Colorado’s secondary is already putting in the kind of work that gets noticed before fall camp even opens.
With practice set to begin on Aug. 2, Buffs defensive backs Naeten Mitchell, Jason Stokes and Jah Jah Boyd took part in an intense Saturday workout with trainer Jonny Bridgewater.
They weren’t alone, either. The session also included other college football players and NFL offensive lineman Drake Nugent, the former Michigan Wolverine now with the San Francisco 49ers.
That kind of offseason grind has become a theme for Colorado’s defensive back room. During the spring, transfer safety and cornerback Boo Carter was also seen working at the Buffs’ practice facility while the team had the day off. Mitchell, Stokes and Boyd are keeping that same energy going, choosing extra reps instead of extra rest as the season approaches.
The group comes with plenty of new faces, and that makes the commitment even more notable. Mitchell, Boyd, Stokes and Carter are all examples of the turnover Colorado is working through in the secondary. But the work they’ve shown away from the field suggests a unit that is serious about getting comfortable fast in a new system.
Mitchell looks like the most established of the bunch heading into camp. In 2025 at New Mexico State, he was the Aggies’ defensive centerpiece, leading the team with 93 tackles, including 58 solo stops. He also added seven pass breakups, four forced fumbles and three interceptions, one of them a pick-six.
Boyd has already shown flashes of his own. He stood out in spring camp and followed that up with a solid spring game, finishing with four tackles, three of them unassisted, plus a tackle for loss.
He also spent 2025 around a championship environment with the Indiana Hoosiers, who went on to win the National Championship. If he turns that into a starting job, Colorado could have another impact piece on its hands.
Stokes is the youngest of the trio and still has room to grow. As a freshman with Utah, he played in all 12 games but was used mostly on special teams. He finished with three tackles, two unassisted, and a pass breakup.
Mitchell and Boyd are both juniors, while Stokes is set to be a sophomore in 2026. That gives Colorado time to keep developing all three inside its system, and if the progress keeps coming, this could end up being the backbone of the Buffs’ secondary down the road.
The workout also featured two players from Air Force: linebacker Jake Kepler and defensive back Alex Perez. For Colorado, getting that kind of outside competition this late in the offseason is a useful bonus, and it should only sharpen the group before camp begins.
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