College Wire Regional Editor Patrick Conn breaks down the 2021 situational stats for QB Brendon Lewis.
Last season [autotag]Brendon Lewis[/autotag] was the primary quarterback for the Colorado Buffaloes. Going into this season there are five passers on scholarship but it is a two-horse race to be named the starter.
J.T. Shrout is also vying for the starting job once again. He arrived in Boulder last season after transferring from the Tennessee Volunteers. He and Lewis had a heated battle last fall before a knee injury ended Shrout’s season.
Not only is the decision huge for the offense but for head coach Karl Dorrell’s future. He is likely facing the hot seat if the Buffaloes don’t improve from their 4-8 (3-6) campaign in 2021.
As the season approaches, Buffs Wire breaks down the redshirt junior quarterback’s situational stats. All statistics courtesy of Stats Perform.
The Colorado Buffaloes are in an interesting spot with camp rolling out. Karl Dorrell’s team isn’t expected to make much noise in 2022, although the Buffs’ head coach still has some confidence.
It was a huge setback for the offense when Tennessee transfer JT Shrout was hurt last offseason with a major knee injury and couldn’t go. Brendon Lewis was fine, but the downfield passing game wasn’t there. Lewis can run, he’s experienced, and he’s careful with the ball, but Shrout is the better pure passer.
Shrout is a pure passer, as Fiutak mentions, but Lewis is less rusty and has the upper hand after a decent 2021 campaign. But after all, let’s not forget Shrout’s time with the Volunteers.
JT Shrout’s passer rating is currently 201.5 after this 55-yard touchdown pass pic.twitter.com/PwTykuuuQ4
Sanford likes to run the ball. He likes to run it a lot and we should expect that. The only exception is when he has a program changing QB (Jordan Love in this case) and in that case he only makes it about 50/50. Boise State 2014: 57% Utah State 2019: 47.4% (Jordan Love) Minn 2020: 61.8% Minn 2021: 69%
No one who has watched Colorado in the past will be upset about an offense that relies on the run, as the most dominant teams in the program’s history have pounded the rock as the first, second and sometimes even third option. But how does Lewis fit into this? With that, we will have to look to the COVID-shortened 2020 season.
During that season, CU’s offense went with about a 60/40 split favoring the run over the passing game. Jarek Broussard led the team with 165 carries on the season but if you look right behind him, Sam Noyer was second on the team with 52 carries in six games for 208 yards. Lewis also carried the ball nine times for 78 yards in his only action against Texas in the Alamo Bowl. That is all impressive yardage and an indicator of what could help jumpstart the offense this year.
Due to the injuries and depth concerns last year, the Buffaloes couldn’t risk putting the ball in Lewis’ hands too many times. But with JT Shrout coming back to health and newcomers Maddox Kopp and Owen McCown joining the group, an offensive attack built around the power running game and the QB-option could be successful.
After going position-by-position last month, we broke down CU’s entire offense and looked at the best and worst-case scenarios
Last month, we broke down the offense position-by-position to see where the Colorado Buffaloes stood before fall camp starts. You can find each of those breakdowns listed below:
The Buffaloes’ offense will be going through quite the transition this year as they only have four to five solid starters back. Numerous players will be battling for those other starting spots while an influx of new coaches brings a few new philosophies and plays to Boulder.
Let’s now tie a bow on the offensive outlook for the 2022 season:
B-Lew is in the “driver’s seat” at QB, according to Karl Dorrell
Arguably the biggest storyline coming into the Colorado Buffaloes’ 2022 season is the quarterback competition. About three weeks from the start of fall camp, Karl Dorrell told reporters on Wednesday that it’s incumbent starter Brendon Lewis’s job to lose.
Matching up against Lewis for the second consecutive preseason camp will be former Tennesse transfer J.T. Shrout, who missed the entirety of 2021 after suffering a knee injury in mid-August. The Buffs also have Houston transfer Maddox Kopp, incoming freshman Owen McCown and last year’s backup Drew Carter on hold.
But for now, Dorrell appears to have confidence in Lewis.
“B-Lew is in the driver’s seat,” Dorrell said. “He was our starter a year ago. We can’t discredit that. Someone’s going to have to beat him out, that’s the flat truth, so I’m not going to go any further than that. He knows he’s got a job to hang on to, and he knows he’s got to continue to get better and he knows that there’s people nipping at his heels.”
Starting all 12 games last season, Lewis threw for 1,540 yards and 10 touchdowns while showing growth throughout the season. Dorrell added that he was impressed with the extra work Lewis has put in the offseason.
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Although QB Brendon Lewis returns as the incumbent starter, Sanford said he’s looking forward to an “awesome competition” (h/t The Athletic) between B-Lew and J.T. Shrout, who was injured for the entirety of 2021. Sanford may not have been around Lewis last year but after a few months of looking at film and getting to know him, he gave high praises:
“I just love that he was able to fail at times in 2021 and basically he kept his composure, he kept his poise,” Sanford told The Athletic’s Doug Haller. “That’s the development and growth of a quarterback — how you deal with failure.”
Shrout, meanwhile, was a limited participant during spring ball. However, Sanford saw just enough to be impressed with his demeanor and physical attributes:
“He’s got incredible care factor, He has tremendous intensity. He’s got plus-plus-plus arm talent, and I think he has sneaky athleticism.”
Round two of the Lewis-Shrout QB battle is just beginning.
The new Brendon Lewis-RJ Sneed connection will be something to watch this fall
Perhaps the biggest transfer portal acquisition so far this offseason for the Colorado Buffaloes football team is former Baylor wide receiver R.J. Sneed II.
After losing a ton of players via the transfer portal, including a long list of wide receivers, it was a breath of fresh air to see Sneed decide to head to Boulder.
With spring ball now complete, which included the learning of a new offensive system, it looks like quarterback Brendon Lewis is enjoying having Sneed on the roster (h/t Brian Howell of BuffZone).
“…It’s really fun throwing to RJ, watching RJ catch the ball. As soon as he got here, we had a connection. I don’t know why. Maybe because we’re both from Texas, but it’s really fun playing with RJ. He knows a lot about the game and stuff, so I like throwing him the ball.”
Sneed is a massive addition for the Buffs, and with the loss of a lot of wide receivers, including Brenden Rice, he is in line for a huge workload in 2022 with Mike Sanford as the team’s new offensive coordinator.
If the two can continue to build chemistry, they both could enjoy huge seasons in 2022, and it will make Sneed look like a genius for deciding to head to Colorado.
Buffaloes Wire compiles the final stat leaders for each Pac-12 team from the 2021 football season.
It was a wild Pac-12 football season in 2021.
The Oregon Ducks stunned Ohio State in the Horseshoe, and Ducks safety Verone McKinley III tied for the national lead with six interceptions.
Utah won the Pac-12 Championship Game for the first time in school history and made its debut in the Rose Bowl. Washington State ended a seven-year losing streak against Washington in the Apple Cup. UCLA reclaimed the Victory Bell from the USC Trojans, but Lincoln Riley might have something to say about that next season.
With all that in mind, Buffaloes Wire compiles the 2021 season leaders in passing, rushing, receiving, tackling, sacks and interceptions for each Pac-12 team below.
The Colorado Buffaloes fell 28-13 in their final game of the season against the Utah Utes on Friday in Salt Lake City, finishing the year with a 4-8 record. While the Buffs upsetting the No. 19 Utes was unlikely, this game exemplified many of the strengths and weaknesses that Colorado has shown all season long.
Now that it’s all said and done, we have some time to reflect on what was a turbulent season for the Colorado Buffaloes. Here are five takeaways from their final game of the year against the Utah Utes:
The Colorado Buffaloes have faced plenty of adversity this season but they faced a new kind of challenge on Saturday when Oregon State sent things into overtime on a 60-yard field goal.
But Brendon Lewis and company didn’t fret and scored on both overtime possessions to take down the Beavs, 37-34. True freshman kicker Cole Becker played hero, among many others, when he nailed the game-winner from 42 yards out.
Head coach Karl Dorrell said his young Buffs took another step forward in terms of maturation. Perhaps the “binky,” as Dorrell coined, is slowly making its way out.
“They’re starting to navigate and find a way,” Dorrell said. “They’re starting to deal with the difficult circumstances and overcoming those things. By no means are we where we need to be, and I’m not saying that all of a sudden we got the answers —no, I’m not saying that. But I feel that they’re starting to learn how to deal with some stressful moments.”
Following a Brendon Lewis to Brenden Rice 2-yard touchdown, Colorado held a 10-point lead in the third quarter. Oregon State, however, answered against a Nate Landman-less Buffaloes’ defense and scored 14 unanswered points to take a 24-20 lead midway through the fourth quarter.
The Buffs’ offense was now needing a touchdown, and they delivered. Jarek Broussard, who rushed for a season-high 151 yards, found 49 of those to bring CU’s offense down to the OSU 23. A few failed plays later, Colorado was facing a third-and-15 when Lewis connected with Montana Lemonious-Craig just inches inside the endzone.
Colorado’s freshman QB has now thrown for six touchdowns in his previous two games.
“My confidence has skyrocketed,” Lewis said. “I feel like if we hit plays early in the game, then my confidence goes up from there, and then the rest of the game is just a breeze. Like I said earlier, my teammates, when I see them make plays, it makes me want to keep going.”
Nov 6, 2021; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Brendon Lewis (12) scores a touchdown past Oregon State Beavers defensive back Alex Austin (5) in overtime at Folsom Field. Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
But after OSU missed a field goal on its ensuing drive, Colorado was unable to run out 32 seconds of the clock. OSU kicker Everett Hayes then nailed an impressive 60-yard field goal to send the game into overtime.
In CU’s first overtime possession, Lewis once again delivered in the clutch with a 9-yard rushing touchdown. The Beavers retaliated with a touchdown of their own but then missed a field goal on the first drive of the second overtime.
All Colorado needed was a score and Becker’s 42-yard field goal was enough to send the homecoming crowd home happy.
“That’s the moment all young kickers dream about,” Becker said.
