Former Colorado receiver and assistant coach Darrin Chiaverini is eager to see the new-look Buffaloes’ offense in 2026.
And, he has no doubt it’ll be a better offense under newly hired coordinator Brennan Marion.
“Brennan’s gonna do a great job,” Chiaverini, the head coach at Northeastern State (Oklahoma) University and a friend of Marion, told BuffZone. “He’s a really good football coach. He’ll do a great job with the personnel. He’ll do a great job of recruiting. He’ll do a great job of commanding his offensive side of the ball. They’ll be much better offensively.”
CU and head coach Deion Sanders announced last Friday that Marion, the head coach at Sacramento State this past season, has been hired as the new offensive coordinator, the first big staff change for the Buffaloes following a disappointing 3-9 season.
This past season, the Buffs ranked 116th nationally with just 20.9 points per game, which included 18.1 points per game during Big 12 games. The Buffs also ranked 113th nationally in yards per game, at 328.4.
Marion is the creator of the Go-Go offense, a fast-paced attack that utilizes triple-option concepts and relies on a power run game and a quarterback throwing vertical passes downfield.
An offensive-minded coach himself, Chiaverini has dramatically turned around his program at NSU, going 9-3 this year (the Riverhawks were 12-107 the previous 11 years). He did so in large part behind an offense that averaged 40.3 points per game, one of the best in Division II.
While Chiaverini, a CU receiver from 1995-98, doesn’t use the Go-Go offense, he said he has some Go-Go packages, which he learned from Marion.
Chiaverini not only knows Marion, but he knows CU. Not only did he play for the Buffs, but he was an assistant coach at CU from 2016-21, including five of those seasons as either co-offensive coordinator or offensive coordinator.
As a Buff, Chiaverini watched CU games this year and knows they need some juice offensively.
“I think that Go-Go stuff will be really good because it gives people some issues on defense, how to fit things in the run game, how to fit things in the pass game,” he said. “I think (quarterback JuJu Lewis) will love it.”
Lewis, a five-star recruit in 2025 who started two games late in the season, is projected as CU’s starting quarterback for 2026.
“It’s going to allow JuJu to be a really good quarterback in that system,” Chiaverini said. “You’ve still got to get offensive linemen. … And what I thought CU was missing offensively, I didn’t see the elite playmakers. I saw good playmakers. I didn’t see the elite speed on the outside receiver positions. I didn’t see guys that threatened the field vertically consistently and I didn’t see a run game that I was impressed with.”
CU does have some talent at receiver, including Omarion Miller and Joseph Williams. But, the Buffs ranked 103rd nationally in rushing (125.6 yards per game) this year after ranking last in 2024 and 2023.
By contrast, Marion’s offenses have been dominant in the run game. This year, Sacramento State ranked third in the FCS with 262.6 rushing yards per game. The Hornets were also 20th in scoring, at 33.8 points per game.
In his career, Marion has been a head coach or coordinator in six seasons at four different schools. His offenses averaged at least 173.5 rushing yards every year.
“Brennan will bring a very good run game there, but you also gotta have good offensive linemen, especially when you’re playing Power 4 football in the Big 12 Conference,” Chiaverini said.
With the transfer portal opening up early in January, Coach Prime and his staff will be looking to upgrade the line, the skill positions and the defense. But, as far as having the offensive scheme in place to succeed, Chiaverini said the Buffs now have it.
“(Marion’s) had success everywhere he’s been and he’ll have success at Colorado, too,” he said. “It’s just what kind of success and how fast will it come? Because it’s still about players. JuJu is a good player. They gotta get more pieces around that kid or he’s gonna get beat up.”
Notable
On Thursday, the Associated Press released its All-Big 12 first and second team, as voted on by media. CU and West Virginia were the only teams among the 16 that didn’t have any players on either team. Last week, Miller and left tackle Jordan Seaton both earned second-team All-Big 12 recognition by coaches. … In the AP voting, league champion Texas Tech led the way with seven first-team selections, including linebacker Jacob Rodriguez, who was named the defensive player of the year, and defensive end David Bailey, who was named the first-year transfer of the year. BYU running back LJ Martin was named the offensive player of the year and quarterback Bear Bachmeier the freshman of the year, while the Cougars’ Kalani Sitake was named coach of the year. … Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports reported Thursday that CU director of player personnel Corey Phillips is leaving the Buffs to be the general manager at Memphis.
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