2021 FCS Season Preview: Northern Colorado Bears

One of the biggest headlines in the FCS was lost behind the dust of the Spring headlines. Ed McCaffrey (NFL veteran and 3-time Super Bowl Champ) is the new head coach of Northern Colorado. Additionally, his sons Max McCaffrey as wide receiver coach and offensive coordinator, and Dylan McCaffrey as starting quarterback will be there along with him to try to rewrite UNC’s Division I reputation. On top of that excitement, UNC is installing a new turf field, a new performance center, and their last two recruiting classes have been riddled with FBS transfers and the highest rated in school history. If UNC looks to become a winning program this is the best chance, ever.

Schedule

Northern Colorado

HomeAwayVenueMatch Day TV/Streaming Highlights
Folsom Field
Boulder, CO - -
Husky Stadium
Houston, TX ESPN+ -
Nottingham Field
Greeley, CO - -
Nottingham Field
Greeley, CO - -
Nottingham Field
Bozeman, MT - -
Nottingham Field
Greeley, CO - -
UC Davis Health Stadium
Davis, CA - -
Eccles Coliseum
Cedar City, UT - -
Nottingham Field
Greeley, CO - -
Nottingham Field
Greeley, CO - -
Stewart Stadium
Ogden, UT - -
May be an image of grass and stadium
Nottingham Field. Capacity 8,500. Photo via Aaron Rath.

Key Players

Dylan McCaffrey – Quarterback – 6’5″ 220 lbs. – Grad Student

McCaffrey joins the family of Bears with his father Ed as head coach and big brother Max as offensive coordinator. This family affair will be the talk of the town, good or bad, as all eyes will be on the McCaffreys. Dylan transfers out of FBS Michigan as a former four-star recruit with a lot of talent. With all of these pros backing Dylan is he the savior of the Bears?

RJ Potts – Safety – 6’2″ 240 lbs. – Junior

Potts comes to Northern Colorado from FBS Cincinnati as one of Coach McCaffrey’s biggest four-star transfers. In the 2017 recruiting season Potts was listed as a top 30 safety prospect in the country. While Potts does not have a lot of playing time the talent level will help the Bears limit the points.

See the source image
Coach Ed McCaffrey. Coaching Record 0-0 at the collegiate level. Photo via UNC Athletics.

Predicted Finish

Ninth. Coach McCaffrey has all of the talents in the world at his hands and improvement has to be on the horizon. The level of that improvement will depend on his coaching abilities, player health, and a little bit of luck. The Bears should be capable of doubling their wins from the last season they played to four.

They face every ranked team in the preseason poll from the Big Sky and an FBS opponent. Granted FBS Colorado just lost their starting quarterback to a “significant” knee injury so there may be a slightly better chance to impress in Boulder. Regardless, the Bears have a rough conference schedule and will have to rely on a strong out-of-conference performance to get the momentum rolling early and do well the rest of the year.

Records
Best: 6-5
Worst: 2-9
Predicted: 4-7 (2-6)