ACL injuries are among the worst in sports, due to the fact to the fact that recovery can be grueling and can typically average six to nine months.
For one member of the Colorado Buffaloes (3-0) football team, completing recovery from such an injury couldn’t come soon enough. Before tearing his ACL during fall camp in 2016, redshirt junior wide receiver Juwann Winfree was turning heads and had created quite a buzz among those close to the program.
In fact, he had played so well that head coach Mike MacIntyre said he asked redshirt senior WR Bryce Bobo to take some reps at safety during fall camp. Colorado would go on to enjoy a storybook season, completing the biggest single-season turnaround in PAC-12 history, yet Winfree was forced to watch from the sidelines.
This season marks the newest chapter in Winfree’s career. He committed and played one season at the University of Maryland as a freshman in 2014, before transferring to Coffeyville Community College in Kansas in 2015. Juwann accumulated 55 receptions for 837 yards and seven touchdowns on his way to earning honorable mention All-KJCCC honors as a sophomore. The 2017 Rocky Mountain Showdown was the first Division I game action that Winfree had seen since 2014. Yet it wasn’t until this week that Winfree finally felt good enough to begin practicing without a knee brace.
However, despite finally being healthy, he sits behind Bobo, redshirt senior Devin Ross, senior Shay Fields and junior Jay MacInyre on the depth chart. Winfree has three catches for 33 yards through just three games on the season, but signs point to a potential shift.
As the Buffs embark upon conference play this weekend when the No. 7 Washington Huskies (3-0) roll into Boulder, Winfree’s involvement may begin to increase. On Tuesday, it was reported by Brian Howell of the Daily Camera that Winfree said he has been practicing at slot receiver, as coaches look for any and all ways they can get him on the field. Only time will tell, but as CU prepares for the rematch of the 2016 PAC-12 Championship game, it seems as if Winfree may be finding the form that we heard so much about last season.
