Colorado’s offensive line of the future added a mauler last week.
The Buffs landed a commitment from Ben Gula, a 6’5”, 285 pound interior offensive lineman out of Cypress Bay High School in Fort Lauderdale.
Now, for those of you that grew up in the 1990s and watched Nick Jr., you’ll be glad to know that now Gula Island (technically Gullah Gullah Island) will soon be located in Boulder, Colorado. Click the link:
Gula becomes the Buffs’ 10th commit in the 2026 class and the third Floridian in that group. A three-star prospect by the major services, Gula is rated around the top 75 interior linemen nationally (247Sports Composite 0.8693, ~#830 overall).
On paper, a mid-tier three-star offensive lineman commitment in August might not make national headlines. However, Gula is a run blocking machine. He makes more pancakes than Krusteaz. He’s a high floor player who, by adding a bit more quickness (more on that below), could materially outperform his recruiting rankings.
CU currently projects Gula as a center. CU’s projection of Gula as a center speaks to the staff’s faith in his football IQ — centers need to be vocal leaders, quick-decision makers with a high football IQ.
Scouting:
https://www.hudl.com/video/3/18048207/676edf567f2c3fb013579fd6
If you’re into trench defensive linemen getting pushed 30 yards downfield (and what Buffs fan isn’t, after last year’s OL fiasco?), do yourself a favor and check out Gula’s highlight reel. The highlight film is basically a pancake parade set to music. Gula’s film features rep after rep of him planting defenders into the turf and clearing highways for his running backs. I
As a sophomore, he racked up over 110 pancake blocks on the season, including one absurd game with 30 pancakes by his own count. On film you can see why. Gula fires off the ball low and powerful, getting under opponents’ pads and driving them with leg churn and a nasty streak. He plays with a finishers’ mentality. For a Colorado offense that needs more attitude up front, Gula brings plenty of it (it’s very easy to get excited thinking about Chauncey Gooden and Ben Gula playing side-by-side).
And Gula isn’t just a bull in a china shop. He shows impressive technique and control for a young lineman. Indeed, his film shows a balanced blocker who maintains good base and hand placement, rather than lunging. That discipline is evident in pass protection reps, where he sets a wide base and delivers a strong punch without overextending. At 6’5” and already 285 pounds, Gula has a college-ready frame (he’s added significant weight since being listed at 6’5”, 255 last spring).
Gula is no slouch in the weight room, either. He was benching 350 pounds and squatting over 500 pounds as a 16-year-old sophomore. He’ll walk into Coach Swasey’s strength program stronger than several offensive lineman already on the team. While rare for a true freshman to find playing time on the offensive line, Gula may be unique due to his stength. It may give him a chance to play early.
The reason that Gula isn’t rated higher is due to concerns about his foot speed and agility. Gula himself has acknowledged that improving agility has been his offseason focus. Watching his film, however, it’s clear that he’s a solid athlete for his size and quick enough to climb to the second level.
If he shows a little more quickness this fall, his recruiting rankings will blow up.
Offers:
By the end of his recruitment, Gula held 21 offers from programs across the country including offers from Texas A&M, Indiana, Maryland, Wake Forest and UCF. When all was said and done, he narrowed things to a final top 2 of Colorado and UCF, taking visits to both schools in June. The hometown Knights made a strong push to keep him in Florida, but Colorado ultimately won out, as Gula announced his commitment to the Buffs on August 1st.
Also of note: Gula becomes the second offensive lineman in CU’s 2026 class, joining fellow Floridian Xavier Payne, a former FSU commit. Stealing two Sunshine State offensive linemen – one from Florida State and one from UCF – is a nice flex by the Buffs’ staff.
Why Colorado?
How did Colorado win out for a South Florida lineman with plenty of options? Opportunity. Gula was drawn to the chance to play early and be part of a rebuilding Buffs line. “Coach Prime told me he doesn’t bring in kids to redshirt them, he expects me to be able to play,” Gula revealed of Sanders’ pitch.
It certainly didn’t hurt that Colorado could sell a vision of immediate impact. If there’s one place a 2026 recruit can eye the depth chart and realistically imagine himself cracking the two-deep quickly, it’s the Buffs offensive line. By committing to CU, Gula knows he’s walking into a situation where if he puts in the work, he might see the field early in his college career. That was a major selling point.
Beyond playing time, Gula also connected with the culture and energy around the CU program. Gula mentioned that the mountains of Boulder surprised him, and that it was surreal to see them in person. He told Sports Illustrated that playing in Boulder instead of Florida would help him “go out there and make that mark on myself as a person, and not knowing anyone up there and going and showing my mom and my family, and my friends that I can go and do it. I’m my own individual, and I can make things happen, and I’m gonna go places.”
Scheme Fit:
Colorado is recruiting Gula to be an anchor at center. That makes a ton of sense given his skill set. He’s a stout, broad-bodied blocker who plays with a low pad level and strong base, which is ideal for handling (and moving) big nose tackles.
His experience at all five O-line positions in high school also suggests he’s a quick study, which bodes well if he’s making line calls in a couple years. One could envision him as the trigger-man for protection adjustments once he learns the system. Physically, Gula’s strengths align with a power-running attack: he can drive defenders off the ball in short-yardage and brings a nastiness to reset the line of scrimmage. If Colorado wants to revive its run game, a road-grader like Gula in the middle is needed.
YMRCFSPA (Your Most Reasonable Colorado Football Similar Player Analog)
For a Colorado comp, there’s a hint of Tim Lynott Jr. in Gula’s game. Lynott was a freshman All-American for the Buffs at guard/center, valued for his consistency and run blocking, and Gula has that versatile pedigree (plus Tim’s thick build). The way Gula finishes blocks and leads by example will remind Buff fans of those stalwart interior linemen like Lynott who brought their lunch-pail every snap. In a few years, if all goes to plan, Gula could be that kind of reliable multi-year starter and tone-setter on the Buffs’ line.
TL:DR
Ben Gula is a devastating run blocker. His pass pro clips are less flashy but demonstrate good awareness, as he slides to pick up blitzers. As a projected center, Gula should be a future anchor for the offensive line as a high floor prospect that plays until the final whistle.
Dad joke headline alert.