BJ Green II was in his first week as a Colorado Buffalo this summer when he realized this would be a once in a lifetime experience.
“I think my first week here, we were with the Marines and we had to swim, and I guess I wasn’t as good a swimmer as I thought I was,” Green told BuffZone recently. “But before that, we had to run a mile. To have my body do more than I thought it would, I’d never experienced that before.”
Green is a 6-foot-1, 270-pound defensive end who spent the last three seasons at Arizona State. He’s no stranger to hard work and physical exertion. But this summer, he came to Colorado looking to do something different, and so far, he hasn’t disappointed.
“The toughest offseason I ever had in college,” he said, “but it was necessary for this final ride. I like to joke with guys who have had almost four near-death experiences since that offseason workout. But I feel like it was necessary to push me to be who I need to be, not who I thought I was, because the vision they have for me is bigger than what I could have imagined on my own.
“I trust her plan for me and take it day by day, just work on it and get closer and closer.”
Green, who was named to the All-Pac-12 second team last year at ASU, is a former walk-on who became one of the most dominant defensive linemen in the Pac-12, amassing 13.5 sacks over the past three seasons.
This year expectations are high.
“I pride myself on creating chaos and causing unrest,” he said, “playing soundball and being able to put in the same effort and tireless effort that people see in me and that I see in myself.”
Green was named to the preseason waiting lists for the Lombardi Award (best lineman), the Outland Trophy (best interior lineman) and the Chuck Bednarik Award (defensive player of the year). He also earned preseason All-Big 12 honors.
And head coach Deion Sanders has publicly stated that he believes Green could be selected in the first round of the NFL Draft next spring.
“It makes me feel good,” Green said of Sanders’ comments. “They believe in me. … With that expectation comes a standard of play. Anytime I deviate from that, they say, ‘Hey, this is who you are, be that guy.’ … I appreciate that because it prepares me for whatever comes my way.”
CU revamped its defensive line this offseason via the transfer portal, and Green could be the centerpiece of the new group.
“BJ is a mindset. He’s a force to be reckoned with,” said Sanders, a Hall of Fame cornerback who played with great linemen. “He’s going to be a problem. He really is.”
Outside linebacker coach Vincent Dancy said, “He’s an alpha dog. … He came to us as a great player. And he continues to be a great player.”
Given his performance the past three years, Green probably would have been great at ASU this year if he had stayed. But he came to CU looking for a different gear, learning from Dancy, Sanders, Hall of Fame defensive lineman Warren Sapp, who joined the staff as an assistant this offseason, and defensive line coach Damione Lewis, a 10-year NFL veteran.
“I’m just chasing that feeling of always doing more than I thought I could,” he said. “Like I’m tired, but I’m still putting together a top-notch pass rush. Things you have to do to make the transition to the next level. I feel like Colorado is giving me that. It’s giving me the tools to be great because we’re surrounded by great players.”
Green said it was “a shock” when he first participated in offseason workouts with the Buffs. It was the kind of experience some would shy away from. Not Green.
“It was like, ‘I don’t know what this feeling is. My body feels like I’m dead, but somehow I keep going,'” he said. “It was a once in a lifetime experience. I’m thankful to our strength team. I’m thankful to our coaches for doing this to us, because when you feel like you’re at rock bottom, there’s only one way to go – up.
“That’s exactly why I came here. I didn’t want an easy last year.”
Green knew it wouldn’t be easy with Coach Prime, who coached him in youth soccer many years ago. As a Sun Devil, Green never imagined he would be at CU, but he’s enjoying the change.
“Just a family environment,” he said. “Coaches that I’ve been around since I was a kid. So I wanted to finish it with the people I started with. That’s what I wanted for my senior year, just to be surrounded by people that don’t look like me but know me better than I do.”
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