Colorado football LB coach reveals Coach Prime's mindset on LB room
Colorado football LB coach Andre' Hart revealed Coach Prime's mindset on the Buffs' LB room as CU progresses toward the Black and Gold spring game on April 27: Colorado will lean on the in-house options but will explore the transfer portal if they feel it's necessary.
“The thing about Coach Prime is he’s always pushing the envelope to get better, which I love,” Hart said (h/t BuffZone). “Prime wants to push the envelope and create competition, which I love. The more competition you create, they don’t sleep well, I sleep good. I like that.
“So if we bring in another guy – we have been looking and we have some guys kind of figured out that we’d like to go after, if that’s the case – but right now we’re focusing on what we have in house and making those guys better.”
The Buffs are relying on tackle leader LaVonta Bentley and safety-turned-linebacker Trevor Woods to lead the room, but FAU transfer Jaylen Wester has reportedly made strides during spring ball according to BuffZone's Brian Howell.
Jaylen Wester, whose brother, LaJohntay, was brought in to help replace Xavier Weaver's production -- though Wester will be doing his damage as an offset FB as opposed to Weaver, a game-breaking WR-X -- is among the many trench weapons expected to lift a defense that slowly found its footing during the 2023 season.
Colorado football LB Andre' Hart on Trevor Woods' position switch
Hart explained how he's handling Woods's full-time switch from safety to linebacker that started during the 2023 season but was solidified during the 2024 season.
“That was something we had to talk to Trevor about, to make sure he understood his role going forward, and what he would be to us and how much he means to us,” Hart said. “Because you have the portal these days, right? And a guy can jump in there and go and do some things and we didn’t want to lose Trevor. We think he’s a great kid, great asset, great teammate, and he’s not gonna do anything but make us better in that linebacker room.”
Between Bentley, Wood, and Wester, CU may be scary in the middle defensively. The Buffs have come a long way over the offseason given that their LB room was their biggest defensive weakness last season.