Ever since Colorado’s struggles to start the season on defense, Deion Sanders and defensive coordinator Charles Kelly have made a concerted effort to get their best 11 players on the field on that side of the ball. The latest move to follow that involved moving safety Trevor Woods to linebacker during the Buffs’ losses to Stanford and UCLA.

The move helps the Buffs fill a void at linebacker created by the absence of Juwan Mitchell, who hasn’t played since Colorado’s loss to USC due to off-field issues, according to Sanders. It also allows Colorado to start Rodrick Ward at safety, who has played well since first getting the start against the Trojans, a game that Shilo Sanders missed due to injury.

Moving closer to the line of scrimmage was an adjustment for Woods, who said the move began as just a sub package before becoming more permanent, but that there were some similarities from his old spot.

“A lot of it, especially the coverage stuff, was kind of easy just in terms of I know all of the coverages from (playing) safety,” Woods said. “It was more just the fits and blitzes that I had to really learn… Whatever keeps me on the field, whatever helps us.”