two or three throws or two or three plays on film every day and you’ll watch it and you go, ‘Wow, that was a really impressive play that is hard to teach someone to do.’ “
Montez has impressed his new teammates too.
Star wide receiver Nelson Spruce said Montez’s passes have a lot of zip on them. He said CU’s quarterbacks and wideouts got together during the summer and ran routes “versus air,” meaning there were no defensive players, and the wideouts who didn’t wear gloves had a hard time catching Montez’s passes.
“I think the thing with him is not using that strength all the time,” Spruce said. “It’s going to be knowing when to put some touch on it.”
Moving up the depth chart won’t be easy for Montez. Lindgren said he likes what he has seen from last season’s backup, Jordan Gehrke, outside of a rough start to preseason camp. He also believes Apsay has made the biggest improvement of any quarterback on the team in the past year.
Yet Montez appears to have physical gifts no one else on the team has in their arsenal and needs only to become comfortable mentally and begin playing with confidence in every situation.
“It’s hard when you come in as a freshman, especially as a quarterback, because there’s so much to pick up at this level,” Spruce said. “Physically, size, speed and I think he has the strongest arm I’ve ever seen. Huge upside, as long as he continues to progress mentally.
“I feel like he will because he loves the game, you can already tell from talking to him. I think he’ll pick that up and he’ll be a legitimate Pac-12 quarterback when his time comes.”
Kyle Ringo: ringok@dailycamera.com or @kyleringo
