Colorado University Athletics
CU's Montez Says He'll Be Ready If Liufau Can't Go Vs. Ducks
September 19, 2016 | Football, Neill Woelk
Buffs' redshirt freshman had rough day at Michigan
BOULDER — While Sefo Liufau watched from the sidelines Monday morning, Colorado redshirt freshman Steven Montez took reps with the Buffs' No. 1 offense.
CU head coach Mike MacIntyre told the media that Liufau, hobbled by an ankle injury suffered in Saturday's loss to Michigan, is "day to day."
On this day, it meant Montez was preparing as if he might be the starter Saturday when the Buffs open their Pac-12 schedule at Oregon (3:30 p.m., Pac-12 Networks).
MacIntyre said Liufau was "moving around better today than he was yesterday," but his status for Saturday won't be determined until later this week.
"If he's moving good enough to play, we'll play him," MacIntyre said. "If he's not moving good enough to play, then we won't play him. We'll know as the week goes along."
No matter what happens Saturday, Montez hopes to be better prepared than he was against the Wolverines, when he was thrust into the game early in the third quarter after Liufau couldn't continue.
"Things were coming real fast at Michigan," Montez admitted Monday morning. "I tried to do what I could, but they were coming really fast and I made some mistakes. We're going to clean those up and look better and hopefully go to Oregon to get a 'W'."
Montez's numbers against the Wolverines were indicative of his struggles. He threw seven passes without a completion and was sacked twice. He did rush four times for 10 yards, but thanks to the two sacks, he finished with a net rushing total of minus-four yards.
"Hopefully that game will be to my benefit and help me mature a little bit," Montez said. "I think overall it was a good experience to be in a stadium with 110,000 people. That can't be bad for you."
Two weeks ago, Montez had a much better showing, albeit against a lesser opponent. In mop-up duty against Idaho State, he completed six of 10 passes for 117 yards and two touchdowns, including a 69-yard scoring toss to Kabion Ento on his first collegiate attempt.
"It was definitely different," Montez said of comparing the two games. "I've just got to stay true to my reads and not try to do too much and not get away from what I'm usually good at doing. That's what got me in trouble."
Montez enjoyed a solid spring with the Buffs as they tweaked their offense to include more up-tempo pace. With Liufau on the sidelines rehabbing a Lisfranc injury, Montez got the majority of snaps with the No. 1 offense.
But when Liufau returned to practice in time for fall camp, it means Montez was back to the No. 2 unit, sharing reps with senior Jordan Gehrke.
Montez did have some good throws against Michigan. His first attempt, a deep ball to tight end George Frazier, was an on-the-money toss that would have given CU a first-and-goal.
But he was sacked on the next play, and it was apparent that he was having trouble adjusting to Michigan's defense.
"I had some decent throws, I had some bad throws," Montez said. "I need to be more consistent. A little nerves, a little just not knowing the situation."
Now, he said, he'll be ready if Liufau can't go against the Ducks.
"I"m definitely going to be ready to play, no matter what the situation," Montez said. "(Monday) I practiced well, threw the ball well, ran it well, controlled the offense. We're just going to get better throughout the week, go to Oregon and hopefully we're firing on all cylinders."
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
