When Colorado prepared for a road trip to Orlando, Fla., last month, it was seeing signs of growth on defense.
Something was missing, however.
CU’s defense had recorded 15 quarterback hurries in the first four games, but only five sacks. Two of those were from defensive end Dayon Hayes, who didn’t even make the trip to Orlando because of injury.
Beginning with that 48-21 victory at Central Florida, the Buffs have been relentless with their pass rush. As CU (5-2, 3-1 Big 12) prepares to host Cincinnati (5-2, 3-1) on Saturday at Folsom Field (8:15 p.m., ESPN), it now leads the conference with 21 sacks.
CU has posted 16 sacks and six QB hurries in the last three games.
“I think it’s just being selfless, just rushing as one … just rushing together,” defensive end Keaten Wade said Tuesday. “I feel like when we do that and just put away our needs and what we want, I feel like we can be unstoppable.”
Wade, who didn’t play in the first six games because of injury, recorded two sacks in CU’s 34-7 rout of Arizona on Saturday. As a team, the Buffs had seven sacks against the Wildcats, the most they’ve had in a game in six years and the most in a road game in 20 years.
CU’s pass rushers have turned hurries into sacks because of their approach, according to head coach Deion Sanders.
“Their practice, habits, film, study, preparation; them receiving the coaching that administers to them each and every day,” Sanders said. “Them understanding what we want. Them really just throwing their hands up and saying, ‘I get it. I’m gonna do it your way. Our way ain’t working. I’m gonna do it your way.’ And it’s working.”
Through the first four games, the 28-9 win at Colorado State on Sept. 14 was the only one in which the Buffs really had much of a pass rush. Hayes collected both of his sacks that night and the Buffs had seven hurries.
CU didn’t have any sacks a week earlier at Nebraska and managed just one sack and two hurries against Baylor on Sept. 21.
Five sacks at UCF has opened the floodgates, however.
“You convince yourself they kind of come in bunches, so that was our bunch game,” defensive coordinator Robert Livingston said a few days after the UCF game.
CU’s now had three “bunch games” in a row.
On Oct. 12, the Buffs got four against Kansas State, which has allowed four in its other six games combined. And, the seven against Arizona was more than the Wildcats allowed in their other six games combined (six).
Coach Prime credits the increase in sack production to players buying into the coaching by Livingston (who spent 12 years coaching in the NFL); defensive line coach Damione Lewis (a 10-year NFL veteran); graduate assistant Warren Sapp (a Hall of Fame defensive lineman); and edge coach Vincent Dancy (a long-time defensive coach).
“When you have a skilled defensive play caller (Livingston), when you have two defensive line coaches that have come out of the NFL, and one is a Hall of Famer, when you have guys that actually want it – and they got to understand, man, let’s do our jobs – and they’re going to come,” Coach Prime said.
It’s been a collective effort, too.
Last year, Jordan Domineck, who has since graduated, had CU’s only two-sack game of the season, at UCLA.
So far this year, five different players – Hayes, Wade, BJ Green, Taje McCoy and Samuel Okunlola – have had two-sack games for the Buffs.
“Resist the opportunity to become selfish and just play the scheme and watch what happens,” Coach Prime said. “And they understand that now. They understand it now. So you should see more (sacks). I think we missed five sacks last week, and we weren’t proud of that.”
At 3.0 sacks per game, CU is currently on pace for 36 this season, which would be the most for a CU defense during a regular season since having 37 in 1992. The Buffs had 27 last year.
“We expect that,” Coach Prime said of the group getting to the QB. “We expect them to be where they are right now. We expected that several weeks ago. Their just now meeting expectations that we have for them.”
