BOULDER — A dozen University of Colorado football players made the various All-Pac-12 Conference football teams, with their head coach also earning special recognition, the league office announced Tuesday.
First-year head coach Karl Dorrell was named the Pac-12’s Coach of the Year and sophomore tailback Jarek Broussard earned the league’s Offensive Player of the Year award.
Broussard also earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors, and was joined by inside linebacker Nate Landman, who made the top team for the second straight year.
Dorrell is the sixth Colorado coach to earn the conference coach of the year honor, joining Dal Ward (1956, Big Seven), Eddie Crowder (1965, Big Eight), Bill McCartney (1985, 1989, 1990 Big Eight), Gary Barnett (2001, 2004 Big 12) and Mike MacIntyre (2016, Pac-12). On Monday, he was named as one of nine finalists for the FWAA/Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year Award. It’s the second time he’s been afforded the Pac-12 honor, as he was co-coach of the year in 2005 when at UCLA.
The Buffaloes started 4-0 under Dorrell, as only Harry Heller (won his first seven in 1894), Willis Kleinholtz (six in 1905), T.W. Mortimer (five in 1900) and Rick Neuheisel (five in 1995) won as many or more to open their CU careers (Dorrell was the offensive coordinator on Neuheisel’s staff). Dorrell was the sixth CU coach to open 3-0 in conference games, but the first since Jim Yeager in 1941.
Of the 23 new head coaches in 2020, he was the last of the group who was undefeated through games of Dec. 6. He is the third CU head coach to lead the Buffs to a bowl game in his first season.
“I am honored, but as I have said, it’s really a team award,” Dorrell said. “It all starts with a great coaching staff and then players who are coachable and buy into what we want to accomplish, which is to get this program into a better position. I am appreciative and honored by the recognition, but honors such as these are truly a team effort.”
Broussard literally joins a “Who’s Who” of Buffaloes who have been honored with conference player of the year honors on offense. The sixth player to be recognized with the award, he was preceded by quarterback Darian Hagan (1989), tailback Eric Bieniemy (1990), receiver Charles E. Johnson (1993), receiver Michael Westbrook (1994), and tailback Chris Brown (2002, Big 12).
Broussard led the Pac-12 in rushing during the regular season, averaging 162.6 yards per game, with his 175.6 average for all-purpose yards also a league-best. Only the fourth player to gain 100 or more yards in his first four career games in the NCAA Division I-A/FBS since 1996, he is the first Buffalo running back to earn first-team all-conference honors since Brown in 2002 (Big 12). He is one of 14 finalists for the Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award, as he missed the last two full seasons after undergoing two ACL surgeries on the same knee.
Colorado is set to meet No. 20 Texas in the Valero Alamo Bowl on Dec. 29th in San Antonio, Texas. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Courtesy: Colorado Athletics
