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Even in defeat, many positives came out of Saturday's loss at Georgia.

Two individuals who shined brightly were defensive lineman George Hypolite and tight end Riar Geer. Both flashed signs of future stardom. And both seemingly came out of nowhere.

Hypolite, a 6-foot-2, 285-pound sophomore from Los Angeles looked like an All American against a top-10 school, destroying Bulldogs' blocking to the tune of two sacks, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a dominating performance not frequently seen by CU lineman.

Hypolite, who enjoys woodworking as one of his passions, simply carved up the bigger, more decorated offensive line of Georgia and is one big reason for optimism on defense. A year ago, he made 11 tackles in 203 plays. It seemed like he made that many yesterday alone.

Geer, a redshirt freshman from Grand Junction, reminds The Black and Gold Breakdown of how some cat named Joe Klopfenstein first grabbed our attention. The 6-foot-3, 240-pounder was not someone Texas or USC had to have, just as Klopfenstein wasn't, but he has the makings of a playmaking tight end in the tradition of other talents at the position in school history.

Saturday, the numbers were seven catches for 71 yards. On the season, he has 10 grabs for 115 yards.

Geer also has an athletic lineage, as his grandfather wrestled at Wyoming and an uncle ran track at Colorado Mines.

Yes, CU lost the game but young players continue to emerge. By the end of the season, hopefully the fortunes will have turned but one thing is for sure, the table is being set for something much bigger in 2007.