Andrew Metzger reacts to new Colorado offer
Last year, Regis Jesuit tight end Andrew Metzger was on the receiving end of some deflating news.
Colorado had began to show interest in him last February, but within a few months, his coaches relayed to him via then-tight ends coach Bryan Cook that the Buffs would not be offering him.
"I was like, ‘Oh my god. This totally sucks! I’m a Colorado kid, so I was heartbroken,’” Metzger recalled.
However, effective about 24 hours ago, Metzger is the recipient of a scholarship offer from Colorado, presented to him during an unofficial visit he took to Boulder on Tuesday.
The 180 in his recruitment by CU can be attributed to the recent changes Karl Dorrell made to his coaching staff.
Namely, new tight ends coach Clay Patterson, upon getting settled at Colorado, came across the 6-foot-5, 235-pound Metzger.
“Coach Patterson got to see my film and then stuff really started taking off from there — a lot of calls, a lot of FaceTimes and then obviously, what happened recently," Metzger said. "It’s basically turned around for the best.”
The Buffaloes joined Kansas, Eastern Michigan, Ohio, Utah State, Nevada and Miami of Ohio in offering the local Aurora prospect, and since he wrapped up his time in Boulder, Metzger also has reeled in an offer from Air Force.
Metzger plays on both sides of the ball (TE/DE) for Regis Jesuit, and while Ohio offered him as a d-end, he said the vast majority of programs, Colorado included, like him at tight end.
Being an in-state prospect, Metzger is familiar with both the Buffs and Boulder, but taking an unofficial at Colorado allowed him to have a more illuminating experience as far as seeing what things are like for a student-athlete there.
“It was amazing honestly," he said. "It was a really good time. This wasn’t my first time being up to CU, but it was a great experience. Just being able to sit down, talk to the coaches and go through the daily routine of what these players are going through, getting to see what’s going on and what their plan is, what they want to do with me and everything — it was really good.”
Last season as a junior, Metzger hauled in 18 passes for 166 yards and a touchdown for Regis Jesuit, which went 8-4 on the year.
The Buffs, and multiple other programs for that matter, envision being able to do multiple things offensively with Metzger.
"Tight end has changed," he said. "My ability to be able to put my hand down in the dirt and then go and block someone really, really well, but then the next play, I can line up in the slot or in H and then go catch a ball for a first down — that is what they’ve said on what they really like about me: versatility.”
With offers starting to come his way with more regularity, things are clearly still at an early stage with Metzger, as far as his recruitment is concerned.
But while on his visit to Boulder, he said he hit it off with Patterson.
From a personality standpoint and hearing Patterson describe his vision for CU's offense in 2022 and beyond, Metzger came away impressed.
“He talked about wanting to be able to do something new with the tight ends — throw the ball to the tight ends, get the tight ends deep into that offense and really use them. You can tell he’s really, really passionate about CU as a whole and what he wants to do with the program.”