Why Pac-12 Coaches are Starting to Fear Sefo Liufau and the Colorado Buffaloes

Colorado's true freshman quarterback Sefo Liufau heads back home to Washington this week to lead his CU Buffs against the UW Huskies. Coaches and teammates alike hope and expect that Liufau will continue the strong start to his "era" as starting quarterback for the Buffaloes.

Washington coach Steve Sarkisian hopes the Huskies do not become the first conference "victim" this year to the Buffs and Liufau. Many consider a loss to Colorado a longshot, especially considering the long losing streak the Buffs have to conference opponents. The last time CU beat a Pac-12 team was all the way back to Sept. 22, 2012 against Washington State. It was the only win of the season for Colorado.

If one looks at the various team statistics for the Pac-12 conference this season, it is easy to see that Colorado ranks last or nearly last in most categories. What the stats DON'T show is that the numbers are changing drastically since Liufau became the quarterback for the Buffaloes.

Colorado is last in the Pac-12 in 3rd down conversions at 30.8%. Take away the 2 out of 33 conversions that CU had BEFORE switching to Liufau during conference play, and one finds that Liufau has led the Buffs to a conversion rate of almost 49%, which would be #1 in the conference.

Colorado's pass completion percentage is also at the bottom of the conference at only 51.5% of passes completed. When Liufau is on the field, however, things are much better. Sefo has completed 64.9% of his passes, and in three of the games he has played in the completion percentage has been at least 69%. Liufau's 64.9% would be third in the conference behind only UCLA and Oregon.

It is easy to see why Sarkisian and other coaches around the conference are starting to get concerned about the intangibles that Sefo Liufau brings to the Colorado offense. After all, he has started only three games and played in only one more at the collegiate level. Although he has been roughed up by opposing defenses, he has maintained his level-headed demeanor throughout his time at the helm of the CU offense.

As good as his play has been so far, opposing coaches know that Liufau will get better as he gets more experience. Then, the touchdown to field goal ratio when the Buffs get into the red zone will start to get better. Getting more points on the board will ease the duty of the Colorado defense, and time of possession will continue to grow as a strength for the Buffaloes.

Liufau is a Washington kid. He was a very successful high school quarterback there. His coaches from high school knew Sefo to be a great leader. Colorado's head coach, Mike MacIntyre, recognized those leadership abilities and burned Liufau's redshirt for the good of the team.

With each passing game, his teammates have grown to trust and respect him. Indeed, the way he stood up to the pounding (and cheap shots which drew penalties) from UCLA, inspired his offensive line to such a degree that by the end of the game they were willing to fight for him, leading to a skirmish with several Bruin players.

The emotional bonding into brotherhood between Liufau and his teammates is the crucial step that Colorado has been missing for years. As they continue to rebound from their lost decade away from the Top 25, the "coming together" of Colorado team will make them a much greater foe for any opponent.

UW coach Sarkisian does not want his Huskies to be the first victim to the rejuvenated Buffaloes and Liufau. That makes sense, because he knows that once those conference dominoes start to fall, a lot of teams in the Pac-12 will find out what it's like to be on the losing side across from Sefo Liufau.

Sefo Liufau will have droves of family and friends on hand at Husky Stadium this Saturday at 5 pm pacific time (6 pm mountain time). The game will be televised on the Pac-12 Network. Those friends and family will be there to support and cheer Sefo and the Buffaloes as they try to take the next step back to respect. Liufau and his coaches and teammates want desperately not to disappoint them.