BOULDER — What will the Colorado Buffaloes’ offense look like in 2020? Your guess is about as good as anybody else’s.
Maybe head coach Karl Dorrell and offensive coordinator Darrin Chiaverini have more of a sense for what they’re going to do than they’ve let on, but until they get on the field and see who gives them the best chance of putting up points, nothing is set in stone.
One sticking point could be the use of their tight ends. Dorrell often used multiple tight end sets when he held the reigns of offenses in the past. Chiaverini rarely used more than one tight end in his first stint as the Buffs’ play-caller in 2018.
But the Buffs’ usage of the tight end position may not depend upon what the coaches want to do as much as what they’re capable of doing.
“We’ll talk about 11 and 12 (personnel) but you also have the personnel to run 12-personnel,” Chiaverini told reporters in June. “You have to have the personnel to run 22 personnel and we’re still recruiting the tight end position.”
Simply put, the Buffs aren’t going to put two tight ends on the field unless they have two tight ends capable of fulfilling their responsibilities.
Brady Russell is the undisputed leader among CU’s tight ends and he could be poised for a breakout season in the new offensive system. The rest of the depth chart is full of question marks.
Russell provided some clarity as to what to expect from the rest of his position group on Wednesday.
“Matt Lynch (a transfer) from UCLA, he’s faster and he might be able to do some cool things while Nick Fisher, he’s a new big guy from the Division II level, but he might be able to do some good things in the run game (as a blocker),” Russell said. “It’s cool seeing all the different roles we can play this year.”
That may not sound like much to go off of, but it’s more of a scouting report than we had a few days ago.
It’s also a sign that the Buffs could have enough options to justify taking a receiver off the field to use two-tight-end sets. Russell will be the mainstay on the field, but having an extra option as a receiver, as well as a strong blocker gives the Buffs some options.
Don’t forget that the depth chart released last month featured Luke Stillwell as the No. 2, placing him behind Russell and ahead of Lynch. Fisher’s name wasn’t listed.
There will be a competition for reps at tight end, but the level of play could be higher than expected.
