Northern Colorado braces for Brennan
By Pat Rooney
August 31, 2007
Myles Hayes understands he might be a marked man.
But the University of Northern Colorado cornerback won't be alone.
The man running the offense Saturday against Northern Colorado - Heisman Trophy candidate Colt Brennan of Hawaii - doesn't discriminate when it comes to his victims.
Give him room to construct a deep threat and Brennan will take it. Give him a few inches between the line of scrimmage and the first-down marker on third down and Brennan will take it.
So while Hawaii's quarterback might be relishing the chance to exploit a relatively untested quantity in Hayes, the entire Northern Colorado defense - a year removed from a 1-10 season - really is in his sights.
Brennan, whose career seemed moribund after off-field incidents ended a brief tenure at the University of Colorado, has reinvented himself as one of the nation's top passers in the run-and-shoot offense of Hawaii coach June Jones.
Brennan's Heisman campaign begins Saturday night when the 23rd-ranked Warriors host the Bears, who will play their first game as a fully accredited Division I-AA program.
"We're very excited to take on what's coming - one of the top passing offenses in the country," Hayes said.
The junior from Overland High School will be making only his second start. He will replace senior Aaron Henderson, one of the few experienced Northern Colorado defenders and the team's top punt returner, who is out with a knee injury.
With linebacker Asa Matthews, a seven-game starter a year ago, also sidelined for academic reasons, the Bears will be trying to stop the nation's most prolific passer without two of their most trusted components.
Making the little plays - finishing tackles, keeping receivers from running free deep - is the only way many experts believe the Bears can avoid a loss of epic proportions.
"Our mind-set is that we don't know them, but they don't know us," senior safety D.J. Craft said. "We want to throw off their timing as much as possible. It's the first week, so hustle plays and special teams should make a lot of difference."
The problem for Northern Colorado is Brennan's game rarely has been off since he landed on the islands.
Convicted of criminal trespass and burglary after an incident in a CU dormitory, Brennan spent one season at Saddleback Community College in his native Southern California before accepting Jones' walk-on offer.
Brennan's subsequent eruption under Jones' guidance has left CU fans pondering what might have been for the offensively challenged Buffaloes.
Despite missing two games as a sophomore in 2005, Brennan still led Division I-A with 4,455 yards of total offense and 35 touchdown passes, setting the stage for a remarkable 2006 junior season.
Brennan led Division I-A in total offense (422.5 yards a game) and completion percentage (72.6). He also established single-season NCAA records with 58 touchdown passes and a pass efficiency rating of 185.96.
The Warriors run Jones' passing attack with such precision that Northern Colorado coach Scott Downing joked his team traveled south from Greeley to practice against the Broncos to get a sense of the speed at which Hawaii plays.
Colt Brennan
• WATCH LISTS
Maxwell Award
Manning Award
Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award
Walter Camp Foundation Player of the Year.
• STATS 'N' STUFF
Led NCAA Division I-A in 2006:
Total offense: 422.5 yards a game.
Touchdown passes: 58.
Pass efficiency: 185.96.
Completion percentage: 72.6.
Total passing yards: 5,549.
Passing yards per game: 396.4.
• Fifty-eight touchdown passes and passer rating of 185.96 are NCAA Division I-A single-season records.
• Won 2006 Sammy Baugh Award as nation's top passer.
• Broke or tied 18 NCAA records, 17 Western Athletic Conference records and 41 school records in 2006.
• WAC Offensive Player of the Year and third team Associated Press All-American.
• Sixth in voting for 2006 Heisman.
• Has thrown a touchdown pass in 26 consecutive games and has thrown at least two touchdown passes in 18 consecutive games.
Northern Colorado at No. 23 Hawaii
• The game: 10 p.m. MDT Saturday, Aloha Stadium (50,000 capacity), Honolulu.
• The records: Opener for both teams.
• The series: First meeting.
• TV/radio: No television; KFKA-AM (1310) in Greeley and KRKS-AM (990) in Denver.
• Who's favored: No line.
• Scouting report: The Bears' main problem is how their defense will slow the prolific Hawaii attack led by Colt Brennan, but Northern Colorado's offense also will have an equally daunting challenge. The Bears averaged 11.7 points a game last season and need to develop a running game after the graduation of all-time leading rusher Andre Wilson. Quarterback Dominic Breazeale will start his second consecutive opener and lead a passing attack bolstered by the return of receiver Andy Birkel, who missed last season because of a knee injury.
