{"id":4026,"date":"2026-08-22T10:03:43","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T10:03:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=4026"},"modified":"2026-08-22T10:03:43","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T10:03:43","slug":"running-backs-competing-until-preseason-finish-line-for-cu-buffs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=4026","title":{"rendered":"Running backs competing until preseason finish line for CU Buffs"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Getting your Trinity Audio player ready…<\/strong><\/div>\n
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Given his background with the Go-Go offense, JaQuail Smith has been a voice of clarity in Colorado\u2019s highly competitive running backs room.<\/p>\n

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Smith and fellow running back Damian Henderson II both transferred to CU this year from Sacramento State, where they became well-versed in the Go-Go attack new Buffaloes offensive coordinator Brennan Marion has brought to Boulder.<\/p>\n

As Marion and his two running back devotees make the transition to the power conference level at Colorado \u2014 Sacramento State was an FCS-level program that\u2019s transitioning to FBS this year \u2014 Smith was asked if any wrinkles have been added to the attack, or if he\u2019s essentially running the same offense he ran last year with the Hornets.<\/p>\n

\u201cStay tuned,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n

Buffs fans will have to wait two more weeks to get their answer, as the Sept. 3 season opener at Georgia Tech inches closer.<\/p>\n

The run game has struggled to gain traction throughout head coach Deion Sanders\u2019 previous three seasons at CU, but Marion\u2019s ground-based attack should change that. For instance, Henderson rushed for 565 yards for Sacramento State last year, while Smith added another 511 in just eight games. Those numbers ranked second and third, respectively, for the Hornets, but they would\u2019ve led the 2025 Buffs by a significant margin.<\/p>\n

Smith recorded four 100-yard games last year in his eight appearances, and he was part of a performance against Weber State \u2014 CU\u2019s opponent in the home opener Sept. 12 \u2014 that saw Sacramento State produce three 100-yard rushers in the same game for the first time in team history.<\/p>\n

Given that combination of volume and efficiency, Smith said all that was needed for him to follow Marion to Colorado was to be asked.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI knew I was coming. There was nothing to talk about,\u201d Smith said. \u201cI knew I wanted to be here with him. It was a quick phone call. Coach Marion is a fun guy. Me being from Florida and going to Cali, I had to lean on him. He just made me a better football player and a better person overall.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Smith and Henderson bring Go-Go experience to the competition being overseen by first-year running backs coach Johnnie Mack, the crowded battle for playing time includes backs with an array of skills and strengths.<\/p>\n

Richard Young was productive in limited chances during three seasons at Alabama and has recovered from an injury that limited him over the summer. Micah Welch was the Buffs\u2019 leading rusher last year. DeKalon Taylor is a scat-back who\u2019s a solid receiver out of the backfield.<\/p>\n

Someone will get the start against Georgia Tech. But given CU\u2019s depth at the position, and the array of formations and matchup mismatches the Go-Go offense looks to exploit, the Buffs likely will utilize multiple backs out of the gate.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Unless, of course, someone gets hot.<\/p>\n

\u201cStill competition right now,\u201d said Mack, who joined CU more than a year ago as an analyst before getting promoted. \u201cI know it\u2019s two weeks away, but we don\u2019t have a starter yet. I\u2019m making these guys continue to compete \u2019til the end. Once we get to game week, it\u2019ll really start to narrow down a little bit more. This week is still, to me, open competition, to give these guys another week to kind of compete more.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do a multitude of personnels. So we\u2019ll have a multitude of guys to be able to play for us. But at the end of the day, once a guy gets hot, I\u2019m gonna roll with the hot guy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more CSP sergeant assaulted woman, threatened her before his arrest, Weld County officials say<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

JaQuail Smith and Damian Henderson II followed offensive coordinator Brennan Marion to Colorado from Sacramento State, and the duo is competing with a wide array of running backs for playing time in the Buffaloes’ Go-Go offense.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4025,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4026","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nRunning backs competing until preseason finish line for CU Buffs - Colorado Springs Moverss<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=4026\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Running backs competing until preseason finish line for CU Buffs - 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