What to expect from Sefo Liufau?

[SuperD]

Rick George will probably fire Mac before the end of the year to be first in on Tom Herman.

I think its nuts to think we even have a shot at Tom Herman unless CU is willing to pay far more for a coach than they have ever been able to pay in the past. I'm pretty sure Herman is making more at Houston than MacIntyre is right now. He's going to wait until Aggy, UT, or an elite B1G job opens up, and I think there is a decent shot Aggy opens up this year.

If I had to guess this time around on the merry-go-round will be the top coordinator route. Though frankly a lot of those guys got hired last year.

 

[DiggerBuffs]

I don't know Sefo personally so I won't comment on the much-heralded greatness of his personality, character, etc., but I will point out that, IMO, redshirting him is about the worst possible thing for the program to do with him. He isn't a good college QB. It is what it is.

That option went out the door when Webb went to Cal.

 

[Jeric]

Sefo is a great kid. I don't think anyone would argue that fact. But there are a lot of great kids. That doesn't win you football games. I've sat in the stands for 3 years and defended Sefo to other Buffs fans and non Buffs fans but it comes to a point where he hasn't given me much ammo to defend him with anymore. Fact is in the PAC 12 you need a great QB and we don't have one of those. Webb was our ticket out of the PAC 12 basement. Unless Montez can step up and play now (which I don't think he's ready yet) it will be another 4 win at best year. Rick George will probably fire Mac before the end of the year to be first in on Tom Herman. Now I hope I'm wrong and Sefo can prove to be a clutch player and not miss wide open receivers over and over and lead the Buffs to a 7 or more win season. I like Sefo, I like Mac but neither will be around next season.

Webb isn't a great QB either so he certainly wouldn't get us out of the basement based on your premise. The fact is, if people don't think Sefo is capable of improving enough to bring us to a bowl, then we wouldn't go bowling with Webb either.

 

[Burrito]

This arm ready to throw 2000 yards next fall?

 

[DiggerBuffs]

Webb isn't a great QB either so he certainly wouldn't get us out of the basement based on your premise. The fact is, if people don't think Sefo is capable of improving enough to bring us to a bowl, then we wouldn't go bowling with Webb either.

Last I checked people didn't think Sefo could get drafted. Webb has been mentioned with that potential. I don't think he is great but he could be 2 Ws better here IMO. That is big. He also could be as ****ty as Sefo is.

 

[Johnny Juzang]

Big Al just said that Chad Brown told him that Sefo won't be healthy enough to start the season.

If that's accurate, we needn't concern ourselves with Sefo's abilities/lack thereof.

 

[Burrito]

Until next year.

Big Al just said that Chad Brown told him that Sefo won't be healthy enough to start the season.

If that's accurate, we needn't concern ourselves with Sefo's abilities/lack thereof.

 

[Jeric]

Last I checked people didn't think Sefo could get drafted. Webb has been mentioned with that potential. I don't think he is great but he could be 2 Ws better here IMO. That is big. He also could be as ****ty as Sefo is.

I don't care about what a guy can do in the NFL, only what they can do in college. So far, he's done slightly better than Sefo. Either all we needed is slightly better than Sefo has been (which Sefo is still capable of being) to go bowling or we never had more than a puncher's chance either way. I'm not saying Webb couldn't be the difference between 4 and 6 wins, but the difference is so minuscule as we've seen these last 2 years, if it really is that small of a difference than Sefo is capable of improving enough to still do that. All I'm saying is it doesn't make sense to count Sefo out if you really thought Webb could take us bowling.

 

[Back-the-Buffs]

Webb isn't a great QB either so he certainly wouldn't get us out of the basement based on your premise. The fact is, if people don't think Sefo is capable of improving enough to bring us to a bowl, then we wouldn't go bowling with Webb either.

Webb is far better then Sefo and he's proven that. Webb is Mel Kiper's #1 ranked senior prospect at QB for a reason. I doubt Kiper even knows who Sefo is. Bottom line is Webb would be a huge improvement over Sefo and it would equate to a lot more wins. CU really is a good QB away from doing some damage in the PAC 12 and finally getting some respect nationally again.

 

[The Alabaster Yak]

Big Al just said that Chad Brown told him that Sefo won't be healthy enough to start the season.

If that's accurate, we needn't concern ourselves with Sefo's abilities/lack thereof.

Chad has to be basing that off his own experience with the Lis Franc injury. Everyone heals differently and Sefo does not play a position that requires constant running and cutting like LB.

 

[MiamiBuffs]

Chad has to be basing that off his own experience with the Lis Franc injury. Everyone heals differently and Sefo does not play a position that requires constant running and cutting like LB.

 

[CULifer]

I feel like we can't ask the question 'what to expect from Sefo Liufau' without asking the question 'what to expect from the O-line' in the same breath. Some of the criticism aimed at him he has outright earned, but not all of it. It would have taken an utterly outstanding QB to take CU to to a bowl game last year given the porous O-line last year. HCMM had better demand some significant results out of that unit if he wants to stay in Boulder.

 

[The Alabaster Yak]

Something wrong?

 

[Johnny Juzang]

Chad has to be basing that off his own experience with the Lis Franc injury. Everyone heals differently and Sefo does not play a position that requires constant running and cutting like LB.

Right. I just heard the words on the radio. Most definitely not vouching for them.

 

[Back-the-Buffs]

I think its nuts to think we even have a shot at Tom Herman unless CU is willing to pay far more for a coach than they have ever been able to pay in the past. I'm pretty sure Herman is making more at Houston than MacIntyre is right now. He's going to wait until Aggy, UT, or an elite B1G job opens up, and I think there is a decent shot Aggy opens up this year.

If I had to guess this time around on the merry-go-round will be the top coordinator route. Though frankly a lot of those guys got hired last year.

Tom Herman makes 3M. That is what 500k more then Mac? I agree that it would be difficult to figure out all the financials of paying Mac and giving Herman a raise but I certainly don't think it's out of the question. Take a look at the 156 million dollar facility they just built. I would never put anything past Rick George. He will get the coach he wants I guarantee that. And when he does hire a coach it will be the right guy. It won't just be settling for someone. If not Herman I think Matt Wells (Utah St.) PJ Fleck (Western Michigan) Matt Rhule (Temple) are all possibilities. All the hot names out there including Herman are young/enthusiastic and have had success. Whatever happens I trust Rick George 100%

 

[Jeric]

Webb is far better then Sefo and he's proven that. Webb is Mel Kiper's #1 ranked senior prospect at QB for a reason. I doubt Kiper even knows who Sefo is. Bottom line is Webb would be a huge improvement over Sefo and it would equate to a lot more wins. CU really is a good QB away from doing some damage in the PAC 12 and finally getting some respect nationally again.

Based on what? Their stats are very similar. I don't care what Mel "Connor Cook is the #3 QB" Kiper thinks Webb is. At the college level he has been only slightly better than Sefo, he throws more picks per attempt and more touchdowns per attempt. He has a 138-ish passer rating vs a 130-ish passer rating for Sefo. Webb has the traits of an NFL QB which is what makes him an NFL prospect vs Sefo, but they still produce at around the same level. The NFL and college are totally different, I really don't care about Webb being somewhere on Kiper's board, if that's your only defense, it's flimsy as ****.

 

[Johnny Juzang]

I love reading evaluations from Jeric over some clown from the dominant media.

 

[Back-the-Buffs]

Based on what? Their stats are very similar. I don't care what Mel "Connor Cook is the #3 QB" Kiper thinks Webb is. At the college level he has been only slightly better than Sefo, he throws more picks per attempt and more touchdowns per attempt. He has a 138-ish passer rating vs a 130-ish passer rating for Sefo. Webb has the traits of an NFL QB which is what makes him an NFL prospect vs Sefo, but they still produce at around the same level. The NFL and college are totally different, I really don't care about Webb being somewhere on Kiper's board, if that's your only defense, it's flimsy as ****.

How about the fact Webb led his team to a winning season. Then went and won the Holiday bowl and was the MVP of the game. Stats are not how you judge a player because there are so many variables to consider. I think when you watch tape of Webb and Sefo the answer is pretty clear on who is better. I'm not saying Webb is the best QB in college football, probably far from it but he's still considerably better then Sefo. I'm sorry if you can't see that or don't want to accept that maybe?

 

[Jeric]

I love reading evaluations from Jeric over some clown from the dominant media.

I regret having watched way more film of Webb than Kiper has. I have like 25 hours of game film broken up into 50-ish minutes of video to prove it . I'm actually so petty I put them on private because Cal fans were watching it.

 

[8Jah]

2015 Stats, 10.75 Games

Passing: 344 atts, 214 comp (62%), 2418 Yards, 9 TD's, 6 Ints
Rushing: 108 atts, 260 Yards, 5 TD's, 2 Fumbles

All Purpose: 2678 Yards, 14 TD's 8 TO's

2014 Stats, 12 Games
Passing: 498 atts, 325 comp (65%) 3200 Yards, 28 TD's, 15 Ints
Rushing: 69 atts, 136 Yards, 0 TD's, 3 Fumbles

All Purpose: 3336 Yards, 28 TD's, 18 TO's

I am not sure what happened to our offensive coordinator in the offseason of 2014-2015, but it is apparent he altered the scheme. We were not throwing nearly as much and Sefo was asked/allowed to run more. The only real difference in offensive personnel was on the OL, no excuse to see that big a drop in passing atts and yardage. Obviously Sefo took care of the ball more in 2015 than he did in 2014, which may have led to a few more runs instead of passes because he would pull it down and run instead of force the throw, but still doesn't make up the difference.

Sefo is very capable of putting up huge numbers, if he has a competent OL.

My questions going into fall camp

1) Will Chev truly bring back the high flying air raid style offense that broke records in 2014?
2) Will the OL be able to give Sefo time to read and throw, or will the new offense rely on quick passes which will somewhat negate poor OL play?
3) Will Sefo's foot heal to the point he can run the read option at times like he did in 2015?
4) Can Sefo put together the passing ability he showed in 2014, with the care for the football he displayed in 2015?

The difference between 2014 and 2015 is ENTIRELY explained by the change in offensive scheme. 2014 was a quick pass scheme that, as you noted, minimized the downside of a poor OL. In 2015, Lindgren (for Christ knows what reason) had Sefo either let plays develop (which generated a pac-12 high # of sacs) or run like a fullback between the tackles. The result is that Sefo was playing hurt the whole season until he couldn't play anymore. That is the SOLE reason why the 2015 numbers are low.

I truly believe that is why Lindgren got demoted to co-coordinator. If Sefo is healthy, and with Chevs quick pass scheme, I believe we will see one of the best QBs in the PAC12.

 

[Jeric]

How about the fact Webb led his team to a winning season. Then went and won the Holiday bowl and was the MVP of the game. Stats are not how you judge a player because there are so many variables to consider. I think when you watch tape of Webb and Sefo the answer is pretty clear on who is better. I'm not saying Webb is the best QB in college football, probably far from it but he's still considerably better then Sefo. I'm sorry if you can't see that or don't want to accept that maybe?

Funny how you disregard stats because there are so many variables to consider and then bring up wins, wins have a lot more variables to consider than stats. Webb went 6-8 (3-6) as a starter during his career, good thing he had Kansas, Iowa State, UTEP, and Central Arkansas to beat up on. And I have watched the tape on Webb, a lot of it, I spent 2 days straight making cut-ups of it (I put it all right there in the What to expect from Davis Webb thread), he was slightly better than Sefo which is what I felt we needed. A lot of his plays were in a QB friendly system with WRs like Jace Amaro and Jakeem Grant, his ASU film is a whole lot of WRs doing work - he shows flashes but he could never be consistent, one day he's exceptionally accurate against ASU and another he's throwing 4 picks against Kansas State.

 

[patebuff]

The difference between 2014 and 2015 is ENTIRELY explained by the change in offensive scheme. 2014 was a quick pass scheme that, as you noted, minimized the downside of a poor OL. In 2015, Lindgren (for Christ knows what reason) had Sefo either let plays develop (which generated a pac-12 high # of sacs) or run like a fullback between the tackles. The result is that Sefo was playing hurt the whole season until he couldn't play anymore. That is the SOLE reason why the 2015 numbers are low.

I truly believe that is why Lindgren got demoted to co-coordinator. If Sefo is healthy, and with Chevs quick pass scheme, I believe we will see one of the best QBs in the PAC12.

Interesting take as it seemed like around the USC game CU was reverting back to more of the 2014 type offense. Funny as it was becoming Sefo's best game of the by far, I thought. Could be right with the post above.

 

[8Jah]

I love the CAL game in 2014 when Sefo was dueling it out with Goff; the 2016 #1 pick. CAL had a weak DL, so that is kind of, sort of equivalent to CU having a good OL during that game. I like to think of that as Sefo's potential when he has the right people around him.

He doesn't need to run between the tackles or try to stay standing to prove he is a tough guy as the whole USC DL pulls him down and breaks his foot - in fact Chev should put a stop to this behavior pronto. Sefo just needs to stand and deliver. He doesn't need to be a super-star. We have a defense now. Adequate QB play is enough to get us to a bowl.

 

[Buffnik]

 

[Buffalo Brad]

All I can say is I really like Sefo as a kid. I am not sure he cannot manage the game if he gets some blocking, time, and figures out how to stop playing not to make a mistake. I am not saying he is what I wanted to lead this team this year, but damn, he is who we have moving forward.

I still cannot get some of the absolutely horrible ints he has thrown out of my head. I know he is not a world beater and is not a legit P5 starting QB. We will have to take some serious steps forward on the Oline, we are going to have to run the ball effectively and our D is going to have to be top half of the conference to be able to win 6. I am going to be pulling hard for Sefo and he makes that easy to do. I am sure I end up shaking my head at some of the plays he makes but I certainly do not want Gerke on the field and I would like to see Montez have time to develope.

Not how I wanted to go into the season but will be hoping for a solid (not huge) step forward for Sefo and for him to play relaxed and actually play wthout abandon. Go hard, lay it all out and not be afraid to make mistakes.

 

[BuffinCali]

[QUOTE="Buffnik, post: 1994116, member: 1852"
[/QUOTE]

With all due respect to Adam, Sefo did not handle it well. MMac babied him, asked for a college QB's permission "which Sefo did say was fine", then went back to MMac when he heard recruits stating that Webb was going to be the starter. MMac is tied to Sefo at this point, he is not going to sit him during his senior year if healthy, even if Montez slightly out performs him this summer.

Perhaps the Defense can carry CU this year, but we will not see how an offense can operate effectively until Sefo is out of options as CU.

Since the title of this post is "What to expect from Sefo", perhaps someone can start a poll on how many wins CU will have in 2016 with Sefo. I will say 3 wins in part because Leavitt and his D will snatch one victory despite Sefo tossing INT's. If Montez is under center, I give CU 5 wins.

 

[cu62nu36]

Best be getting Jaleel ready this summer to hedge against Sefo not being ready by September. Gehrke and Montez are unlikely to even beat lowly CSU. Losing Apsay was very unfortunate.

I like a healthy Sefo over Awini but Jaleel over the rest. Does Awini have a good enough arm and sense of timing to run this new scheme that Chiv has installed?

Now I have 3 games to watch each weekend this Fall: Buffs, whoever is trashing Nebraska, and now whoever can come through and ruin Davis Webb and Cal.

 

[Jeric]

With all due respect to Adam, Sefo did not handle it well. MMac babied him, asked for a college QB's permission "which Sefo did say was fine", then went back to MMac when he heard recruits stating that Webb was going to be the starter. MMac is tied to Sefo at this point, he is not going to sit him during his senior year if healthy, even if Montez slightly out performs him this summer.

Perhaps the Defense can carry CU this year, but we will not see how an offense can operate effectively until Sefo is out of options as CU.

Since the title of this post is "What to expect from Sefo", perhaps someone can start a poll on how many wins CU will have in 2016 with Sefo. I will say 3 wins in part because Leavitt and his D will snatch one victory despite Sefo tossing INT's. If Montez is under center, I give CU 5 wins.

What are you basing this on? The random rumor that popped up? Are we really slandering people's character off random rumors on message boards? And frankly, if anyone did that it was Gerhke or his dad or whatever.

 

[Tatanka™]

I regret having watched way more film of Webb than Kiper has. I have like 25 hours of game film broken up into 50-ish minutes of video to prove it . I'm actually so petty I put them on private because Cal fans were watching it.

I watched all those Webb videos. I saw a guy who was an upgrade from Sefo and a probable 3rd to 5th round draft pick. I definitely did not see a first rounder. You'll have to trust me when I say I am a lot smarter than Mel Kiper, Jr. (I know, low bar.)

 

[silver&gold]

Until next year.

Big Al doesn't spend much time on CU football. He is not up to speed on that front....