Q&A: CU Independent talks about football season opener, offseason changes

UCLA football will travel to Colorado Saturday for both teams’ season opener. Daily Bruin Sports reached out to the CU Independent to get a look into the Buffaloes before the two teams go head-to-head. Sports editor Jack Perez spoke with Head Sports Editor Jack Carlough about Colorado’s offseason and what to expect from the game in Boulder.

Daily Bruin: How is new head coach Karl Dorrell looking?

Jack Carlough: I’m a pretty big fan of him so far. I mean, he wasn’t the sexiest hire when we got him in February. But last year, we had coach Tucker, and he obviously kind of walked out on us. I think Dorrell is more than just talk. Also, with going through the pandemic, he has a very calm demeanor and I think that will be really good for a season that should have a lot of chaos. I know he’s an offensive kind of guy. He’s been a wide receivers coach at CU and he was a quarterbacks coach for a year. He’s had a lot of NFL experience. So he’s definitely got the resume. (Tucker) was more of a defensive guy, and now we got an offensive-minded coach. So I think that will pay dividends with the inexperienced quarterback.

DB: Has he changed anything major with the system, either offensively or defensively?

JC: Nothing that I’ve heard. I think our defense is still doing a 3-4 base. But we had (quarterback) Steven Montez last year and now it’s (going to) be (senior quarterback) Sam Noyer. Just (Dorrell) kind of (changed) the offense to adapt better to Noyer. I bet we’ll be running the ball a lot more than they are. Our running back group is pretty talented. We also have a really talented wide receiver group, but you still need a good quarterback to make that worth anything.

DB: How did Noyer win the starting quarterback job?

JC: I think just being a team guy. (He) was a quarterback in 2017 and 2018, and then he got moved to safety last year, which was really strange. But I’ve heard that he has the better arm. Obviously, he didn’t play quarterback at all last year. But I think being a senior, that really helped him out. He’s seen the game on both sides of the ball. I talked about this with him the other day. Being a safety last year, I think it kind of oddly helped him in a way, and I think he just has the better arm than (junior quarterback) Tyler Lytle. That’s the main reason he won, but it was really neck and neck from what Dorrell was saying.

DB: Who are some of the other biggest guys besides Montez that the team has lost, and how do they plan to replace them?

JC: (Wide receiver) Laviska Shenault Jr., of course. Him and also Tony Brown, who was another senior wide receiver last year. Those are going to be huge losses obviously. But I think the wide receiver core is still (going to) be good. We have actually Laviska’s younger brother (redshirt freshman wide receiver) La’Vontae (Shenault). I don’t think he’s (going to) be a starter this year. But we still have (wide receiver) K.D. Nixon. He was trying for the draft last year but opted to come back to college. So he’s probably going to be our number one slot guy. And then (sophomore wide receiver) Dimitri Stanley, he didn’t have a lot of playing time last year, but I think he’s gonna be another pillar.

Defensively, (we lost linebacker) Davion Taylor. He’s was a star back last year. They’ve been talking about (junior safety) Chris Miller. He’s (going to) be probably the main replacement at that position. Defensively, we didn’t really lose a lot of guys. It’s really just Davion and cornerback Delrick Abrams Jr. I think (junior cornerback) Mekhi Blackmon is (going to) be big replacing Abrams. I’ve heard good things from him throughout camp.

DB: What are fans and analysts expecting from Colorado this year?

JC: It’s a rebuilding year still because we have been 5-7 the past three years. And we don’t think this is a Pac-12 contending team. But (there are) only six games this year, so if you get to like 4-2, you have a chance. (We) don’t have the most challenging schedule. We were supposed to play Oregon originally but not anymore. So I think with a fairly easier schedule, 3-3 is realistic. I have higher hopes for next year to be more competitive.

DB: What is your final score prediction for this Saturday’s game?

JC: I’m going to say 17-16 CU. Dorrell talked a lot about performing once you get into the red zone. The Buffaloes struggled with that a bit last year. I think on the defensive side, they’re gonna make a few key stops in the red zone and hopefully hold the Bruins to three points instead of seven.