Colorado’s defense may already have a head start on Georgia Tech, and it comes from the practice field.
With the Buffaloes set to open their season in Atlanta in less than a week, linebacker Liona Lefau pointed to the daily work against offensive coordinator Brennan Marion’s “Go-Go” offense as a built-in rehearsal for what the Yellow Jackets like to do. Colorado has leaned heavily on the run in that system, often using 21 personnel with both running backs split to one side for a triple-option look. The Buffaloes have also featured quarterback Julian Lewis much more in the run game than they did last season.
That combination, Lefau said Thursday, has sharpened the defense for a matchup that figures to demand discipline on every snap.
“I think it’s going to help us a lot,” Lefau said. “Any time you practice fitting in a plus-one run game, which is when you account for the quarterback as well, it challenges your rules at times.
So just having the quarterback accounted for in each of our run fits, it helps when we prepare for a team like Georgia Tech, who we’re expecting to run their quarterback. So we’re going to make sure that we have the quarterback accounted for as well.”
That detail matters because Colorado’s run defense was the weak spot in the 2025 meeting between these teams. Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King did the heavy damage, rushing for 156 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries. Jamal Haynes and Malachi Hosley added 112 yards on the ground between them, and the Yellow Jackets kept grinding Colorado down as the game wore on.
The Buffaloes still put up 20 points, but they couldn’t slow the ground game enough to get the result they wanted.
This time around, Colorado believes it has more tools to handle that challenge. The Buffaloes have added a new linebacker group with the kind of burst and downhill punch that can create problems on blitzes, and defensive coordinator Chris Marve’s emphasis on aggression and violence should keep those pressures coming.
Up front, Tulane transfer Santana Hopper and Appalachian State transfer Dylan Manuel have stood out on the interior defensive line during practice. Their presence gives Colorado more hope of holding up against the run after what happened a year ago.
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Even in a loss, Campbells performance stood out for more than the box score. He handled the pressure of a rivalry setting, took hits and kept producing, a reminder that Georgia Tech is getting a quarterback with toughness to go along with his playmaking. For a program built around keeping defenses off balance, that blend of running and throwing is exactly what makes Campbell such a compelling piece of the future. [Read more 🡒]