Colorado’s offense is bringing back a look that has mostly disappeared from modern football, and tight ends coach Josh Niblett says the fullback position is part of the plan.
The Buffaloes are running Brennan Marion’s “Go-Go” system this fall, an offense built on downhill running and vertical shots down the field. Marion’s approach traces back to Gus Malzahn, whose Auburn attack with Cam Newton helped popularize the RPO game. But in Boulder, the twist is that the scheme is reviving a role Colorado has barely used in recent years.
Niblett said the fullback is back in play when Colorado lines up in 12 personnel. According to Jake Schwanitz of DNVR, he said, “[Tight end] Brady Kopetz [is] in the conversation to play that role,” Schwanitz revealed via the social media website X, formerly Twitter.
That has already caught the attention of Buffaloes fans, who see it as a return to a tougher, more old-school identity. The fullback has often been treated like a relic in today’s game, squeezed out as teams leaned into spread formations or moved away from using a lead blocker altogether.
Colorado has gone without that kind of presence for much of the Coach Prime era, with Deion Sanders previously relying on Sean Lewis and Pat Shurmur to run a shotgun, up-tempo passing attack. Marion’s arrival changes that equation.
The position also carries some real history in Boulder. Lawrence Vickers is widely viewed as the last true fullback to make a lasting impact there, battering defenders from 2002 to 2005 in Colorado’s I-Formation days before being taken in the sixth round by the Cleveland Browns in 2006 and playing through 2012.
Before him came Brandon Drumm, the “Alaska Bulldozer,” who averaged seven yards a carry and scored four touchdowns in his final season in 2002. His blocking helped set the table for Colorado’s last Big 12 title in 2001, while Chris Brown and Bobby Purify each topped 900 rushing yards and combined for 21 touchdowns.
And the Buffs’ first ever highest-drafted offensive player was a fullback, too. Bo Matthews went No. 2 overall in 1974 after putting up 1,339 yards and 11 touchdowns. Travis Hunter later became Colorado’s second-ever No. 2 pick, though he did it as a two-way star at wide receiver and cornerback.
Now the spotlight shifts to Kopetz, a 6-4, 270-pound former special teamer who could carve out a larger role on offense while helping bring back a bruising position that once defined parts of Colorado football.
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