Throughout spring football practices, the focus of change for the Colorado Buffaloes has been on the offensive side of the ball.

The Buffs' offense has evolved from a conservative, ball-control offense to a wide-open, no-huddle hurry-up attack.

Gone are the three tight-end sets, in are shotgun formations with four speedy wide receivers for CU quarterbacks to choose from.

This Saturday at 1 p.m., when the Buffs' hold their annual Spring Game at Folsom Field, CU fans will get to see first hand the development of not only the offense but the defense too.

While the offense has seen steady improvement in the past few weeks, it is the defensive side of the ball that may have gained the most from the offensive switch.

The Buffs defense lost not only their best two players to graduation, but arguably the two best players on the entire team in linebacker Jordon Dizon and cornerback Terrence Wheatley.

Their departure leaves not only a void in production, but in the leadership department as well.

"You kind of have to forget about them," said CU defensive tackle George Hypolite. "Jordon and Terrence aren't here anymore. All the plays they made for us in the past, they aren't going to make for us in the future, so you kind of have to move on. You have to distance yourself from it and develop your own identity. You are never going to replace those two guys so we have to figure out what this team is about."

As a result of their having faced a no-huddle offense day in and day out, the one thing this team will be is prepared. Facing a spread offense, like they will at least five times next season (West Virginia, Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri and Oklahoma State all run versions of the spread, while Florida State, Texas and Nebraska feature spread elements), can only better prepare the Buffs for what will come in the fall.

"It's hard, it puts a lot of pressure on them," said CU head coach Dan Hawkins. "Now the good thing about it is it helps them when we get into the season, because there a lot of things that have nothing to do with football that affect how they play. In terms of communication, signaling, getting lined up and so that's forced them to play a little faster and think and have their brains going a little more intense so there will be residual effects in the fall."

The defense first had to decide not only who would replace Dizon and Wheatley in the starting lineup, but also who would replace starting defensive end Alonzo Barrett. Injuries have sidelined two returning starters in the secondary, safety Ryan Walters and cornerback Ben Burney, and those holes have also had to be filled.

At linebacker, the current first team, according to a recent depth chart released by CU coaches, has Jeff Smart, Marcus Burton and Brad Jones and B.J. Beatty as the first team with Burton currently filling Dizon's Will linebacker slot.

The position has been thinned this spring, as freshman recruit Lynn Katoa and Jake Duren have both had off-field troubles that have limited their work. Katoa is suspended indefinitely while Duren was released from the team.

In the secondary, defensive backs coach Greg Brown has had to deal not only with the loss of a shutdown corner in Wheatley, but Walters and Burney's injuries as well. It has afforded Brown and defensive coordinator Ron Collins the opportunity to see young players like safety Anthony Perkins and cornerback Jimmy Smith shine.

Collins himself mentioned Smith and Perkins, along with Beatty, as three players that really have shown improvement throughout the spring.

Because the secondary has had to face the spread, and often send out four cornerbacks, it has given much needed reps to Smith, Perkins, Gardner McKay, Anthony Wright, Jalil Brown and Lamont Smith.

McKay and nickel back Cha'pelle Brown are the only returning, healthy cornerbacks with significant game experience, so the group will have to learn quickly.

To take pressure off of that inexperienced secondary, Buffs' coaches have put much focus into improving the pass rush.

"We definitely need a much better pass rush than we had last year," said Collins. "It has been a big emphasis this spring and I think we have done a pretty good job, but we still have a ways to go. You know, it' very hard to get after a quarterback that is sitting there five yards deep and is getting the ball out really fast. So we trying to be creative and find ways to get after him."

To get creative, the Buffs have featured several different formations on defense aside from the base 4-3 they used last season. As a result of having five talented, experienced linebackers in camp now, and three more coming in the fall, a 3-4, 3-2-6 and 3-3-5 are all formations that could be used more often in the upcoming season. Those looks not only help generate a pass rush but also will take some pressure off the secondary in coverage as well.

However, when they are in a 4-3 base, sophomore Marquez Herrod has filled in for Barrett's departure. With several talented young linemen, however, Buffs coaches expect to rely on a deep rotation along the line.

In Saturday's spring game, CU fans should expect to se a little bit of everything on both sides of the ball. The offense has been spoken of all spring and their changes will be obvious to the common eye. But, defensively onlookers should be sure to focus on the amount of pass rush generated, as well as how and where it is coming from. Also, be sure to watch how the secondary handles the spread offense, as the cornerback and safety positions will be critical when the fall rolls around.

When Collins said the coaches plan to "get creative," in finding ways to sack the quarterback, it should be interesting to see just what adjustments they make in this final exhibition of the spring and bodies should be flying around all over the field.

NOTES: Dan Hawkins let it be known that he is not a fan of 420 Day. "I am a little down on that, I am a lot down on that, unequivocally down on that, in a big way," said Hawkins. He said the team knows how he feels about the topic. After five CU players have encountered off-field troubles throughout the spring, only time will tell if they decide to pass on the grass.

Contact Eliot Dempsey about this story at (303) 443-6272 ext. 112 or sports@coloradodaily.com