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Buff Behrens gears for homecoming
The state of Nebraska has historically been a big producer of corn and fullbacks, so it was a little strange when the best fullback in the state decided to attend Colorado.
And Jake Behrens wasn't just the best fullback in Nebraska in 2004. He was the Gatorade Player of the Year in the state. The recent group of homegrown fullbacks to play at Nebraska includes Joel Mackovicka and Judd Davies. But instead of following in the footsteps of those childhood idols, Behrens went to Colorado, partially because the era of those powerful fullbacks had passed.
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"It was different because (Bill) Callahan brought in the new offense after my junior year," Behrens said. "And Colorado was one of the first teams that talked to me. I came to camp here the summer before my senior year and I committed."
Some folks in Nebraska don't take too kindly to one of their own going to the team that beat the Big Red 62-36 in 2001 and 28-13 in 2002. Behrens didn't always hear nice words when he was playing for Millard North High in Omaha.
"I got some trash talk from people sometimes," said Behrens, who went to the same high school as Heisman Trophy winner Eric Crouch. "But it was nice when we beat them when I was senior in high school. I could walk around a little easier."
The 5-11, 235-pound redshirt freshman hasn't played much this season but could get on the field at Memorial Stadium on Nov. 24. He has about 20 family members coming to watch, and a heavy dose of his former fellow Nebraskans.
"My family will all be there cheering for Colorado," he said. "Hopefully I can get on the field and it will be fun."
Four-star commit
Colorado received another four-star commitment this week, although the player said he may still change his mind.
Gardena Serra star (Calif.) linebacker Apaiata Tuihalamaka told BuffaloSportsNews.net that he gave a "soft" verbal commitment to CU. But the 6-2, 215-pound linebacker said he still is taking visits to Arizona and Oregon.
He is the third four-star player to commit to CU. The other two are Georgia defensive end Conrad Obi and California JUCO back Patrick Gates. Columbine High lineman Ryan Miller is the Buffs' only five-star commit.
CU also received a commitment from South Carolina defensive back Devonne Quattlebaum. He is rated a two-star player by both Scout.com and Rivals.com. He is the 23rd known commitment for CU.
The Buffs have received commitments from three-star linebacker Nathan Vaiomounga, Tuihalamaka and Quattlebaum this week.
Recruiting trail
Several coaches weren't at practice Thursday, including head coach Dan Hawkins. The coaches were taking advantage of the weekend off to recruit. Seven coaches were out, and the coaches who left were determined by which player or areas they were recruiting.
"It really matters where we're at with a certain guy and who we really need to get caught up with," assistant head coach Chris Strausser said. "We try to keep all three coordinators here so we can still run practice."
Posted by ATLBuff on November 17, 2006 at 6:37 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Weekend off? Recruiting is important, but Nebraska is next week. I assume they meant weekend off from play and that our players will still be practicing even if with a skeletal coaching staff. A number of the recruits we need are unfortunately visiting other programs this weekend. Simas will be at Arizona State and Mahina is at Oregon. It is unclear whether Tello is visiting Arizona State this weekend or whether he has firmed up his commitment. Hopefully they'll be mowing Boyles' mother's front lawn if that is what it takes. I wouldn't be surprised to hear our coaches are going after some recruit who hasn't been on our radar yet. I suspect we'll be better next year no matter what, but we're still missing some important pieces. Go Buffs!
Posted by ATLBuff on November 17, 2006 at 8:20 a.m. (Suggest removal)
OK, so we need receivers in this class and we currently have none. 4 star Simas makes sense for CU and we may have a real shot at him. He has visited CU, Oregon, and San Diego State. He has a low interest in Arizona State and Washington State as well. Apparently he had a good trip to Boulder a couple weeks ago. After his trip to Arizona State this weekend, assuming they don't blow his socks off, he will have visited four schools and may decide to forgo or speed up his final visit (currently set for 12/8). Simas has ties to the San Diego State team that can't be discounted, but that isn't as big a program or as strong a school as the other four. That may leave CU and Oregon competing for his services. Oregon is currently shopping for big play WRs and they're courting Simas, Davis, and Boyles. We're already out of the hunt for Davis, who visits Oregon this weekend with 4 star TE Mahina. If Davis commits to Oregon, it might help us slightly with Boyles and Simas. Mahina enjoyed his trip to Boulder. He visits Oregon this weekend and will visit UCLA and BYU. Mahina has already visited UCLA and BYU in the past, so he could decide before visiting those schools though he says he'll wait to take an official to both. Mahina wants to go on Mormon mission so even if we land him, he may not be on campus for a year or two anyway. The upside of that is that we might avoid counting him towards our current class cap.
4 star WR Boyles had a great time in Boulder last weekend. He'll take a visit to Nebraska for the CU game. As of now, he has said you can put CU high on his list up there with Washington and Oregon. Hopefully, the fact that Washington already has two WR commits will be a factor against UW in Boyles' decision.
4 star JC WR Richmond will visit Ole Miss soon. He has four offers, but may be more interested in Ole Miss and CU, neither of which have made offers yet. Richmond was scheduled to visit CU this weekend, but unfortunately he has been rescheduled to come on 12/8 with 3 star RB Griffin. If he doesn't jump the gun and commit to Ole Miss on his visit to Oxford, we should have a solid shot at landing his services.
Go Buffs! Beat Nebraska! Recruit! Recruit! Recruit!
Posted by bcs3 on November 17, 2006 at 9:26 a.m. (Suggest removal)
All I can say is it's nice to even talk about 3, 4, and 5 star recruits. Over the past couple of year's I'd read the incoming class after national letter of intent day and see zero 3/4/5 star players coming to CU. Over the past few years all the talk has been about scandals and who will leave the team - not about the great players excited to come. So, no matter what we really end up with - it’s great to even have the talk be about such great potential. I hope a great majority of those interested in CU actually come. The team will vastly improve - and I think it will be a rapid assent. And don't forget - CU is a great academic place too with Nobel Prize winners on staff and great schools and one of the best campuses in the country. GO CU.
Posted by ATLBuff on November 17, 2006 at 9:51 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Well said. That is what separates CU from most of the other schools we compete against, namely the strength of our university, the wonderful town of Boulder, great students and faculty, and an idilic setting at the foot of the Rockies. Go Buffs! More importantly, go CU!
Posted by bcs3 on November 17, 2006 at 10:10 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I was once a walk-on. Was never a big star or anything - but it didn't matter. I loved the team and was part of something special. I had a chance to go elsewhere on scholarship - but it was CU's academics that kept me. Long after football - it’s the education and the total college experience that pays off in life. So, for young recruits who might be undecided - take it from me. I have no regrets about coming to CU. Come to CU and hitch your wagon to a program on the rise. Come to CU for the education and credentials that will always look good on your resume.
Posted by weis9660 on November 17, 2006 at 11:47 a.m. (Suggest removal)
ATL thanks for the info on incoming recruits, you are probably the best on the site for giving useful information on recruits. Hawkins has done a wonderful job recruiting given that our record is 2-9 and nationally CU has a terrible reputation. I believe that Simas and Richmond will commit, thus will round our class to the top 3 in the Big 12. One name that no one is mentioning is Willie Griffen(3 stars) a RB from Cali, who is being recruited by some impressive schools. CU has realistic shot at signing two top flight RB's to put into our offense in the coming years. I truly believe that this is just a bump in the road for the buffaloes this year and that next will be a totally different story. GO Hawk!!
Posted by weis9660 on November 17, 2006 at 11:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
One more thing; Running the football will always win games and is more of a constant that throwing. I would like to see CU to continue to recruit OL and great RB's. In 2001, CU won the Big 12 because of the running game.
Posted by ATLBuff on November 17, 2006 at 3:51 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The running game is important, especially given its usefulness in controlling the clock and considering the new NCAA rules that actually shorten the length of games. I hope, after this season, the NCAA reconsiders its latest clock rules and returns to the old rules. Since it is all about tv, I doubt that will happen. Yeah I've heard of Griffin. He would probably be a great addition and he has been high on the Buffs for some time. I haven't talked about him much because he won't visit until 12/8, I think our class may be close to full at that point, and because we've already got two RB commits in this class (Gates and Brian Lockridge). I'm interested in seeing what Lockridge can do given his size and speed ((5-7.5/175/4.43). You gotta think that with his weight on his frame he must have some power and 4.43 is pretty good speed for a RB. Also given his short height, I bet he might be harder to tackle.
Two other RBs we've offered are 4 star Messam and 4 star Davis. Not much info on them as of late, but Davis was interested in CU earlier in the cycle. Messam got dismissed from his JC for violating team rules, so I doubt we'd still take him.
Posted by dyemeduke on November 18, 2006 at 10:01 p.m. (Suggest removal)
bcs3 - I completely agree with the latter part of your post, but that initial comment seems misinformed. People are under this thinking that GB didn't recruit anyone, didn't try, and he recruited two star athletes. GB went after some top talent (not a ton, but SOME); he just didn't land a whole lot. Also, even though his recruiting was tailing off (in terms of ranking and stars) in the last couple of his classes, he still had a higher star average than Hawk does right now (according to which service you look at). I do think Hawk's class is better, but you saw zero 3/4/5 stars at CU?? Where the hell were you looking?...zero 5 stars sure, but 3/4/AND 5?? I honestly don't even think you were following the recruiting closesly, otherwise this statement would never have been made. Sure, CU fans - criticize GB's recruiting toward the end of his tenure, BUT do not go overboard with it by creating fanciful lies.
Griffin was once rated higher than James Davis, but that has switched around. Griffin is strongly interested, not used to be (by this I mean the start of the season), in CU. He was real high on The U, until Miami didn't offer him. The consensus seems to be that Davis is better right now though. And if Hawk wants 31 scholarships, don't worry about having a full class by 12/8. I would be surprised if Apaiata, Simas, Mahina, Fili, etc announced before then, and it doesn't seem likely that every spot gets filled pushing those guys out. I think Hawk and every college staff has a good feel for who they really want to target with whatever spots they have left.
Posted by ATLBuff on November 20, 2006 at 7:21 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The last few classes have been weak in terms of national ratings. Last year was a transitional year and the two years prior we were under the cloud of scandal. GB's last solid classes were in 2002 and 2003. If you look at the highest rated players those years, several failed to qualify. Things were made worse by attrition as players transfered to other programs. It wasn't a good situation.
This class is shaping up to be the best we've had in years. There are better classes in the country and we're in fierce competition for talent, but overall we seem to be satisfying our needs. I suspect we'll be top 10, maybe top 5 in terms of OL. We've needed to improve our OL, especially given the loss of a few seniors after this season. This class takes a step in the right direction. At QB, Jackson has really been our only option. Next season we'll have Jackson, Cody Hawkins, Ballenger (who'll probably be red shirted) and JC transfer Nick Nelson. Our secondary will get a boost too with 5 recruits playing either S or CB, all but one of whom should be 6 feet tall or taller, with reasonable speed. We've added a couple of linebackers, and if Apaiata firms up, he'll eventually be a star at that position. At DE we need to fill Wright's shoes, which no one can really do. We did sign a promising player in 4 star DE Conrad Obi though. We signed another DE in Lagrone Shields and before December 20th, with luck, we'll have a commit from 4 star JC DE Hudgins. Once our class of OL has a chance to get comfortable at this level, we should see some monster production out of our RBs. We lose Holiday, but most of our other guys, including Charles, return. We'll see more carries from some of our younger backs and this 4 star JC transfer P.T. Gates is the real deal. Also, it'll be interesting to see what 2 star RB Brian Lockridge (5-7.5/175/4.43) can do to opponents. He has speed that can hurt other teams and a small, powerful frame that should make him tough to tackle. We also have one of the best FBs in the country coming in, in the form of Devan Johnson. Right now what we're missing are TEs and WRs.
Posted by ATLBuff on November 20, 2006 at 7:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I don't think we'll sign a TE this cycle. 4 star Mahina was the only outstanding offer I'm aware of and he, apparently, prefers Oregon to CU after his latest visit. He has a cousin in our recruiting class and one that plays for Oregon. Even if that changes, Mahina still has visits to BYU and UCLA scheduled and he has ties to both schools. If, by some chance, we did sign Mahina, he'd still be unavailable to us for a couple of years while he goes on Mormon mission.
Posted by ATLBuff on November 20, 2006 at 7:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I'd be very surprised if we failed to land WRs in this class. The question is really who they'll be when it is all over. (1) 4 star WR Anthony Boyles is a possibility. He likes CU, Boulder and the prospect of early playing time. A small additional factor might be if we signed Apaiata since the two are hs teammates. He still has Oregon and Washington high on his list so we'd have to beat them out for his services. (2) 4 star WR Simas remains the man. Simas has gone on four visits and currently has us tied with hometown San Diego state atop his preferences. His final visit in mid-December will be to low interest Washington State, after which he'll make his decision. I think we've got a solid shot at him playing early for CU next season. (3) 4 star JC WR Richmond may play for CU, but I have no idea how likely that prospect will be. The signing date for JC players is 12/20, so we'll know sooner rather than later. He has a few offers, though his visits will concentrate more on schools that haven't offered yet. He'll visit Ole Miss (no offer), then San Jose State (offer) and the CU (12/8; no offer). I think it'll come down to us versus Ole Miss. As long as he doesn't commit before his 12/8 visit, we should have a shot. We need WRs and we've got slots for JC players who can enroll in the Spring. Seems like a good match. (4) A. J. Guyton seems unlikely to me. (5) 3 star WR Kendrick Celestin seems like the most likely future Buff in the lot. He has Auburn and CU listed as his high interest schools, but he doesn't know much about Auburn. If he visits the two, we should have a solid shot. Auburn, AL is a miserable little place. Celestine is scheduled to visit Boulder on 11/26. He might commit shortly thereafter. (6) Josh Smith (6-2/175/4.5) visited Boulder on 11/4 and ours seems to be his only offer. He isn't highly rated, but he's been mentioned as a sleeper athlete not on too many radars because he transfered high schools. He could easily pick CU any day, and he may become a go to guy in college. (7) 2 star CB Chaz Cervino (5-10/180)will visit CU again on 12/8. He currently doesn't have a scholarship offer from CU. Our coaches like him as a WR in college. If we don't have any WRs at this point, I suspect we'll offer him and he'll accept. (8) I think we've got a strong chance at landing duel threat 2 star QB Ike Iloegbu (6-1/185/4.42). Our coaches may use him more as WR given his size and speed, and the fact that we'll have four QBs on campus next season. (9) There are other lesser known, low rated WRs without offers who might get offered if none of these others come through.
Posted by weis9660 on November 20, 2006 at 10:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I like the fact that we have recruited players from all around the country. Hawk has done an excellent job in putting his best foot forward and convincing recruits that he is a great coach with a vision for success. Hawk is dealing with GB's players who are accustomed to giving up and not believing in themselves. Hawk will never give up and I believe that recruits see that in him. He is the man for the job. GO Hawk and Go Buffs. Shock the world on Friday.
Posted by ATLBuff on November 20, 2006 at 12:07 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Scout.com has a new story about CU offering a 2 star CB. Landing him will be tough, since he has offers from Louisville and Arkansas, but he has some serious potential at 5-10, running the 40 in 4.38. That is fast fellas. Hopefully he'll visit campus in the next week or two since his team got knocked out of the playoffs. Since our coaches hit the road this past weekend, expect stories to trickle out this week. Go Buffs! Beat Nebraska! Looks like none of the guys we're recruiting will visit Lincoln this week after all. Unfortunately, Apaiata visits Lincoln the week after by himself, giving Nebraska time to devote their attention solely to him. Looks like Boyles may forgo wasting his time with a trip to Nebraska. It may come down to CU, Oregon and Washington for Boyles. Nick Wood, a great 3 star DT, hasn't eliminated us from the running, but things seem too up in the air to tell. He has narrowed his choices, from 21 offers, to Arizona State, Boston College, Washington and CU. I suspect he'll pick Washington or CU.
Posted by ATLBuff on November 20, 2006 at 4:35 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Some good news, though we shouldn't celebrate just yet...4 star WR Simas got back from his fourth official visit (he had an unofficial to Michigan too) and he has CU atop his list. His final official will be to Washington State in mid-December and he's said he'll commit a week or two after that in late December. If we can hold on to this guy, he may end up being one of the playmakers we need at WR. If we can land Simas and Celestine, I'll be thrilled. Add to that Boyles and Richmond and I'd be thrilled. Boyles has decided not to visit Nebraska. He visits Arizona this weekend and he's considering visits to Washington, Oregon San Diego State, and Oregon State. Getting Boyles to attend CU may be complicated if he has a stellar performance in the all-American Bowl. CU is a great fit for this young man and is better than his other choices. Add to that that he'd have a chance to play early and the match seems right. Still too early to celebrate, but things are looking up. Lets hold open a few slots in our class until late December to see how things develop. Go Buffs! Beat Nebraska! Recruit! Recruit! Recruit!
Posted by jamespnolan on November 20, 2006 at 5:05 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Obi is not a four star player - he has been downgraded to three stars. Am I missing something - other than getting a few decent recruits on the sideline for games this season, what has Hawk done to illustrate that he can coach?
Posted by dyemeduke on November 20, 2006 at 7:24 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Watch the Georgia game again. Other than that, with a limited offense, we've done horrible. You can't make a judgement when viewing half of what we're capable of.
Our recruiting is better than it has been. Obi is still ranked high on espn.com, and the reason that rivals decided to demote him is that they changed his position. The reasons for this change are odd and unknown to me, but Obi is still a highly regarded recruit. Rivals, before changing his position, decided that he was still ranked higher than a four star DE, but demoted him to three. Rivals has some wierd thinking.
Posted by ATLBuff on November 21, 2006 at 6:39 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Time will tell whether Hawkins is the right coach for the job. Yes, we should have won more games, but the expectations were unrealistic. I'm not sure how much better others would have done given the personnel issues we faced this season. Next season should be better. I expect us to win at least 6 games and go to a crummy bowl game. The year after that, no excuses, we should be solid because the new coaching staff will have had an opportunity to meet our personnel needs.
I suspect the reason for Obi's downgrading is that he hasn't put up big numbers his senior season. Of course he's missed most of the season with a broken finger. Stars don't mean that much, but if we're gonna focus on them, then this kid deserves to be rated highly. Breaking a finger and missing much of your senior season doesn't make you less of a player. I'm still counting Obi as a 4 star, to hell with scout and rivals. Go Buffs!
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