Connor Wood Becomes Latest QB to leave Colorado Football Program

What a difference a year makes. A quick look at the Colorado roster in 2012 showed a very crowded depth chart behind center. There were SIX quarterbacks on the roster, and not a senior among them. To revive everyone's memory, here's how the roster looked in 2012.

• Shane Dillon
• Stevie Joe Dorman
• Nick Hirschman
• John Schrock
• Jordan Webb
• Connor Wood

Mike MacIntyre's first recruiting class this past spring brought in two more quarterbacks.

• Sefo Liufau
• Jordan Gehrke

Lots of quarterbacks THEN are now down to TWO. Where did they all go?

1. Jordan Webb tore his ACL in April, and missed his entire "senior" season. He has already graduated, but is applying to the NCAA for another year of eligibility.
2. Nick Hirschman lost the starting QB competition to Connor Wood in spring practices, and transferred to Akron in May.
3. Shane Dillon decided to give up football for basketball and transferred to the University of San Diego in July.
4. Also in July, John Schrock decided to focus on his pre-med studies and left the CU football program. He still attends Colorado.
5. Stevie Joe Dorman transferred to West Texas A&M in December.
6. Connor Wood announced a couple days ago that he was giving up football. He is scheduled to graduate this spring.

That leaves only two quarterbacks on the roster for Spring 2014 practices. Sefo Liufau earned the starting quarterback position halfway through his freshman season, and JC transfer Jordan Gerhke has yet to see the field for the Buffs.

The Buffs do have a QB recruit in Cade Aspay, a slinger from Canyon Country, California. He committed to the Buffs in June and is considered solid on the Buffs.  National Letter of Intent Day is February 5th. Until that LOI is signed and delivered to Colorado, nothing is etched in stone.

The bigger problem right now facing coach MacIntyre is that the high number of repetitions he likes to run during practices will be nearly impossible with only two quarterbacks. He has a few options to ease his pain, but the pain will most certainly be felt.

Bringing in another JC transfer means someone new to the system. Even if Aspay signs on to play for the Buffs, he won't be here until summer.

It's possible that Webb will be granted an extra year and give Mac a third QB, but CU and the NCAA do not have a history that leans that way. Anyone remember how the NCAA treated Olympian Jeremy Bloom?

It's possible that the Buffs have someone (anyone?) on the current roster who played QB in high school, and might be willing to move back to the position for the spring and maybe longer. The Buffs have two defensive backs on their roster who played QB in high school: Isaac Archuleta (6'2 205) and Richard Yates II (6'2 190).

Lastly, Mac could convince (make that beg) John Schrock to help out during spring practices and consider rejoining the team. He took part in spring practices last year and is familiar with how Mac and his coaching staff like to do things.

Time is ticking. CU fans are wondering if Mac can pull off a big surprise. We will see. Mac has a reputation for moving players to different positions to help the team. The team definitely needs some help at QB right now.

Friday Night CU Buff Musings: Hirschman, Bakhtiari, and Roberson

It's a beautiful late April Friday night/Saturday morning in Boulder...

Normally, this time of year is pretty slow on the news for Colorado Buff fans of hoops and pigskin, but 2013 has offered some interesting tidbits. Here are the subjects, the pertinent details, and my humble opinions on each.

Nick Hirschman:

-- Nick entered the spring practices under new coach Mike MacIntyre with five other QB's all starting from scratch.

-- After the first half of the practices, he was one of four named as still competing for number one QB.

-- By the end of spring he had elevated himself to co-starter with Connor Wood after last year's starter Jordan Webb injured his knee and Shane Dillon was moved down the depth chart.

-- He was identified by the coaches as one of the leaders of the team being counted on to help lead the team through summer workouts.

-- Then, he surprised everyone by announcing via Twitter that he would transfer to another school. Since he is graduating next month, he can transfer to another school without having to sit out a year. He has two years of football left before he runs out of eligibility.

-- MacIntyre released him from his scholarship with a few restrictions on where he could transfer.

-- Then, Hirschman gave an interview saying that he left because he was not named the starter at the end of spring.

Opinion:

First, I want to congratulate Nick on his impending graduation and wish him all the luck and success that life has to offer. That said, I think that Nick leaving the Buff football program is probably for the best. As the backup QB for the worst FBS team in the country last year, methinks that Nick was in no position to be demanding as far as a starter position goes this fall. He was offered the opportunity to compete and he was doing well, but then he decided to walk away. This was not the sign of a leader that Colorado needs right now. Fortunately, Connor Wood really seems to be coming into his own at this time, and is showing signs of why he was one of the most highly sought after QB's in the country coming out of high school. It's possible the development of Wood and the impending arrival of Sefo Liufau this summer provided too much of a challenge and Nick wanted to head somewhere that he might be guaranteed a starting spot. Good luck with that.

David Bakhtiari:

-- David was one of the bright spots for the Buff football team the last several years.

-- He opted not to go through another head coaching change at Colorado and decided to enter himself in the NFL Draft.

-- He became the 7th Buff ever to declare for the NFL. The first six were all drafted.

-- Somebody convinced him that he would go in the first or second round of the draft, which would come with a pretty good payday.

-- Someone convinced him that he was the 6th best offensive tackle in the draft.

-- After the first three rounds of the 2013 NFL draft, David has not heard his name called. A total of NINE offensive tackles have already been chosen in the first three rounds.

Opinion:

I really hope that David hears his name called soon when the draft resumes with round four. He is a talented guy who might very well have a NFL future. I commented early on when David declared for the draft that he could use another year of development before he was truly ready. The NFL is a hard club to get into, as David should know. His older brother has been cut something like 14 times trying for a career in the NFL. The best of luck to David, although I really wish he was going to be back in Boulder this fall as the Buffs try to get things turned around.

Andre Roberson:

-- Andre has been one of the stalwarts of the resurgence of Colorado Basketball under Tad Boyle.

-- Over the last two seasons, Andre has been one of the best rebounders in all of college basketball, and is one of the reasons why CU has been to the Big Dance two years in a row.

-- Andre was named the Pac 12 Defensive Player of the Year for this past season.

-- Andre is currently deciding on whether to end his Colorado career early and try to get into the NBA. He scheduled a press conference on Friday to announce his decision... and then cancelled the press conference at the last minute.

Opinion:

Like his head coach has stated in interviews, it seems that someone is pressuring Andre to declare for the NBA draft. As good as Andre is on the court, the fact is that his offensive game is not yet at an NBA level. There is a great chance that if Andre declares for the draft that he faces the very real chance of not being drafted. Unlike the NFL, the NBA draft has only TWO rounds. While there a few undrafted free agents doing well in the league, such as Jeremy Lin, the fact is that having his game ready at all levels will help Andre make it to the next level. The Buffs look to be loaded with talent next year and having that kind of support can only help Andre grow his game. If he does decide to leave, I wish him all the luck in the world... which he might need because the next stop if the NBA turns you down is usually Europe. Good luck whatever you decide to do, Andre.

CU Quarterback Nick Hirschman Transferring; Connor Wood Now QB to Beat in the Fall

The CU quarterback battle which started the spring with six QB's on scholarship has taken another hit. Nick Hirschman, who is graduating next month, has decided to transfer to another program for his last two years of eligibility. Because he graduating, he can transfer to another school without having to sit out a year (provided that the graduate program he goes into is not offered at Colorado).

After the first half of spring training was completed, Stevie Joe Dorman and John Schrock were dropped from the race to be named the number one QB. That left Hirschman, Jordan Webb, Connor Wood, and Shane Dillon tied atop the depth chart released on April 2nd. Since then, Jordan Webb has injured his knee and will be lost for the 2013 season, Hirschman has announced his departure and Shane Dillon had been dropped down the depth chart. For the time being, this leaves Connor Wood as number one on the depth chart.

There is no word yet on whether any other quarterbacks on the roster plan to transfer, but CU will welcome touted recruit Sefo Liufau for fall camp and may also go after JC transfer Nelson Fishback (Butte College in Oroville, California). With the injury to Webb and the transfer of Hirschman, Shane Dillon may be thrown back into the mix as well. Dillon may very well have the strongest arm of the bunch and is also considered by some to be the most athletic, but his mechanics could use a year of tutelage from QB coach Brian Lindgren.

Head Coach Mike MacIntyre has granted Hirschman a release from his scholarship to any school not in the Pac-12 or on CU's non-conference schedule for 2013 or 2014. MacIntyre wished Hirschman well but also noted the Buffs were losing a good leader going into player-led workouts for the summer.