Throughout the offseason, the Colorado football staff put a lot of effort into upgrading the pass rush on defense.
CU brought in a pair of transfers from Pittsburgh in Dayon Hayes and Samuel Okunlola, who could be two of the best pass rushers on the team. BJ Green (Arizona State), Keaten Wade (Kentucky) and others can get to the quarterback, too.
One of the most significant upgrades on the edge, however, might be a player who isn’t new to the squad.
Redshirt freshman Taje McCoy has been praised frequently since last year and he had a stellar night on Friday when the Buffs held an open practice in Denver.
“Taje has something on his mind,” head coach Deion Sanders said Friday after McCoy registered several sacks. “He has several guys that he’s competing with to get on the field and get ample playing time. Taje, you’re talking about a freshman that played a little last year. This is really his freshman year, redshirt freshman. We’re expecting some wonderful things from him.”
The 6-foot-3, 230-pound McCoy had a monster senior season at Putnam City (Okla.) High School in 2022, racking up 106 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, 12 sacks and four fumble recoveries.
At CU last year, McCoy was behind veterans and got into four games – allowing him to maintain a redshirt – but played just 11 snaps on defense. Coaches in 2023 raved at McCoy’s future, though.
The future may be here for McCoy.
Earlier this month, outside linebackers coach Vincent Dancy said: “He’s still a young puppy right now. He’s a redshirt freshman but he’s playing on a whole other level. We just want him to continue to play at that level, continue to learn from these older guys that we have around him because he’s the future and I think he knows that. … He’s a great player.”
McCoy might still be learning from some veterans, but it might be difficult for the Buffs to keep him off the field this fall. And Sanders couldn’t have been more complimentary.
“His motor is unbelievable,” Sanders said. “Never gets in trouble. Great GPA, great kid. He’ll do what you ask him to do; ‘yes, sir, no, sir; yes ma’am, no ma’am’ type of young man, and I love him. I’m proud of him.”
Kicking competition
Last season, Sanders expressed frustration with CU’s inability to put kickoffs into the end zone for touchbacks, while the Buffs’ opponents did it routinely.
Only 25 of CU’s 56 kickoffs were touchbacks (44.6%), compared to 51 of 65 (78.4%) for the opponent. The Buffs also had four of their kickoffs roll out of bounds, which automatically places the ball at the 35-yard line. The opponents didn’t have any out of bounds.
Sanders said he’s pleased with the competition among kickers this offseason, but isn’t sure if the kickoff issue is fixed.
“You don’t know that until the game starts,” he said. “Everybody can kick the ball out of the end zone when there ain’t no pressure. So we got to see what happens. I like what I’m seeing. Jace (Feely) is doing a phenomenal job.”
Feely handled most of the kickoffs last year, while Cristiano Palazzo, who is also back, handled the rest. Alejandro Mata is projected to handle field goals and extra points again and had a good night on Friday, including hitting a 50-yard field goal.
“We got several guys fighting for that job (on kickoffs),” Sanders said. “We got some kickers with some powerful legs.”
Notable
Sanders said he’s “happy, elated” with the progress of the Hood brothers this month. Colton Hood, a transfer from Auburn, is fighting for a starting spot at cornerback, while Brandon Hood, a true freshman, made some noise at running back on Friday with some explosive runs. … Sanders said he expects both coordinators, Robert Livingston (defense) and Pat Shurmur (offense) to be on the sidelines on game days.
