Tag: Montana Lemonious-Craig

Former Colorado receiver obtains offer from Auburn

One of Colorado’s top playmakers from 2022 is looking for a new home, and Auburn is interested.

[autotag]Montana Lemonious-Craig[/autotag] had a stellar spring game last weekend for Colorado by reeling in six passes for 168 yards and a touchdown. His score was a 98-yard reception from quarterback Shedur Sanders.

So it was understandably shocking to Buffaloes fans when Lemonious-Craig announced his intent to enter the transfer portal one day after Colorado’s sold-out spring game.

Colorado’s loss could turn into Auburn’s gain.

Not even 24 hours after entering the portal, Lemonious-Craig announced that he had received a myriad of offers from Penn State, BYU, Mississippi State, and Arizona. Included in the bunch was an offer from Auburn.

Lemonious-Craig was used sparingly during his first two seasons in Boulder, as he caught just 11 passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns. His best season was in 2022 when he caught a team-leading 23 passes for 359 yards and three scores. He was Colorado’s second-leading receiver in terms of yards, trailing only Jordyn Tyson.

During spring practice, head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] shared that he was looking for an “alpha” to step up and lead the receiving room, similar to what he had with Laquon Treadwell during his days at Ole Miss. After reaching the top of Colorado’s receiving stats last season, and having a huge game for the Buffaloes in the spring game, Freeze may have seen signs of “alpha” in Lemonious-Craig, thus sending an offer.

Among those returning to Auburn’s roster at receiver include [autotag]Koy Moore[/autotag], [autotag]Camden Brown[/autotag], and [autotag]Landen King[/autotag]. [autotag]Nick Mardner[/autotag] of Cincinnati is also joining the group from the transfer portal.

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Following huge spring game, Montana Lemonious-Craig enters transfer portal

One day after exploding for over 150 yards in CU’s spring game, MLC has entered the portal

Especially Montana Lemonious-Craig’s huge spring game, not many saw this move coming. It was confirmed on Sunday that the Colorado wide receiver  has entered the transfer portal.

Lemonious-Craig was one of the top players remaining from last year’s team, and he likely would’ve maintained his starting role come fall based on the current roster. However, the junior now looks for opportunities elsewhere. His transfer stock is quite high following his 154-yard performance on ESPN in the Buffaloes’ spring game Saturday.

Throughout his three years in Boulder, Lemonious-Craig played in 23 games with 497 receiving yards and five touchdowns, including a memorable game-winner against Cal last season. He was also an active player in the NIL (name, image and likeness) space at CU.

MLC thanked Buff Nation with a lengthy message on Twitter:

Fellow Buffs WR Chase Sowell also announced on Sunday that he is entering the portal.

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Takeaways from Colorado football’s first spring game under Deion Sanders

What did you take away from the spring game?

The biggest spring game in the history of Colorado football was a success.

Folsom Field stayed full despite the cold weather, in-game mistakes were few and head coach Deion Sanders made the most of his two hours live on ESPN. Even more, Coach Prime helped create a special moment with 98-year-old super fan Peggy Coppom delivering an honorary kickoff.

The waiting game now commences as the Buffaloes are just over four months away from kicking off against TCU on Sept. 2. We’re still in for an eventful offseason, though.

Here are my five takeaways from Colorado’s first spring game of the Coach Prime era:

Travis Hunter opens up about focusing on receiver this spring

Travis Hunter gave his thoughts on playing mostly receiver this spring

We’ve been getting to know a slew of new faces ever since Deion Sanders signed on to be the next head football coach of the Colorado Buffaloes. Fans have heard from Coach Prime himself, members of the staff, new quarterback Shedeur Sanders and a few other players as well.

On Thursday, another box was marked off the list as five-star transfer Travis Hunter spoke with the media for the first time. Hunter, the No. 1 overall high school recruit in the 2022 class, shocked the college football world last year by committing to play for Coach Prime at Jackson State. This offseason, he decided to stick with both Deion and Shedeur Sanders by following them to Colorado.

Here is what the newest Buffaloes’ star had to say after practice on Thursday:

Best quotes from Brett Bartolone’s Thursday media availability

Brett Bartolone met with the media after practice on Thursday. Here’s what was said:

The Colorado Buffaloes are ramping back up after a week off during spring break. The pads have come on and coaches have been riding the team hard in preparation for a sold-out Folsom Field crowd on April 22 for Black & Gold Day.

After practice on Thursday, the media spoke with wide receivers coach Brett Bartolone, who followed head coach Deion Sanders to Boulder after spending last season as Jackson State’s offensive coordinator.

Bartolone will be an invaluable piece in helping his position group learn OC Sean Lewis’ offense. He should also help the other parts of the offense transition from what JSU did to the attack that Lewis will employ.

Here are a few highlights from Bartolone’s Thursday media availability:

WATCH: JT Shrout hits Montana Lemonious-Craig for second quarter TD

WATCH: Montana Lemonious-Craig hauls in his second touchdown of the season

JT Shrout and Montana Lemonious-Craig have developed some nice red-zone chemistry with each other. Two weeks after that duo produced the game-winning touchdown against Cal, Shrout found MLC open in the end zone once again in the second quarter of Saturday’s Arizona State game.

The touchdown, a 7-yard slant, cut Arizona State’s lead from 14-3 to 14-10 following the extra point. Unfortunately, the Sun Devils responded on their ensuing drive with a 42-yard TD run by Xazavian Valladay to take a 21-10 lead.

Late in the second quarter, the Buffs’ offense has produced 118 total yards, 55 of which were courtesy of Deion Smith’s legs.

Watch MLC’s second touchdown of the season below:

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Colorado football’s player of the game vs. Cal

Our player of the game vs. Cal had the game-winning catch in overtime

It finally happened!

After Karl Dorrell was let go as head coach, the Mike Sanford-led Colorado Buffaloes got their first win of the season by defeating Cal, 20-13, in overtime on a wild ending.

There were a total of 16 fourth-quarter points for both teams, including 10 from the Buffs as they roared back to tie it at 13 apiece.

The Buffs got the victory in overtime on a touchdown catch from our player of the game, Montana Lemonious-Craig.

Craig finished the game with 119 yards on eight catches, including the game-winning touchdown. It was a masterful performance by Lemonious-Craig and the Buffs finally cracked the win column.

Lemonious-Craig had just five catches all year prior to Cal but exploded against the Bears.

Owen McCown saw the majority of work at QB, but it was JT Shrout who hit Lemonious-Craig in the endzone to win the game and eventually send Folsom Field into pure mayhem.

Lemonious-Craig was expected to have a bigger role in 2022, but the Buffs, in general, got off to a rough start and really couldn’t muster up much at all on offense.

This might be a sign of better things to come for the Buffs and Lemonious-Craig.

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Montana Lemonious-Craig ready for more action in 2022

Montana Lemonious-Craig credited new wide receivers coach Phil McGeoghan for improving his game

Third-year sophomore Montana Lemonious-Craig has plenty of experience. With all of the changes in the Colorado Buffaloes locker room, at least there is a little bit of continuity.

We have examined the wide receiver room in depth this offseason, and all signs point to RJ Sneed II and Daniel Arias having a big impact.

However, the rest of the position group will be fighting for snaps. One player who could have a breakout season, though, is Lemonious-Craig. In a rough year for the Buffs offensively in 2021, Leomonious-Craig caught 10 balls for 123 yards and two touchdowns.

The new-look offense, led by offensive coordinator Mike Sanford, could feature a more vertical attack. If Tennessee transfer JT Shrout gets playing time, that will allow the offense to spread the field even more (although Brendon Lewis does have more familiarity with Lemonious-Craig).

Nonetheless, Lemonious-Craig is ready for a huge season (h/t Brian Howell of BuffZone).

“I’ve been here for a minute now and now it’s time for me to expand my role,” he said after a recent practice. “I’ve gotta go out there and do what I know I can do and show up and handle business when it comes to that time.”

Lemonious-Craig also credited new wide receivers coach Phil McGeoghan, and McGeoghan has plenty of experience at the NFL level coaching some of the best in the game.

“Coach Phil has taught me a lot of different knacks and tricks to use in terms of just route running and locking into the details on what I have to use within my game.”

Karl Dorrell brought in Sanford and McGeoghan for a reason, and after a disappointing 2021 season, the offense has a lot to prove this upcoming season.

It all begins on Sept. 2 against TCU, and it won’t be easy. Perhaps Lemonious-Craig could stand out and become one of Lewis’s (or Shrout’s) favorite targets.

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Expectations have risen for Colorado’s sophomore wide receivers

What do you expect to see from Colorado’s wide receivers room?

Much like Colorado’s defensive secondary, the wide receivers room experienced significant loss in the offseason and will be relying on a few underclassmen to play bigger roles.

One of those youngsters is third-year sophomore Montana Lemonious-Craig. In moderate playing time last year, he reeled in 10 catches for 123 yards and two touchdowns, including a clutch score against Oregon State. Those numbers will likely increase in 2022, though, with the likes of Brenden Rice, Dimitri Stanley and a few other wideouts now gone.

The Buffs also have a couple of other sophomores — Ty Robinson and Chase Penry — that have a year of experience under their belt.

“Everybody in the room is expecting to play a bigger role for the most part,” Lemonious-Craig said. “Guys are stepping up, guys are making plays, they made plays in spring ball and they’re making plays in fall camp. Overall, everybody’s role has expanded from top to bottom. I’m looking forward to those guys being able to step up and help bring wins within the team and help provide execution within the offense.”

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Colorado football state of the position: Wide Receiver

The Buffs’ offense will be relying on a few wide receivers to take the next step

Colorado has more of a history at the wide receiver position than one might notice given its history of running the football. The Buffs have consistently developed playmakers on the outside and have pushed that talent to the NFL. The 1990s saw eight different Buffs receivers drafted, including four first-round picks in a seven-year span.

Now in 2022, Colorado is looking for new faces to fill the void left by a few players departing via either graduation or the transfer portal.

Will a new Buff be able to join the ranks of the Michael Westbrooks, the Paul Richardsons and the Laviska Shenault Jrs. of the world?