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Colorado NEEDS to establish a ground game
Welcome to our official countdown until football season! There’s only a few weeks left until the Colorado Buffaloes kick off the 2024 campaign against the North Dakota State Bison at Folsom Field on August 29th, so we at Ralphie Report are going to celebrate the only way we know how: with some power rankings! Over the next 20 days, we’ll rank the 20 most important players for the Colorado Buffaloes ahead of the 2024 season.
Colorado’s run game in 2023 left much to be desired. CU’s inability to run between the tackles and gain momentum on the ground played no small part in their six-game skid to end the year. After a tough offseason where the Buffs lost their top three running backs from 2023 to the portal, they’ll be leaning on Ohio State transfer Dallan Hayden to ensure the horrors of 2023 don’t repeat themselves.
Hayden comes to Boulder from Columbus as a redshirt sophomore, where he played in 13 games with the Buckeyes over the last two seasons, including their CFP classic against Georgia in 2022. After punching in six touchdowns and averaging 5.0 yards per carry with OSU, including a three-touchdown game against Maryland in 2022, Hayden didn’t see the field much in 2023. Now, he’ll be the Buffs’ primary back looking to reestablish a dominant ground game.
Of all of Colorado’s backs, Hayden is the only one who has significant in-game experience. He’s also the stockiest back of the group, clocking in at 5-10, 210 lbs. He isn’t the fastest in the world, but he’s a powerful runner who can pick up consistent yardage. Hayden’s build should allow him to power through gaps and run over defenders, so long as the offensive line can make those gaps for him, which is exactly what Colorado needs.
The Buffs need to figure out how to run the ball and it doesn’t matter how. If Hayden can come in and provide the offense with a spark to relieve some of the pressure on Shedeur Sanders, Colorado could be scary in 2024.
by RylandScholes
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