It may not have been the NFL, or Division I football, but Josh Niblett was living the sort of life any aspiring coach would take in a heartbeat.
A former quarterback at Alabama, Niblett became one of the most decorated high school head coaches in Alabama history, becoming the first coach to win seven state titles. Niblett won six of those at Hoover High School before crossing state lines to spend the past four seasons at Gainesville (Ga.) High School, where his teams made two more state title game appearances.
Overall, Niblett compiled a 281-67 record at the prep level. He probably could have kept posting double-digit win totals while collecting state titles until retirement. So why, oh why, would Niblett travel so far from home for work arguably outside his wheelhouse?
It was to embrace a new challenge, and . It certainly wasn’t because of Niblettap affinity for dry air.
“I love humidity, because I love to sweat,” said Niblett, hired in January as CU’s tight ends coach. “Thatap probably the biggest difference for me. People here are awesome. I work for an unbelievable man who’s an unbelievable coach and mentor and leader thatap given me this opportunity. Our staff is unbelievable. Our players want to be coached. When you’re in that kind of environment, and you’re around people who love to win and love each other, you come to work every day and this is a ‘get to’ moment and not a ‘have to’ moment. And I’ve enjoyed that.
“I miss my family, no doubt. My wife and kids are still back in Georgia. Thatap probably the hardest part. But I’m surrounded by some really good people.”
The tight end spot has been an afterthought in the Buffs’ attack under Sanders, but thatap expected to change with new offensive coordinator Brennan Marion. If that happens, veteran Zach Atkins could play a leading role. Now in his second season at CU after transferring from Northwest Missouri State, Atkins recorded 20 receptions for 149 yards last season.
“I’m excited about (Atkins). He probably had his best practice (Tuesday),” Niblett said. “He had some touchdown catches, but he also did the dirty work he needed to do in the core, and make sure he’s doing a really good job of being a dominant blocker on the perimeter. I’m proud of his progress, as well as some other guys in our room.”
Proud tradition
Andre Gurode played for CU during an era when the Buffs routinely churned out NFL-caliber offensive lineman. The offseason transfer of Jordan Seaton, likely a future NFL draft pick, notwithstanding, itap been a while since the Buffs were well-represented in NFL trenches. Gurode wants to change that.
Gurode was a second-round pick in 2002, the same draft in which linemate Victor Rogers was selected in the seventh round. CU has had just two offensive linemen selected over the past 13 NFL drafts, and both were late-round selections — Arlington Hambright (seventh round in 2020) and Will Sherman (sixth round in 2021).
Gurode, in his second year as one of CU’s offensive line coaches, said he’s trying to instill the same fight in the latest generation of Buffs.
“Rule No. 1 when I got here was if you don’t fight, you can’t play,” Gurode said. “You got to find someone to fight first in practice. We instilled that in our guys to work hard, to be dependable, to ask for the pressure and not complain. We don’t need complaining. We need execution, and thatap what we’re trying to focus on.”
Hey, mate
There aren’t many Australian athletes on campus. So when CU punter Damon Greaves was “yapping away,” as he described it, on an elevator ride that included an inordinately tall freshman, his accent was impossible to miss.
As it turned out, Greaves was sharing the lift with Goc Malual who, along with Alex Dickeson, joined the CU men’s basketball team this summer from Down Under.
“I knew we had two Aussies. I didn’t know what they looked like,” Greaves said. “He was like, ‘You an Aussie?’ We got to know each other through that. I’ll try to meet the other Aussie there as well. There’s certainly a few more Aussies around here than there were at (Kansas).”
CU has two other Australian athletes in women’s basketball center Jade Crook and skier Hugo Hinckfuss.
