Darrin Chiaverini is pleased with his receivers through five practices

BOULDER — Brenden Rice got off to a hot start at Colorado as a true freshman in 2020.

“Obviously with Brenden Rice you saw glimpses of really, really greatness,” Chiaverini said. “I think he’s going to be a guy that continues to improve.”

But Rice isn’t the only young receiver that Chiaverini is excited about.

“Chris Carpenter has dynamic speed and really good short area quickness,” Chiaverini said. “I think he’s really kind of taking the next step.”

Montana Lemonious-Craig is taking a step too, according to Chiaverini.

“His growth has been really, really good from year one to year two,” Chiaverini said. “And even Keith Miller, he’s a 6-4, 215-pound young man who has really gotten faster, he’s gotten stronger.”

Rice, Carpenter, Lemonious-Craig and Miller comprise Colorado’s 2020 class of receivers. Beyond the praise Chiaverini offered them individually, he also compared the class as a whole to one of the best wide receiver classes to roll through Boulder.

“I’m really pleased with that 2020 receiving corps,” Chiaverini said. “It reminds me of when we signed Laviska (Shenault), K.D. (Nixon), Maurice Bell and Jaylon Jackson. that was a really good group we signed back in, I think it was, ’17. And this group, to me, has the chance to be really good.”

Other receivers earned Chaiverini’s praise, as well. One of them was La’Vontae Shenault.

Shenault arrived on campus a year before the trio mentioned above, but he only appeared in four games in his true freshman season, so it counted as a redshirt year. In 2020, Shenault was Colorado’s second-leading receiver with 193 yards on 17 catches.

But Shenault has had some off-field issues in the past year or so, the most serious of which is a DUI charge. He was suspended for the team’s bowl game last season and could face a similar punishment at the start of next season.

“I’ve known La’Vontae since he was a sophomore in high school,” Chiaverini said. “There’s a trust factor between us that I think he trusts me and believes in me and I trust him and believe in him.”

From there, Chiaverini said that he’s seen Shenault “maturing as a young man” over the last couple of years.

“I love that kid, I really do,” Chiaverini said. “I’m excited for him. I’m excited for his future.”

Sheanult’s personal growth has been a topic of discussion on a few occasions early in spring ball, including head coach Karl Dorrell saying that he’s noticed the development.

When asked who has stepped up as a leader in the wide receivers room this season following K.D. Nixon’s departure, Maurice Bell was quick to answer.

“Definitely Vontae,” he said.

On the field, there are few questions what Shenault is capable of.

“He has a very, very unique skill set,” Chiaverini said of the 6-foot-2, 190-pound receiver. “We know the kind of athlete (his brother) Laviska is. Lavontae is a really, really natural route runner. He’s a better route runner than his brother. And he’s got really smooth hands. He’s got really good shiftiness to his game. And that’s not taking anything away from Viska, it’s just two different types of players.”

Comparing La’Vontae to his big brother—who is just a year removed from being selected in the second round of the NFL Draft—is high praise.

With Dimitri Stanley the only receiver who figures to be locked into a starting role, this camp will go a long way in deciding who else will see the field for CU. Shenault and Rice may be the odds-on favorites to start beside him, but vets like Maurice Bell, Jaylon Jackson and Daniel Arias stand in the way.

The competition will really open up Friday, when CU holds its first scrimmage of the spring.