Colorado University Athletics
Buffs' Montez Not Typical 'First-Year' Starter
August 30, 2017 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Technically, the Colorado Buffaloes will enter the season with a new starting quarterback.
But in reality, Steven Montez is far from a newcomer. The Buffs sophomore played in 10 games last year, started in three and finished as the team's fourth-leading rusher (51 rushes for 231 yards and a touchdown) and second-leading passer (79-for-131 for 1,107 yards and 9 TDs). He also became the first player in CU history to rush for at least 100 yards and throw for at least 300 in the same game — a feat Sefo Liufau later matched — and he led the Buffs to a pair of victories in his three starts, including a pivotal come-from-behind victory at Oregon.
So while the Buffs did lose a four-year starter to graduation, they are by no means putting the reins of their offense into the hands of an untested rookie.
"I definitely feel like we're going in with a new quarterback, because Sefo was our starter for so long," head coach Mike MacIntyre said. "But, I'm not going in with an inexperienced, new starting quarterback. I think there's a difference there. I definitely believe that he's a lot farther along than he was this time last year. I know he's in better shape and he's more comfortable with the offense. As far as that goes, I feel really excited seeing Steven out there playing."
Montez's ability was put on full display with his "300-100" game in the win at Oregon, a week that began with Buffs fans wringing their hands because Liufau had suffered an injury in Michigan and one that finished with fans throwing their hands in the air in celebration.
But he has grown by leaps and bounds since the end of last season. He has retooled his body ("I was fat," he says) to a leaner, more efficient version, and equally importantly, he has greatly improved his understanding of CU's offense as well as his ability to read and react to opposing defenses.
Those last factors are a direct result of working closely with CU co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Brian Lindgren.
"He's been a ton of help," Montez said. "He changed my base. When I first got here I was standing up tall, balls were sailing on me, balls were just going into the ground — I wasn't throwing very well. He tweaked a lot of stuff in my base, a lot on my release. (Now) The ball's been coming out very well, it's been coming out with a lot of pace on it, so it looks good."
And, thanks to a full spring, summer and fall camp of working with his veteran wide receivers, offensive line and running backs, the offense has developed a strong chemistry that finished camp on a crisp, efficient note.
"I think we took that chemistry we had last year and we've kind of built on it in the spring and then in fall camp, so it's just gotten stronger," Montez said. "We all kind of understand what each other is thinking. We're on the same page most of the time and that's going to help us out a lot when it's game time."
Montez won't catch Colorado State, CU's opening opponent Friday (6 p.m., Pac-12 Networks) by surprise. Even though he's never thrown a pass against the Rams, they know who he is. Rams head coach Mike Bobo and his defensive coaches saw plenty of film of Montez over the summer.
"He is a new starting quarterback but he's not a guy that's unfamiliar to playing in big games," Bobo said. "He has experience and he's going to be able to draw on it."
That "big-game" experience will come in handy in Friday's opener. A crowd in the neighborhood of 70,000 is expected, with roughly half on the CSU side of Sports Authority Field.
It won't, however, be the biggest crowd Montez has seen. Last year, he made a relief appearance for an injured Liufau in Michigan in front of more than 100,000 fans. A week later he got his first collegiate start in front of a hostile capacity crowd at Autzen Stadium.
"I feel like I'm already past the first-year starter kind of thing with the experience I got last year, especially in the big games," Montez said. "That's not to say this year isn't also going to be another great time to get experience, and to get better as a player and as a quarterback. But I think I've definitely gotten past some of those first start jitters."
BALE AWARDED SCHOLARSHIP: MacIntyre awarded sophomore J.T. Bale a scholarship on Wednesday. Bale, a long snapper from La Mirada, Calif., made every long snap last season for the Buffs as a redshirt freshman.
"I'm really excited about J.T.," MacIntyre said. "He's done an excellent job here, he's done well in school. Last year he made every long snap for us and did really well. He's earned it and he'll use it well, I know."
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
