Heavy favorites on Saturday, the Colorado football team found itself in a dogfight with Delaware late in the first half.
Then, Ryan Staub entered the game. The sophomore, third-string quarterback led the Buffs on 75-yard drive in 36 seconds, capped by his first touchdown pass in nearly two years, just before halftime.
Before he even got to the sideline, Staub was mobbed by teammates and coaches from offense and defense. “That’s what I’m talking about Staub!” one player yelled.
When the Buffs (1-1) visit Houston (2-0) on Friday night at TDECU Stadium (5:30 p.m., ESPN), it’s unclear who will get the starting nod at quarterback. But there’s no question CU was energized on Saturday by Staub, who threw two touchdown passes and led three scoring drives in a 31-7 win.
“Everybody’s energized when they see success and Staub jumping in there, and his first opportunity is the two-minute drill, is phenomenal,” CU head coach Deion Sanders said.
Throughout the offseason, senior Kaidon Salter and blue chip freshman recruit JuJu Lewis competed for the starting job. But Staub, now in his third season at CU, continued to work and battle with the newcomers.
Last week, Sanders said that Lewis would get some playing time behind Salter against Delaware. It was a surprise to many when Staub got a chance, too, but Sanders felt Staub had earned it.
“I’m at practice,” Sanders said. “You guys don’t get to see practice. … So my decisions are not just based on what I see in the game. My decisions are based on a lot about what I see in practice and what I know to be true and what should happen based on preparation and practice, and it happened.”
Game days bring a different energy, of course, and it was clear that CU’s players rallied around Staub, who had thrown just 44 career passes, and one touchdown, in his career before Saturday. He went 7-for-10 for 157 yards and two touchdowns against the Blue Hens.
“It didn’t surprise me not one bit that the guys in there playing were rooting for him, because he has that spirit,” offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur said.
Despite not having a lot of game experience, Staub had plenty of confidence because he’s been with Shurmur for more than two years.
“Obviously, I’ve been here for almost three years with him now, and we’ve built a great relationship,” Staub said. “I think, a lot of trust. He knows exactly what I’m good at and what I like, and we were able to roll.”
Staub, in fact, had enough confidence to change a couple of plays on Saturday. His second touchdown pass, a 71-yarder to Sincere Brown early in the third quarter, and a later pass to Brown, for 36 yards, came on go routes.
“Um, those plays he wasn’t supposed to run a go,” said Staub, who saw a mismatch and signaled to Brown to run deep. “I told him to run a go on both of those. If they press Sincere, it’s going up.”
Sanders said after the game Saturday he wasn’t going to reveal his plan for this week at quarterback, yet even he felt a change in his team when Staub’s turn in the rotation came up.
“They hit a switch where they see Stauby coming in that huddle,” Sanders said. “I don’t know if you guys could feel it from the outskirts, but they were like, ‘Hey, let’s go.’ Not that they like him more than others, but some guys just have that thing about them that you want to help them become successful. And he’s that kid. He’s one of those kids, man, and I’m proud.”
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