The numbers around Lamont Lester Jr. are hard to ignore. Six weeks into the season, the Colorado defensive lineman has put himself in the national conversation with a 91.2 Pro Football Focus defensive grade and a 92.1 pass-rush grade, a ridiculous return for a transfer who arrived from Monmouth, an FCS program in New Jersey.
Lester has produced those marks in four games, and the production jumps off the page even before you get to the grades. He leads the Big 12 with four sacks, ranks fourth in the conference with 15 quarterback pressures, and has added six tackles for loss. He missed Colorado’s 29-7 loss to Texas Tech with an ankle injury, but the damage he did before that was enough to turn heads well beyond Boulder.
There is one catch: the bulk of that destruction came before conference play started. Three of his sacks came in the opener, and all four came before Big 12 action began. That makes this weekend against Utah the next real checkpoint, if his ankle lets him go.
Colorado didn’t land Lester because he came with the biggest name or the loudest recruiting profile. The 6-2, 230-pound Jersey City native, who played at Don Bosco Prep, came off a Monmouth season in which he recorded 9.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss and won CAA Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Plenty of schools could have looked at his size and the level he came from and hesitated. Colorado didn’t.
Instead, he announced himself immediately. In his debut at Georgia Tech, he piled up three sacks, all of them on third down, in Colorado’s 14-13 win and picked up Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week honors.
That night also became a clean example of why Deion Sanders is willing to bet on smaller-school talent.
“A lot of these guys are great players where they came from. That’s why we got them,” Sanders said after the win in Atlanta.
He made the point even more bluntly.
“I don’t give a darn who’s out there on the other side. Football’s football,” Sanders said.
Lester said the spotlight came quickly after that Georgia Tech game, with a wave of messages and new followers following him. His answer to all of it has been to keep the noise out.
“Something I go by is ‘no rat poison,’ meaning don’t let the internet or stuff like that get to your head,” Lester said during a September media availability. “Always stay levelheaded and just go to work.”
He also pointed to Colorado defensive coordinator Chris Marve as a major part of how he plays.
“The mindset for the whole defense, not just the D-line, is something we preach every day,” Lester said. “Coach Marve does a good job. It’s violence and aggression, playing fast, physical, smart and relentless effort.”
Colorado has gotten production elsewhere up front, too. Defensive end Toby Anene had a sack against Texas Tech, and defensive tackle Santana Hopper entered the bye with 16 quarterback pressures, one more than Lester. If Lester is available again, the Buffaloes can threaten quarterbacks from multiple spots.
That’s what makes his status so important heading into No. 11 Utah’s visit to Folsom Field this weekend. Colorado’s bye gave its sack leader extra time to recover, but his availability is still up in the air.
Utah brings its own pressure points. The Utes beat Kansas 41-24 on Saturday behind 287 rushing yards, three passing touchdowns and another score on the ground from Devon Dampier.
Wayshawn Parker added a 90-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. Kansas did manage three sacks and forced a first-quarter fumble from Dampier, which offers Colorado a template of sorts.
The problem is that Utah can also punish overaggression. If Colorado rushes too recklessly, Dampier and Parker can turn that into something much bigger.
Lester has already shown he can finish drives on third down. Against Utah, Colorado may need him to strike before the Utes even get there.
In Other News...
Colorados Quarterback Battle Just Took An Interesting New Turn
After Julian Lewis and Isaac Wilson both had rough starts, the quarterback picture in Boulder has shifted again, and Kaneal Sweetwyne is the one name still untouched. He remains the only Buffaloes quarterback who has not yet been used, which has naturally kept him at the center of the conversation as Colorado looks for steadier play at the position.
One small roster wrinkle added to the intrigue this week when wide receiver Quanell Farrakhan Jr. moved from No. 14 to No. 5, a change that also clears the way for Sweetwyne to keep wearing No. 14. Deion Sanders has made it clear he would only turn to Sweetwyne if the freshman is willing to commit long-term, but Colorado has not announced any official decision, leaving the situation open for now. [Read more 🡒]
Colorado Gets A Harsh Reality Check With Utah Coming To Boulder
Colorado is staring at a difficult reset Saturday at Folsom Field, where the Buffaloes will try to steady themselves against an undefeated Utah team in a Big 12 matchup that has already drawn a clear verdict from oddsmakers. After a recent change at quarterback, Colorado is looking for signs of stability and rhythm, but the matchup does not offer much margin for error against a Utes team that has handled business all season.
Utah comes in with a spotless 5-0 record and the kind of offense that has made it a problem for opponents, which is why the line has pushed so firmly in its favor. Colorado, meanwhile, is trying to rebound from a rough stretch and prove it can compete with a heavyweight, even if the numbers suggest this is a steep climb. [Read more 🡒]
Buffs Suffer A Brutal Big 12 Loss With More At Stake Now
A tense Big 12 meeting at Prentup Field turned into a costly setback for the Buffaloes, who fell 1-0 to Kansas in a result that carried real weight in the league race. Colorado entered the match with momentum and a long run of success behind it, but the Jayhawks found a way to leave Boulder with the kind of road win that can reshape a season.
The loss nudged Colorado to 9-4-1 and sent Kansas to 10-3-1, but the bigger concern for the Buffs is how abruptly the night shifted late. With the game still scoreless deep into the second half, Kansas midfielder Marit McLaughlin delivered the decisive moment in the 84th minute, a finish that snapped Colorados unbeaten run at home and left the Buffs with a much different feeling heading into the next stretch. [Read more 🡒]