For the first time in more than a decade, the Colorado Buffaloes football program enters November with six wins and bowl eligibility already under their belts. It's a heady place to be, but this team has suffered for years and will not be satisfied to just settle for six wins and any old bowl game.
No, this team wants more. They want it all, really. And the men responsible for that attitude are not just the ones playing in the games, but also the ones doing the coaching and training.
And for the first time in more than a decade, the grades are not as scary as the Halloween season.
Drew Wilson -- A+++
Director of Football Strength and Conditioning
Technically, Wilson is not a coach. But, throughout the year, no one spends more time with the players than Wilson. The players love him, and Wilson's expertise in his field and motivational prowess has turned the Buffs into a team of gym rats.
No longer are the Buffs being pushed around by the rest of the Pac-12. Indeed, they may now be the most physical team in the league. What makes this even more impressive is that Wilson did not even join the staff until January of this year. Rick George and Mike MacIntyre need to do whatever it takes to keep Wilson.
OFFENSE
Klayton Adams -- A+
Offensive Line Coach
Adams has been with MacIntyre for six years (beginning at San Jose State). This is his first year coaching the offensive line at Colorado. The best line coaches make their charges realize that the line must play as an integrated unit to succeed, and not focus on individual achievement. Adams has done that quite well and the Buffs are reaping the rewards.
Gary Bernardi -- C-
Tight Ends and Full Backs
Bernardi was the coach of the offensive line during MacIntyre's first three years at Colorado. The Buffs were 2-25 in Pac-12 play during that time and finished 6th (last) in the Pac-12 South each season.
The tight ends and full backs have been relegated to blockers only this year. They have no carries among the fullbacks and no tight end has more than one catch. Their blocking has been part of the offensive rejuvenation this season, but their production has been non-existent.
Darian Hagan -- A+
Running Backs
This season is Hagan's second stint coaching running backs. He has excelled this time with Phillip Lindsay as well as his first go round with Rodney Stewart and Hugh Charles, who both rushed for more than 1000 yards under Hagan's tutelage. Barring injury, Lindsay should become Hagan's third 1K rusher.
On top of that, Hagan has his RB's blocking as well as running. Even though they are small in stature, Kyle Evans and Lindsay are two of the strongest pound for pound players on the team.
Darrin Chiaverini -- A+++
Wide Receivers and Co-Offensive Coordinator
Like Darian Hagan, Chev is a guy who played at Colorado. Hagan was a force of nature on the field and has become an excellent coach. Chiaverini was an excellent player but has become a force of nature as a coach.
He has risen through the ranks quickly in his coaching career, and as co-offensive coordinator at Colorado, he has been excellent not only in working with the wide receivers but also in recruiting and game planning. His ability to expand Lindgren's play-calling repertoire and explain the details of the plan to the players has been outstanding.
The receivers under Chev have become a dominant force in the conference. They not only catch the ball with outstanding purpose, but their blocking for each other and the runners coming from out of the backfield has been exemplary.
The Buffs have had 13 plays covering more than 40 yards this year so far, and 38 that have gone for more than 20. Many of those big plays can be attributed to downfield blocking by the receivers.
As for Chev, his energy and infectious enthusiasm fires up players and fans alike and his relentless social media presence makes him a remarkable ambassador for the University of Colorado.
Brian Lindgren -- A
Quarterbacks and Co-Offensive Coordinator
Lindgren has done a remarkable job as quarterbacks coach this season. Sefo Liufau has played the best of his career this season, and Steven Montez covered the QB position admirably while Liufau was hurt. Lindgren, Liufau and Montez have combined to be one of the most efficient offensive forces in the Pac-12. If he was only being graded on the play of the quarterbacks, he would have an A+.
Although it has been much better this season due to the overall strength of the offensive coaching, training and players, Lindgren has still had one shortcoming. Most of the game prep done throughout the season has been spot on. The Buffs have been the only team this year to put a hurting on #2's Michigan's defense. And they did it on the road.
But the Buffs did that prior to Liufau's injury in Ann Arbor. Once Montez came in (quite obviously unprepared for the possibility), the play-calling suffered as Lindgren did not adapt to having a redshirt freshman who had barely played this year even though the Buffs had put together several blowout wins.
At USC, their defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergrast put together a brilliant game plan to take away the run game from the Buffs. It worked, and by the time Lindgren got around to adjusting in the 4th quarter, the Trojans' lead was too big to surmount.
The Buffs again sputtered offensively against Stanford on the road. Liufau had by far his worst game of the season. Fortunately, the defense was prepared and able to shut down the Cardinal, holding them to their fewest points in more than a decade. This allowed the Buffs to escape with a 10-5 win.
Colorado Buffaloes Overall Offensive Grade -- A-
The Buffs offensively have been very good, and deserving of a full A for much of the season. But the small failures to adapt in the face of adversity cost the Buffs their two losses, and could have led to a third if not for fine defensive play.
As the going gets rougher in the meat of the schedule, every team we play will want to beat the first place team. The Buffs need to be ready before the game offensively, and need to be ready to adapt when the situations arise.
Some would say that the Buffs deserve a straight up A for how far they've come. But the layers want to be an A team against the best of the Pac-12, not just compared to how bad they used to be.
The next four games, three at home, will determine the overall success of the season. We know they will be playing in a bowl game. But they want to play in the Pac-12 Championship, and they want to play in the Rose Bowl. To do that for sure, they need to win out in the regular season.
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Next up:
November 1st Grades of Colorado's Defensive Coaching Staff
and
2016 Grade for Mike MacIntyre After 9 Games
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