BOULDER — He already knew the numbers were bad, so watching the film was little more than a waste of time. New Colorado defensive coordinator Jim Leavitt decided to skip it. He would get to know his players with his own eyes.
“It’s a bad history. It’s been a bad history,” Leavitt said. “I didn’t want to watch it.”
The secondary arguably is the area he needed to get acquainted with the quickest. Leavitt oversees the entire defense, but the secondary required additional attention after ranking 114th in the country in pass defense efficiency a year ago. Improving that unit led to a multitude of moves, starting with the coaching staff.
Head coach Mike MacIntyre removed himself from the secondary duties he used to perform and hired former Central Michigan defensive coordinator Joe Tumpkin to work with the safeties. Charles Clark continues work with the cornerbacks while Leavitt oversees everyone.
The changes have led to a more personal touch with the players believing they’ve learned their positions in greater detail.
“We feel way more confident than last year,” junior cornerback Chidobe Awuzie said. “We’re really individualizing the work we’re getting, so I feel it’s really helping out. The corners have their own meeting rooms now. The safeties have their own meeting rooms now. We’re linked together sometimes. But when we really want to work on technique, I feel like it really helps, an individual coach helping you.”
The key remains working smoothly as a unit come game day.
Since joining the pass happy Pac-12, CU has struggled to slow teams down, specifically in the passing game.
Of the top 30 teams in passing efficiency a year ago, seven were from the Pac-12. Eight of the top 32 teams in passing yardage came from the Pac-12, a list that included CU. Six of the top 35 scoring offenses in the nation came from the Pac-12 — and it wasn’t because those offenses were running all the time.
And that’s not taking into account what should be an improved passing offense in Hawaii, CU’s season-opening opponent Thursday night. A couple of weeks after that, the Buffs face Colorado State, which returns the nation’s most productive wide receiver, junior Rashard Higgins.
Colorado’s secondary welcomes the exposure.
“It’s exciting,” Awuzie said. “We want to play passing offenses. That’s why most of us signed up to play in the Pac-12 and not in the south, the SEC, because the Pac-12 passes a lot. We have opportunities to make plays, and we’ve got to make those plays.”
And if those plays aren’t made? Forget about it.
“If you get a ball caught on one play, you live to play another down,” senior cornerback Ken Crawley said.
Part of CU’s problem defensively has been an inability to get takeaways. The Buffaloes intercepted just three passes last season. Leavitt has had his unit working on catching drills.
“We get on each other way more if we drop the ball,” Awuzie said. “The other day we had like seven picks. (Monday) we had like eight. So it’s really just practice makes permanent.”
Leavitt said the secondary is “doing some good things” in practice.
“We’re not perfect. We’ve got a ways to go, but some of the guys are doing good things,” he said. “Our (first-teamers) are pretty close to being ready.”
And they’re ready to prove they are not a weak link.
“We have a big chip, a big chip,” Awuzie said. “We know it’s time.”
Christopher Dempsey: cdempsey@denverpost.com or
Needing to step up
Colorado’s pass defense struggled last season in almost every category. The defensive backfield was torched throughout. A closer look:
| Category | Number | NCAA rank |
| Passing efficiency | 149.93 | 114th |
| Pass yards allowed | 256.2 | 100th |
| Interceptions | 3 | 121st |
| Source: CU |
