Colorado/Nevada Early Look

Gotta do this quick. Here’s a look at the non-conference slate:


Colorado Passing Game: Colorado won’t do too much damage here. Tyler Hansen, who was announced as the starter, is okay I guess. 9-8 TD to INT ratio and 55.8 completion % is probably what you would define as “meh”. He does have a nice arm and is certainly better than Cody Hawkins. Scotty McKnight is his #1 receiver, and he’s a possession guy more than a big play threat. He caught 76 passes for 11.8 yards per attempt and 6 TD. Behind him is Markques Simas and question marks. Simas is more of a big play guy at 13.6 yards per catch and he certainly is a good athlete with a 6-2 frame. The #3 guy is Toney Clemons, who is a Michigan transfer who nobody can really say anything certain for. He is another tall wideout at 6-2.

Colorado Rushing Game: Rodney Stewart is a solid little guy at 5-6 and he’s very quick and elusive. With 9 TD and 4.1 yards per rush, he could be better. But with all 5 offensive linemen returning, Stewart should have a huge improvement in his numbers. Stewart could easily bust a big run and hurt the Bears. Ryan Miller is the best of the 5 linemen at RG.

Overall Offense Rating: C+.

Colorado Rush Defense: A bad rush D that gave up an average of 161 yards a game last year (!) returns 4 starters in the Front 7 but only 1 linebacker. With the linebackers gone other than BJ Beatty, the struggles should carry on. The top 3 returning tacklers are all defensive backs. They lose 15 TFL. This rush D is in for trouble. Curtis Cunningham is a solid nose tackle, I guess. 41 tackles from him.

Colorado Pass Defense: Both cornerbacks and a safety are the returning safeties, albeit from a unit that gave up over 300 yards to Toledo. Other than that, though they were pretty okay; they allowed their opponents to complete 57.9% of their passes. That’s pretty good. They should only improve, but the question is: are their numbers an aberration due to teams running when way up? The only answer will be found this year.

Overall Defense Rating: C+. Pass defense good; rush defense bad.

Nevada Passing Game: Colin Kaepernick, as a passer, is okay. He’s certainly better than Hansen passing, but he is highly dependent on his Touchdowns to Interceptions: 20 to 6. His yards per attempt is average (7.28), and he only completes 58.9% of his passes. Looking past that, you see a guy who’s nice to have if he just passes. But combine that with his running ability, and you got something good. Anyway, his top 4 receivers return including Brandon Wimberly, who caught 6 touchdowns and 733 yards last year. The other 3 (Tray Session, Chris Wellington and Virgil Green) all had under 400 yards. Wimberly is another tall lanky receiver at 6-3 195.

Nevada Rushing Game: Be afraid; 2 1,000 rushers return. Kaepernick had 16 rushing touchdowns last year for 36 total; he had 7.3 yards per attempt. He’s ridiculous running the football, no doubt. That’s what makes him good. But what about the running back? Vai Taua, other than having an awesome name, is also terrific. He ran for 7.8 yards per attempt and 10 TD; if he can’t be corralled, then we could lose this game. Stop the run=Stop the Wolf Pack.

Overall Offense Rating: B+. If they had those #s with a Pac-10 schedule, then they would be an A.

Nevada Rush Defense: Better than Colorado’s, but against worse competition. Returning 4 starters, 2 linebackers. 3.6 yards per rush against, 112 yards a game. I’d also like to take note that is against WAC competition, so take the numbers with a grain of salt. Dontay Moch is a beast, with 6.5 sacks and 13.5 TFL. Look out for him, There linebackers are no slouch in James-Michael Johnson and Brandon Marshall. They can stop the run.

Nevada Pass Defense: WEAKNESS. 61.5% completion against? Nearly 300 yards per game? Wow. And with both safeties gone and an ex-QB starting at free safety, it doesn’t get any better. They do return 2 corners, but wow. They are highly susceptible to the big play.

Overall Defense Rating: B-.