SPRING ROSTER 2025 OVERANALYSIS (PT. 2 of 2): THE BIGGEST TEAM IN CU HISTORY, AND NOTES ON 2 NEW COMMITMENTS

The CU football staff finally put out the new spring roster (or, as we call it, the PHONEBOOK) and we here at BuffsBlog couldn’t be more excited!  This is part 2 of our over-analysis — for part 1 (where we look at all the freshman and transfers), check out:

SPRING ROSTER 2025 OVERANALYSIS (PT. 1 OF 2): THE FRESHMEN AND TRANSFERS

Now, for a few quick reminders:

First, we call the roster the PHONEBOOK. Why? We live for any chance to give a shoutout to The Jerk….

As always with these posts, all weight loss is good and all weight gain is good.

Note that all roster comparisons are to CU’s fall 2024 roster except for newcomers.  For newcomers, we’re comparing them against the CU football recruiting roster that was released last December.   

Another important note — each of TE Sam Hart, RB Isaiah Augustave, S Savion Riley, and DE Keaten Wade are not on the roster this spring.  Augustave has entered the transfer portal.  The good news is that we’ve heard Wade is still with the team.  

Last, particularly interesting changes have been bolded in the charts below.

So without further ado, let’s jump in:  

Offensive line (or here we go…..)

	2024 WEIGHT	2025 WEIGHT	DIFFERENCE
CHAUNCEY GOODEN	360	380	+20
CASH CLEVELAND	300	290	-10
PHILLIP HOUSTON	250	290	+40
KAREEM HARDEN	315	330	+15
TYLER BROWN	310	325	+15
MANA TAIMANI	345	340	-5
ZARIAN MCGILL	310	320	+10
YAHYA ATTIA	330	340	+10
VERTIS SHELBY	310	310	—
CARDE SMITH	290	300	+10
JAY GARDENHIRE	330	380	+50
ZYLON CRISLER	350	340	-10
AKI OGUNBIYI	315	340	+25
ZACH OWENS	375	345	-30
JORDAN SEATON	285	330	+45

[Editor’s note: Colorado receievd a commitment this weekend from Memphis transfer offensive lineman Xavier Hill. The 6’4″ 318 pound Hill was named 1st team All-AAC by Phil Steele (the man, the myth and the legend) and 2nd team All-AAC by the conference’s coaches. Hill’s Pro Football Focus score was an 84 — which would give him the highest PFF score among CU’s offensive lineman by a large margin. As a point of reference, Travis Hunter’s PFF score last year on offense was 86. Hill gives CU a 2nd All Big 12-level offensive lineman (along with Jordan Seaton). There are some that speculate that Hill will play guard — I think that’s probably incorrect. Instead, I think he plays tackle given CU’s issues at right tackle — but if Philip Houston comes back healthy, then Houston could play RT and Hill may slide inside. There’s been some buzz this spring about Mana Taimani, and he’s been starting with the 1s this spring, but it’s very rare that a player that struggled to get on the field for 4 years makes a huge leap in producitivty and ability in his 5th season. Regardless, the addition of Hill is very good news for the Buffs.]

Notes:  Now THIS is interesting.

Phillip Houston has been working hard at putting on weight while injured.  This is good weight – Houston is CU’s best right tackle when healthy and now he has the size to be even more effective.  Last year Houston was still prone to getting beat by power moves and bull rushing, and was listedd at 250 pounds although I’ve heard he played closer to 270.  Regardless, te added weight will really help him.

Jordan Seaton’s weigh gain surprised me.  In recent pictures he still appears yoked so the 45 pounds that he’s added looks like good weight.  Having a 330 pound block of granite to protect Kaidon Salter’s blindside is phenomenal news.   I view Aki Ogunbiyi’s weight gain less positively as he’s had 4+ years of collegiate strength and conditioning already so I’d be surprised if the weight gain was all “good weight.”  Each of Gardenshire and Gooden probably need to lose weight to be effective at the collegiate level.

Also, I want to give a shout out to Zach Owens.  Owens  is down 30 pounds to 345 and relatedly is getting run with the 1s in practice.  Sometimes big can be too big, and I hope that Owens has found the right weight for him to play effectively.

Last, CU may end up trotting out a starting offensive line that goes (left to right) 330 (Seaton) – 330 (Harden) – 340 (Attia) – 340 (Crisler) – 340 (Taimani), with backups being Owens (345), McGill (320) and Ogunbiyi (340).  That’s insane size.  No matter who CU trots out to start against Georgia Tech on August 29^th, it will be the largest offensive line in CU football history.

Quarterbacks

	2024 WEIGHT	2025 WEIGHT	DIFFERENCE
KAIDON SALTER	200	190	-10
JUJU LEWIS	190	190	—
RYAN STAUB	200	200	—

Notes:  Not a lot to note here, except that there was some concern that Lewis’ was slighter than advertised.  The fact that he’s weighed in at 190 pounds is a great sign.  He and Salter have identical height and weight.  

Running backs

	2024 WEIGHT	2025 WEIGHT	DIFFERENCE
DALLAN HAYDEN	205	205	—
BRANDON HOOD	185	200	+15
MICAH WELCH	205	215	+10
CHARLIE OFFERDAHL	185	190	+5

Notes:  With the departure of Isaiah Augustave, it becomes important for the Buffs to add a transfer in the spring portal.  Brandon Hood’s 15-pound weight gain is positive – Hood has played well this spring and has vaulted himself into contention for meaningful playing time in the fall.  Welch gained 10 pounds — which is presumably good but he has always played bigger than he actually is (if that makes sense).  

Wide receiver

	2024 WEIGHT	2025 WEIGHT	DIFFERENCE
OMARRION MILLER	195	210	+15
DRELON MILLER	195	220	+25
JOSEPH WILLIAMS	195	200	+5
KALEB MATHIS	165	155	-10
QUANELL “X” FARRAKHAN JR.	170	180	+10
QUENTIN GIBSON	165	155	-10
ISAIAH HARDGE	160	165	+5
KAM MIKELL	190	195	+5
ADRIAN WILSON	170	165	-5
TERRELL TIMMONS	195	185	-10

[Editor’s note: Colorado receievd a massive commitment today from Campbell transfer and 6’5″ WR Sincere Brown. Brown is a wholly unique combination of size and speed — he’s a true deep thread and runs a 4.38 second 40-yad dash. In fact, future NFL draft pick Jimmy Horn Jr. told us that Brown is actually faster than Horn Jr. — the two were teammates at South Florida for a short period of time. I’m calling my shot right now — Brown will be a first or second day NFL draft pick in a year. CU has not had a player with his size/speed combination in a long, long time (maybe since 6’4″ Michael Westbrook?). And it’s always good to have a former Fighting Camel player on the roster.]

Notes: The biggest jump is Drelon Miller’s 25 pound weight gain.  Miller is CU’s “joker” (to use a phrase made famous by Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton).  Miller will line up in the backfield, he’ll split out wide, and he will also play TE/H-back.  I suspect that the weight gain will enable him to play in-line more than he did last year.  Now, Miller has said publicly that his listed roster weight is not 100% accurate and that he’s actually 210 pounds….but I also have tried to convince folks that my scale is broken, so take this with a grain of salt.

Omarrion Miller is a big, physical receiver that can really run.  The added weight should help him run blocking from the outside.

Of the three freshman wide receivers, Quanell “X” Farrakhan Jr. might be the most ready to play this fall. He’s really developed positive buzz this spring, and I think he will play a lot this fall.   I suspect that Adrian Wilson and Quentin Gibson will need to put on additional size to be effective at this level. 

Tight ends

	2024 WEIGHT	2025 WEIGHT	DIFFERENCE
SAV’ELL SMALLS	260	265	+5
ZACH ATKINS	240	240	—
CORBIN LEISURE	225	250	+25

Note: There is no depth at tight end.  Atkins is going to determine whether this unit is okay or whether it’s horrific. Leisure’s weight gain is a positive. 

Deion Sanders should be smiling considering the size and skill of the defensive line.

Defensive tackle

	2024 WEIGHT	2025 WEIGHT	DIFFERENCE
AMARI MCNEILL	295	300	+5
TAUREAN CARTER III	303	280	-23
JEHEIM OATIS	320	325	+5
BRANDON DAVIS-SWAIN	260	290	+30
ANQUAN BARNES JR.	315	340	+25
TAVIAN COLEMAN	300	300	—
TAWFIQ THOMAS	300	300	—
CHRISTIAN HUDSON	290	300	+10
GAVRIEL LIGHTFOOT	300	310	+10

Notes: I have never seen a defensive line at CU with 7 300+ pounders.

In seasons past, the Buffs could get worn down when playing big, physical teams. One example is the Michigan-CU game in 2016, when Coloardo took a lead late into the 2nd quarter before CU’s starters wore down amid the constant onslaught of Michigan’s numerous 300+ pound players on both lines of scrimmage that rotated in and out of the game. Michigan finally beat CU into submission and won going away (Sefo Liofau getting hurt didn’t help), but it sticks out to me as a game where Colorado didn’t have the size up front or the depth up front to battle with a big time football program.

That won’t happen this upcoming season — CU will finally be in a position to lean on and wear down opponents.

Barnes’ 25-pound weight gain over the off-season is remarkable.  Each of Barnes, Oatis and McNeill are proven 300+ pound defensive tackles that can take over a game.  These 3, along with the depth provided by fellow #WIDELOADs Gavriel Lightfoot, Tavian Coleman and Tawfiq Thomas, will give CU its biggest defensive line in program history.  Notice a trend here?

It’s also important to note that Brandon Davis-Swain has grown from a tweener edge/tackle player to a 290-pound defensive tackle, and the former 4-star player will look to make an impact this fall. Christian Hudson is another young player with the size — another 300 pounder — and skill to potentially get playing time this fall, too.    

Edge

	2024 WEIGHT	2025 WEIGHT	DIFFERENCE
TAJE MCCOY	230	250	+20
LONDON MERRITT	255	250	-5
QUINCEY WIGGINS	265	265	—
ARDEN WALKER	250	250	—
NIKHIL WEBB-WALKER	275	275
SAMUEL OKUNLOLA	245	250	+5
ALEXANDER MCPHERSON	250	240	-10

Notes: Taje McCoy’s weight gain will help make him a more well-rounded player.  McCoy was great rushing the passer last year but struggled holding the edge against the run – his increased weight should help him there.

Arden Walker will be the leader of this group. The pass rushing specialist had a PFF pass rushing score of 89.9, which is elite. He’ll get more snaps this season, and I expect 10+ sacks from Walker this season with more playing time.

Relatedly, on a recent video put out by CU’s video department chronicalling a day in the life of Jordan Seaton, it was interesting to hear Seaton comment to CU’s offensive line coaches about how difficult it is to block CU’s defensive end because “they get up the field so quickly.”

I was disappointed with Alexander McPherson’s weight. He’s had some practice buzz, but playing at 240 pounds is going to be an uphill battle and I suspect that he redshirts this fall.

Linebackers

	2024 WEIGHT	2025 WEIGHT	DIFFERENCE
JAYLEN WESTER	205	215	+10
MARTAVIUS FRENCH	225	225	—
MANTREZ WALKER	225	230	+5
KYLAN SALTER	225	230	+5
JEREMIAH BROWN	225	235	+10
REGINALD HUGHES	240	225	-15
KYERAN GARCIA	215	220	+5

Notes: Not a ton to note here, although it’s good to see Jaylen Wester put on 10 pounds.  Wester played like a hybrid safety last year and this should help him be more of a 3-down player.  While CU’s inside linebackers are not very big, the size of CU’s defensive tackles should make it difficult for offensive linemen to be able to get to the 2^nd level and therefore the LBs should have free running lanes.  There’s also growing buzz about Kyan Salter….

Defensive backs

	2024 WEIGHT	2025 WEIGHT	DIFFERENCE
COLTON HOOD	190	190	—
RJ JOHNSON	180	185	+5
DJ MCKINNEY	190	180	-10
MAKARI VICKERS	190	190	—
TAWFIQ BOYD	200	195	-5
TJ BRANCH	180	170	-10
CARTER STOUTMIRE	205	210	+5
PRESTON HODGE	195	200	+5
BEN FINNESETH	205	205	—

Notes:  Not much to note here. Carter Stoutmire is now up to 210 pounds, and I expect that he may line up as a nickel linebacker on occasion.  Given CU’s safety depth, I thought it was possible true freshman TJ Branch could play material minutes this fall. Unfortunately, he came in lighter than advertised and it might be too much to ask for a 170 pound freshman to play a modern-day safety position in Livingston’s defense, which requires the safeties to provide run support.