CU Buffaloes open their season in Boulder Friday night against TCU
A quarterback competition will be in the spotlight when the Colorado Buffaloes open their season Friday night in Boulder against TCU. Brendan Lewis and J.T. Shrout have battled throughout camp for the starting nod but head coach Karl Dorrell won't disclose who will be under center against the Horned Frogs.
Dorrell does anticipate playing both quarterbacks but how that looks on Friday night is not known. The head coach was asked on Tuesday if decisions on which quarterback plays depends on a prior script, a gut feeling or is it situational.
"All of the above," said Dorrell. "We're gonna see how the game goes. We have a plan in place and won't express that to the media but we'll address it as we go."
Lewis was the starter last year and struggled as CU's offense ranked 129th in the nation in total yards and 121st in the nation scoring only 18 points per game.
Shrout, who missed last season with an ACL injury, is a transfer from Tennessee and brings an element of competition to the quarterback room. In Knoxville, Shrout played in 8 games and started one throwing for 5 touchdowns and 3 interceptions.
In addition to jump-starting the offense, CU will need to find replacements on a defense that will be without linebacker Nate Landman and 3 of last season's best defensive backs in Christian Gonzalez, Mehki Blackmon and Safety Mark Perry. Gonzalez and Blackmon transferred to other PAC-12 schools while Perry will be on the other side of the field on Friday after leaving Colorado for TCU.
Several transfers should provide the Buffs with an immediate impact. On defense, former West Virginia linebacker Josh Chandler-Semedo should help ease the loss of Landman. He was named all-Big 12 last season. And on offense, offensive lineman Tommy Brown from Alabama should help in the trenches and receiver R.J. Sneed, who was Baylor's leading receiver last season, should help ease the loss of both Brendan Rice and Dimitri Stanley.
The expectations for CU in 2022 are modest. Most projections have them finishing last in the PAC with a win total below 5. In order to exceed those dire projections, the Buffs will need contributions from many young players as 78% of the roster are underclassmen.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT:
TCU is coming off a losing season in 2021 as the Horned Frogs went 5-7 last season. Long-time coach Gary Patterson is no longer on the sideline being replaced by former California head coach Sonny Dykes.
TCU enters Friday night's opener with its own quarterback competition. Dykes won't tip his hand on who will play but the visitors may play up to 3 different quarterbacks against the Buffs.
The Horned Frogs feature a couple of preseason All-Americans Colorado needs to be aware of on Friday evening. Defensive back Tre'Vius Hodges-Tomlinson was the Big 12's 3rd highest-rated cornerback last season and is a nephew of Pro Football Hall of Famer LaDainlian Tomlinson. On offense, receiver Quentin Johnson is a big play waiting to happen. He averaged a touchdown every 5 receptions last season.
The transfer portal was kind to the visitors from Fort Worth as 14 transfers made their way to TCU this offseason (including former Buff safety Mark Perry). The transfer class was ranked 13th nationally by 247 sports.
BUFF BITES
This will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools that will also play next season in Fort Worth. TCU is favored by nearly 2 touchdowns.
Colorado will be wearing throwback helmets. They posted this picture on Twitter. The gold helmet from the 1970s features a CU logo instead of the Buffalo silhouette and has a white stripe with a black border.
CU will also honor Cliff Branch on Friday. He is the school's most recent inductee to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
