Lamont Lester Jr. made an impactful and impressive introduction to Colorado football fans.
In some ways, Lester turned in the defensive equivalent of the four-touchdown day produced by Dylan Edwards at TCU in the 2023 season opener, the Buffaloes’ first game under head coach Deion Sanders.
Lester’s performance may not have garnered the same electric highlights but, like Edwards, it was every bit as clutch as it was unexpected.
Lester finished with three sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss overall. Lester recorded two of those sacks in the third quarter, and all three occurred on third down, forcing Georgia Tech punts.
Yet there was one significant difference between Edwards’ memorable debut and Lester’s first outing with the Buffs. Edwards was a true freshman playing his first collegiate game. Lester is a transfer from Monmouth trying to climb the college football ladder.
It was just the first game, but the early returns for the Buffs from similar players — decorated standouts from college football’s lower tiers attempting to prove themselves at the power conference level — were encouraging as CU begins to look ahead to the Sept. 12 home opener against Weber State (1:30 p.m., ESPN+).
“A lot of these guys were great players where they came from. Thatap why we got them,” Sanders said. “Just because a guy played at a school, you don’t give him that he deserves sometimes, a smaller school. But football is football to me. I don’t give a darn who’s on the other side. Football is football. You can look at the film and say, ‘That guy can play.’ I don’t care who he’s playing against. I don’t care if itap SEC, ACC or what-C. Those guys that we grab — all three linebackers did phenomenal as well. They stood the test.”
Lester’s effort during Thursday’s 14-13 victory at Georgia Tech might have been the most critical among CU’s lower-level newcomers, but he hardly was alone.
Running backs Damian Henderson II and JaQuail Smith followed new offensive coordinator Brennan Marion to CU from Sacramento State, which was an FCS program during their time there. (Sacramento State moved up to the Group of Five Mid-American Conference this year).
Both backs played big parts in CU amassing 183 rushing yards. That total marked the third-highest rushing total for CU in 38 games under Sanders, trailing only a 193-yard total the Buffs hit twice — first against USC in 2023 and again last year against Wyoming. Henderson led the Buffs with 65 yards on 12 carries, averaging 5.4 per attempt, while Smith averaged 4.2 yards (42 overall) on 10 carries. Tight end Charlie Williams, once a UNLV transfer, had never caught a pass in college before catching two at Georgia Tech, including the winning touchdown with 37 seconds remaining.
Linebacker Gideon Lampron, a transfer from Bowling Green, finished tied for second on the team with seven tackles. Defensive back Naeten Mitchell (six tackles) and linebacker Tyler Martinez (four tackles), both transfers from New Mexico State, enjoyed solid CU debuts. And defensive line transfers Toby Anene (North Dakota State), Dylan Manuel (Appalachian State) and Santana Hopper (Tulane) all were credited with tackles for loss.
“When our number’s called, itap kind of just like practice. We make the play. Thatap how it goes,” Williams said. “It was a special moment. Itap good to get that win against a tough team. Itap good to be able to beat a team like that, especially on the road.”
