Colorado had a magical season last year. They went from worst to first and played in the Pac-12 Championship game. After a decade of losing records, the 10-2 regular season looked like it represented the long sought rejuvenation of Colorado Buffaloes football.
Unfortunately, looked like and reality are quite often not the same thing. Since that time, the Buffs have gone 3-5, eerily similar to much of the last decade. And if you believe in such things, it's almost as if Mike MacIntyre made a deal with the devil but forgot to ask for something more long-lasting than just wanting to win 10 games. Since then, the devil has been in the details. And the Buffaloes have become a team which loses more often than not once again.
Strangely enough, as if cursed, CU can't seem to get a good complete game from the entire team. For most of the games this year, the D has come through and exceeded expectations. That came to a screeching halt against Arizona as an 18 year old backup quarterback rewrote the NCAA record books against Colorado.
By the same token, an offense that has woefully under-performed this year finally woke up against Arizona. Of course, coming into the game the Wildcats were a lower tier Pac-12 team whose coach was riding a seat that was getting hotter by the game. Still, it was nice to finally see the Buffs finally put some serious points on the board against Pac-12 competition.
Some might ague that Colorado's offensive explosion and game-clock dominance was misleading. Long, time-consuming drives are usually great... unless you already down by two touchdowns and your defense is completely unable to stop the other team. Taking seven minutes and 19 plays to score is great and demoralizing to the other team if you are ahead. When you are behind, all it does is shorten the time available for you to catch up. Colorado may tell themselves that they didn't really lose, but that the clock just ran out on them. Sadly, they were the ones running out the clock for the most part.
The only sadder, more under-performing team in the Pac-12 right now is Oregon State. Fortunately (or unfortunately), the two bottom dwellers meet this week to determine who really is the worst team in the conference. The odds-makers have made the Buffaloes double digit favorites, even though the game will be played in Corvallis. Let's hope they get it right this week.
Another loss for Colorado would lead to an implosion as players start (or finish) checking out emotionally and fans start getting themselves ready for ski and snowboard season. The driving snow outside right now seems to be portending which of those will happen.
The magic of a worst to first season like 2016 can be rendered unimaginable if it is followed by a first to worst season. Even more so if it's a worst-first-worst sandwich. Is it too late? Is Mike MacIntyre willing or able to make drastic changes to shake up his team? We'll see.
But folks should not get overexcited if the Buffaloes win at Oregon State. It's the last game the Buffaloes will be favored in.
Showing posts with label Arizona Wildcats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Arizona Wildcats. Show all posts
Monday, October 9, 2017
Saturday, October 7, 2017
Arizona Preview and Commentary on Colorado Football After the UCLA Loss
It's been a busy week without the normal time available for writing, but one in which my comments were directed at other sites. What follows is some of what was written as commentary on other sites. Some people agreed with me passionately, while others took exception to my attempts at insight.
Oct. 2
Oct. 3
Stuart at CU at the Game took the prior comment as an indication that I thought MacIntyre would or should be fired if the Buffaloes lost this week to Arizona. That led to the following exchange.
Oct. 4 - Me
The Colorado Buffaloes will take the field against the Arizona Wildcats in a little over 15 hours. These are my thoughts as to the importance of this game.
Colorado and Mike MacIntyre went 10-2 last year in the regular season. It was the first winning record in a decade. Since that time, the have played in the Pac-12 Championship game, a bowl game and the first five games of this season.
Against top notch opponents to end the season last year, the Buffs were beaten handily and did not look good doing it. In the first three games this season, the Buffaloes did manage to win but looked uninspired and unimpressive in their three non-conference games.
In the first two conference games this year, the Buffaloes have been beaten handily at home by Washington and lost on the road to a reeling UCLA team with one of the worst defenses in the country. The Bruins had been giving up around 45 points per game, and the Buffaloes managed to score around half that amount.
Colorado did seem to be emotionally invested the entire game against UCLA for the first time since last season, but still lost.
Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez, like Jim Mora at UCLA, finds himself on the coaches hot-seat lists because of poor play by his team. Mora was able to inspire his team to a big win over Colorado. It remains to be seen whether RichRod can do the same thing this week with the Wildcats.
If the Buffaloes can come out and play as a team which deserves to be in the conversation for a Top 25 team and win handily at home against Arizona, it could turn around a season of struggle. A big win could set them up for better things in the second half of the season.
A win would bring them to 4-2, with a game against Pac-12 doormat Oregon State next week. Another win there and the Buffs would be one win from qualifying for a bowl.
If the Buffaloes come out flat and emotionless like most of the prior seven games, an inspired Arizona could come in and pull off the upset. If that happens, the Buffaloes would fall to 3-3 with the meat of the Pac-12 schedule still ahead of them. A loss here would put a severe hit on their desire to go to a bowl for a second consecutive year.
I described last week's tussle as a "bellwether game" with a big win or loss. The close loss put the Buffs in the position that their backs are now firmly against the wall. Only a win will get them where they want to be. A loss will relegate them to the lower levels of the Pac-12.
It's the first game of October. Will the Buffaloes rise to the occasion to save their season or not?
Oct. 2
After the loss to UCLA, head coach Mike MacIntyre once again stated that this Buffaloes team would “win a lot of games” this year. Since we’re five games in already, I’m looking for a little context on what qualifies as “a lot of games” when Mac talks.Is “a lot” 10 games? Eight games? Six games? Or What?In MacIntyre’s seven full seasons as a head coach, he’s had TWO winning seasons and FIVE losing seasons. More telling than the 2 vs 5 is the drastic differences each represents. It’s really either feast or famine.In the two winning seasons (one each at CU and San Jose State), Mac has a record of 20-6. In the five losing seasons, Mac has gone 16-46. For the fellow math geeks out there, that means the losing seasons averaged roughly 3-9 (3.2-9.2).It’s even more glaring when looking at conference games. In the two winning seasons, Mac’s teams went 13-2 during conference games. In the five losing seasons, Mac’s teams went 5-37 against conference foes.Although the Buffs still have a winning record so far this season at 3-2, they are 0-2 in the Pac-12. With arguably the two weakest teams this year on tap the next two weeks, one wonders if Mac and staff will have the guys ready to play.For most of us fans, time and games are running out if the goal is to win “a lot” of games this year.
Oct. 3
Mike MacIntyre’s future depends upon this game against Arizona perhaps more than any other since he arrived in Boulder. Arizona is a horrible Pac-12 road team the last several years. Last year they were 0-4 and outscored in the Pac on the road 192-71. In 2015 they were outscored 225-125 on road with a 1-4 record.
The last time Arizona won on the road in the Pac-12 was when they beat Colorado in 2015.
Colorado has looked pretty uninterested and uninspired this year so far. That falls on MacIntyre and the coaches. If they lose this game at home, the rest of the season will be lost. The fans and the players will stop caring.
Colorado needs to win the game and win big to get this season salvaged. If they struggle at home to a clearly inferior team, the rest of the Pac-12 schedule looks like murderer’s row in comparison.
If the Buffs lose, it will be clear that MacIntyre has lost the faith of his team, and that will not likely be restored. The countdown to reality is on.
Stuart at CU at the Game took the prior comment as an indication that I thought MacIntyre would or should be fired if the Buffaloes lost this week to Arizona. That led to the following exchange.
Oct. 4 - Me
Nobody does or should think MacIntyre will be fired. Why would he be fired? Some may be hoping that he wins enough games to be lured away back to his part of the country, and some are hoping he turns things around and gets the Buffs back in the annual bowl extravaganzas year after year.Stuart
Most fans don’t have the same warm fuzzy feelings about the offensive play-caller. BL did a good job against UCLA. But the games in which his play-calling outsmarted a good defense are pretty much non-existent. One good game doesn’t get him off the hook for the years of head-scratching play calls.
The Pac-12 is a tough league to play in, especially on the road. It’s not really a surprise that a struggling UCLA (or any other Pac-12 team) is tough to beat on their home turf.
That said, the Buffs need to take advantage of every opportunity they have. They only play 12 games (and a bowl if they earn it and yearn for it). The key to being a good team is being UP for every game, which is something they have not done this year.
Some of us are concerned that a third straight loss, especially to a horrible road team like Arizona, would portend a likely collapse this season. We are all hoping for an inspired CU team to show up and finally live up to pre-season expectations. If not, we have a mostly lost decade to look back upon and prepare us for our feelings of despair about losing football.
The truth may be that the Buffs are not as good as advertised. And since Mac won’t let anyone watch his practices, he takes the blame when he makes statements that are clearly not true about how good, prepared, and dominating his team will be.
The best coaches I have watched over too many decades had certain traits in common: They voluntarily took the blame when their players were not prepared because it’s why they get paid; and they protected their kids from having blame pushed onto them. These are not NFL players, they are college kids.
If some of us seem too critical of MacIntyre, maybe it’s because we believe that is where the blame should go. Everyone in the press knows Mac doesn’t handle criticism well… but, hey, we’re football fans, not his therapist. He can pay them to work on his feelings, and he can afford it.
“Nobody does or should think MacIntyre will be fired. Why would he be fired?”Me
Your previous post opened with … “Mike MacIntyre’s future depends upon this game against Arizona perhaps more than any other since he arrived in Boulder”.
Not sure how else to read that …
I certainly hope that Mac’s future will go many more years. The implication is that if the Buffaloes lose to Arizona it will signal a downturn from the gains the program made last year. And that if the CU goes on to have a dismal ending to the 2017 it will be hard for Mac to reclaim the faith of the fans and the players.
MacIntyre made a national name for himself last year and was rewarded with National Coach of the Year honors from numerous sources. Considering the general disregard for what Colorado would do THIS year from the media is pretty telling. So far, it seems the prognosticators were more right than MacIntyre about how good the Buffaloes would be, especially the O-line and scoring.
In football, there are watershed moments that portend the future. Before the UCLA game I wrote how a big win or loss (point wise) would be a serious indicator but that a close win or loss like they had would put the pressure on the next two games with Arizona and Oregon State to set the tone for the rest of the year.
Colorado MUST beat Arizona at Folsom if they want to salvage this season. If not, they have a good chance of ending up near the bottom of the Pac-12 yet again. If they don’t beat Arizona, even teams like Oregon State will believe that they can beat Colorado, especially playing at home.
The quote you gave of mine above covers a multi-year period since his arrival in Boulder. I’m just pointing out that trends in football tend to go on for several seasons. The Buffs went from being blown out every game to getting close but still losing. Then they finally started to win the close ones and win some big last year in Pac-12 play. If they start moving the other direction, as a pendulum always does sooner or later, it will be hard to change that momentum.
I’ve written many times in praise of MacIntyre (check my blog), but I feel that when criticism is warranted it should be given. If you want to be the highest paid state employee then you should expect folks to have high expectations. He can’t expect only accolades.
The Colorado Buffaloes will take the field against the Arizona Wildcats in a little over 15 hours. These are my thoughts as to the importance of this game.
Colorado and Mike MacIntyre went 10-2 last year in the regular season. It was the first winning record in a decade. Since that time, the have played in the Pac-12 Championship game, a bowl game and the first five games of this season.
Against top notch opponents to end the season last year, the Buffs were beaten handily and did not look good doing it. In the first three games this season, the Buffaloes did manage to win but looked uninspired and unimpressive in their three non-conference games.
In the first two conference games this year, the Buffaloes have been beaten handily at home by Washington and lost on the road to a reeling UCLA team with one of the worst defenses in the country. The Bruins had been giving up around 45 points per game, and the Buffaloes managed to score around half that amount.
Colorado did seem to be emotionally invested the entire game against UCLA for the first time since last season, but still lost.
Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez, like Jim Mora at UCLA, finds himself on the coaches hot-seat lists because of poor play by his team. Mora was able to inspire his team to a big win over Colorado. It remains to be seen whether RichRod can do the same thing this week with the Wildcats.
If the Buffaloes can come out and play as a team which deserves to be in the conversation for a Top 25 team and win handily at home against Arizona, it could turn around a season of struggle. A big win could set them up for better things in the second half of the season.
A win would bring them to 4-2, with a game against Pac-12 doormat Oregon State next week. Another win there and the Buffs would be one win from qualifying for a bowl.
If the Buffaloes come out flat and emotionless like most of the prior seven games, an inspired Arizona could come in and pull off the upset. If that happens, the Buffaloes would fall to 3-3 with the meat of the Pac-12 schedule still ahead of them. A loss here would put a severe hit on their desire to go to a bowl for a second consecutive year.
I described last week's tussle as a "bellwether game" with a big win or loss. The close loss put the Buffs in the position that their backs are now firmly against the wall. Only a win will get them where they want to be. A loss will relegate them to the lower levels of the Pac-12.
It's the first game of October. Will the Buffaloes rise to the occasion to save their season or not?
Friday, September 29, 2017
The Pac-12's "Moral Authority" Took a Beating This Week
Those of us who have been lifelong fans of the Pac 8-10-12 over the decades have always been pretty firm in our belief that "our" college athletics was handled in the proper manner. We believed that the primary reason for our universities was to educate, and that those attending our schools needed to be students first and athletes second. And despite this, the conference was the "Conference of Champions" in the national landscape.
We believed our blood brothers in this rightful hierarchy of academic and athletics was the Big 10. The schools in the two conferences were not only among the best in the country, but also the world. In the latest world rankings of universities for academic achievement, the two conferences tied to the Rose Bowl (The Granddaddy of them All) put a combined 16 schools among the best 100 in the entire world.
As schools from other parts of the country struggled to properly balance school with sport, we smugly patted ourselves on the back. When an investigative report on a national news program (like 60 Minutes) told us of some professional sports players filing suit against their universities because they had been pushed through and graduated to keep them eligible even though they were functionally illiterate, we shook our heads knowing that "those things" didn't happen in our parts of the country.
As college sports became Big Time and Big Money, however, the temptation for schools to win on the national stage became overwhelming. Simply allowing unqualified students to attend to help a school win seemed almost noble in comparison. Some rationalized that they would help these poor young men get the education they missed in high school, where they were also passed along to keep them eligible for sports.
Schools, particularly in basketball, went hard with handfuls (or bags full) of cash after young men who they knew would never even attend a collegiate course. They'd come in as FIVE STAR players, with cash in hand, play for one season and move on to professional basketball in the US or overseas before the NCAA caught on that they were not really students. There's even a name for them among the fans and press: The One and Done's.
It's a system which works for basketball because exceptional hardwood talents can be among the best in the country even as freshmen. It's much harder to do in football, but not totally unheard of.
When the FBI announced that they had made the first arrests of college coaches involved in high stakes bribery, and that system involved agents, financial managers, and even shoe companies, no one who follows college athletics was really surprised. Coaches were paid to advise young men who to hire as agents and advisors, and they were also directed to use money to lure young men to the "right" schools, where those with a financial stake could exercise influence over them.
That the Pac-12 had two of the first four coaches arrested was shocking to fans. Although, in reality, the USC coach was not a shock because, after all, USC has gotten in trouble before for athletes being paid. In fact, most fans in the Pac-12 refer to USC as an "Honorary SEC team" because of their predilection for running afoul of NCAA rules. The arrest of a coach at Arizona was another matter altogether.
The Wildcats were one of the Top 10 in all-time winning percentage. They had made it to the NCAA tournament every year except one in the last 32 years. They were the most consistently excellent program in the Pac-12 during those years. And now, it turns out, they've been paying players to go to Tucson. Head coach Sean Miller has not been arrested or indicted... yet. But his assistant, Emanuel "Book" Richardson was among the first arrested by the FBI. Most of us have a sneaking suspicion that the nickname "Book" has absolutely nothing to do with reading.
We were never surprised if the Louisville's or Kentucky's or Alabama's of the college landscape got caught paying players. Why would anyone willingly go to those places unless there was money involved? Isn't it amazing how certain we can be in our naivete?
The FBI claims that the first arrests were just the tip of the iceberg of a much larger, nationwide, problem of a multi-billion dollar industry being largely dependent on (officially) unpaid young athletes. How could that system possibly go wrong, right?
No matter what happens, fans from the Pac-12 have had their moral assured-ness in the propriety of their college athletics take a severe beating. They likely will never feel that way again. Overall, maybe that's a good thing. Blind faith in anything only leads to trouble.
We believed our blood brothers in this rightful hierarchy of academic and athletics was the Big 10. The schools in the two conferences were not only among the best in the country, but also the world. In the latest world rankings of universities for academic achievement, the two conferences tied to the Rose Bowl (The Granddaddy of them All) put a combined 16 schools among the best 100 in the entire world.
As schools from other parts of the country struggled to properly balance school with sport, we smugly patted ourselves on the back. When an investigative report on a national news program (like 60 Minutes) told us of some professional sports players filing suit against their universities because they had been pushed through and graduated to keep them eligible even though they were functionally illiterate, we shook our heads knowing that "those things" didn't happen in our parts of the country.
As college sports became Big Time and Big Money, however, the temptation for schools to win on the national stage became overwhelming. Simply allowing unqualified students to attend to help a school win seemed almost noble in comparison. Some rationalized that they would help these poor young men get the education they missed in high school, where they were also passed along to keep them eligible for sports.
Schools, particularly in basketball, went hard with handfuls (or bags full) of cash after young men who they knew would never even attend a collegiate course. They'd come in as FIVE STAR players, with cash in hand, play for one season and move on to professional basketball in the US or overseas before the NCAA caught on that they were not really students. There's even a name for them among the fans and press: The One and Done's.
It's a system which works for basketball because exceptional hardwood talents can be among the best in the country even as freshmen. It's much harder to do in football, but not totally unheard of.
When the FBI announced that they had made the first arrests of college coaches involved in high stakes bribery, and that system involved agents, financial managers, and even shoe companies, no one who follows college athletics was really surprised. Coaches were paid to advise young men who to hire as agents and advisors, and they were also directed to use money to lure young men to the "right" schools, where those with a financial stake could exercise influence over them.
That the Pac-12 had two of the first four coaches arrested was shocking to fans. Although, in reality, the USC coach was not a shock because, after all, USC has gotten in trouble before for athletes being paid. In fact, most fans in the Pac-12 refer to USC as an "Honorary SEC team" because of their predilection for running afoul of NCAA rules. The arrest of a coach at Arizona was another matter altogether.
The Wildcats were one of the Top 10 in all-time winning percentage. They had made it to the NCAA tournament every year except one in the last 32 years. They were the most consistently excellent program in the Pac-12 during those years. And now, it turns out, they've been paying players to go to Tucson. Head coach Sean Miller has not been arrested or indicted... yet. But his assistant, Emanuel "Book" Richardson was among the first arrested by the FBI. Most of us have a sneaking suspicion that the nickname "Book" has absolutely nothing to do with reading.
We were never surprised if the Louisville's or Kentucky's or Alabama's of the college landscape got caught paying players. Why would anyone willingly go to those places unless there was money involved? Isn't it amazing how certain we can be in our naivete?
The FBI claims that the first arrests were just the tip of the iceberg of a much larger, nationwide, problem of a multi-billion dollar industry being largely dependent on (officially) unpaid young athletes. How could that system possibly go wrong, right?
No matter what happens, fans from the Pac-12 have had their moral assured-ness in the propriety of their college athletics take a severe beating. They likely will never feel that way again. Overall, maybe that's a good thing. Blind faith in anything only leads to trouble.
Sunday, September 27, 2015
CU Buffs Game Against Oregon and the Rest of October Now Looks a Little Less Daunting
Go ahead and admit it... If someone had offered to bet you straight up that Colorado would have a better record than Oregon after four weeks of the 2015 season, you would have bet the house. The whole country would have.
If someone told you that one of the two teams (either the Buffs or the Ducks) would be giving up nearly 41 points per game and the other only 16.5, you would have been willing to wager that it was the Ducks with the better numbers.
Surprise! One week before the Oregon Ducks limp into Boulder for a night game on ESPN, the Buffs now find themselves knowing that the Ducks can be beaten. Indeed, only four weeks into the season and the Ducks have already lost twice. And even in their two wins (Eastern Washington and Georgia State), the Ducks gave up 42 and 28 points, respectively. They are not a strong defensive team.
In their game at home against Utah, Oregon gave up 62 points and were outplayed in every facet of the game.
Marcus Mariota and his Heisman Trophy are no longer running the show for the Ducks and it certainly shows this year. Things are about to get ugly. Last week, the Oregonian ran the story: "AP Top 25: Oregon Ducks fall to lowest ranking in 4 years"
This week, the Ducks are very likely to be out of the Top 25 for the first time in a long time. Or they may squeak in at around 24 or 25, but they certainly shouldn't. A 2-2 team who gives up 62 points at home to a team they were favored to beat by 10 points does not deserve to be in the top 25.
Oregon is not the only team the Buffs play in October that is struggling.
The Buffs schedule for the month now looks like this:
The Colorado Buffaloes will have five chances in October to show they deserve to play in a bowl game this year.
At the beginning of the season, the October schedule looked like a "Murderers Row" to fans, but four games into the season the schedule looks a lot less scary. The Buffs know that none of their Pac-12 games will be as easy as their 48-0 blowout over Nicholls. They have been saying since camp began back in August that they have the talent to play with anyone. And they have said they are ready to win the close ones.
With the games in October, the Buffs have a chance to prove it. And it begins when Oregon comes to town next weekend.
If someone told you that one of the two teams (either the Buffs or the Ducks) would be giving up nearly 41 points per game and the other only 16.5, you would have been willing to wager that it was the Ducks with the better numbers.
Surprise! One week before the Oregon Ducks limp into Boulder for a night game on ESPN, the Buffs now find themselves knowing that the Ducks can be beaten. Indeed, only four weeks into the season and the Ducks have already lost twice. And even in their two wins (Eastern Washington and Georgia State), the Ducks gave up 42 and 28 points, respectively. They are not a strong defensive team.
In their game at home against Utah, Oregon gave up 62 points and were outplayed in every facet of the game.
Marcus Mariota and his Heisman Trophy are no longer running the show for the Ducks and it certainly shows this year. Things are about to get ugly. Last week, the Oregonian ran the story: "AP Top 25: Oregon Ducks fall to lowest ranking in 4 years"
This week, the Ducks are very likely to be out of the Top 25 for the first time in a long time. Or they may squeak in at around 24 or 25, but they certainly shouldn't. A 2-2 team who gives up 62 points at home to a team they were favored to beat by 10 points does not deserve to be in the top 25.
Oregon is not the only team the Buffs play in October that is struggling.
The Buffs schedule for the month now looks like this:
- October 3 -- Oregon Ducks (2-2) Lost at home 62-20 to Utah
- October 10 -- Arizona State (2-2) Lost at home 42-14 to USC, and face UCLA next week. Will likely host CU with a record of 2-3.
- October 17 -- Arizona (3-1) Lost at home 56-30 to UCLA, and plays at Stanford next week. Will likely come to Boulder with at least two losses.
- October 24 -- Oregon State (2-2) Lost at home to Stanford 42-24, and plays at Arizona on Oct. 10th. Will likely host Colorado with at least 3 losses.
- October 31 -- UCLA (4-0) Beat Arizona 56-30 in Tucson. Face three tough games (ASU, Stanford, and California) before coming to Boulder.
The Colorado Buffaloes will have five chances in October to show they deserve to play in a bowl game this year.
At the beginning of the season, the October schedule looked like a "Murderers Row" to fans, but four games into the season the schedule looks a lot less scary. The Buffs know that none of their Pac-12 games will be as easy as their 48-0 blowout over Nicholls. They have been saying since camp began back in August that they have the talent to play with anyone. And they have said they are ready to win the close ones.
With the games in October, the Buffs have a chance to prove it. And it begins when Oregon comes to town next weekend.
Friday, October 3, 2014
Colorado Earns Respect as Buffs Prove They Can Score Big Points in Pac-12 Play
In the first three years that Colorado was playing in Pac-12 games, their opponents scored 40 or more points 22 times. In fact, their Pac-12 opponents scored 50 or more 8 times during from 2011-13.
During that same time span, Colorado only scored more than 40 points twice in Pac-12 play. That 22-2 difference pretty much sums up that the first three years in the league were extraordinarily tough. Mike MacIntyre was the head coach in only one of those first three years, but his Buffs have made steady improvement and are now poised to shoot it out with their conference foes.
The Pac-12 is an offensive league. Points are scored at a high rate and no team can ever be counted out. Arizona scored 36 points in the 4th quarter to come back and beat California. Utah gave up a 21 point lead to Washington State to lose by one. Colorado was twice up by 14 points against Cal only to lose the game by three points in double overtime. The "Berkeley Shootout" saw 115 points scored and 14 touchdown passes.
Colorado showed against Arizona State that they could move the ball up and down the field against a very good Pac-12 team. Turnovers and mistakes led them to lose after dominating the last three quarters against the Sun Devils. Against California, the Buffs again put massive yards up, but this time put up a score to match with 56 points. Unfortunately, Cal scored 59, but the game confirmed that the Buffs finally possessed the offensive firepower to put big points on the board in conference play.
The next step for Colorado is continuing improvement toward eliminating big plays by the competition. Take away five defensive breakdowns for Colorado against Cal and the Buffs win by 20 or more.
California scored 35 points on plays of 25, 26, 40, 75, and 92 yards. Those 258 yards in five plays represented 44% of the Golden Bears' yardage on the day. They also led to almost 60% of the Bears' points.
By comparison, Colorado's ball control offense moved the ball in much smaller chunks. The yardage on their longest 5 touchdowns combined was only 96 yards total. Those scores covered 30, 25, 22, 12 and 7 yards. The yardage on those 5 touchdowns represented only 15% of their total offense of 630 yards.
What the Buffs have going for them is that their offensive style allows them to control the ball and the clock. If opposing defenses play deep to take away the long ball, the Buffs are adept at chipping their way down the field. If opponents play too close to the line, the Buffs can go over the top to score. Going forward, that style of ball control gives the Buffs their best chance to win. As they continue to improve and their running game becomes more reliable, the Buffs will be harder and harder to stop.
The Buff defense is still giving up a lot of points, but other league teams are working much harder to score them. In years past, the Buffs were usually going against 2nd and 3rd stringers (or 4th!) in the second half. This year, Cal and ASU had their starters in the entire game. The Buff D has also developed a swagger that has not been seen in Boulder for a long time. It's good to see and a sign of better things to come.
If fans only look at the final scores, it might seem hard to see the great improvements made by the Buffs in 2014. It is necessary to watch the games to see how improved they are. They are hitting harder as a group and scoring more points as well. They are scratching and clawing to become relevant in the best conference in the country. Before our very eyes, they are learning to compete to the final whistle. And before long, they will be learning to win in the Pac-12 on a consistent basis.
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Seeing the Buffs play this year, especially in person at Folsom Field, will also give Buff fans a chance to see Nelson Spruce obliterate the record book for receivers at Colorado. Just as casual fans turned out to watch Chauncey Billups play hoops at CU, they should also do the same for Spruce. They should also cross their fingers that Spruce blesses Colorado with one more year before going off to the NFL.
During that same time span, Colorado only scored more than 40 points twice in Pac-12 play. That 22-2 difference pretty much sums up that the first three years in the league were extraordinarily tough. Mike MacIntyre was the head coach in only one of those first three years, but his Buffs have made steady improvement and are now poised to shoot it out with their conference foes.
The Pac-12 is an offensive league. Points are scored at a high rate and no team can ever be counted out. Arizona scored 36 points in the 4th quarter to come back and beat California. Utah gave up a 21 point lead to Washington State to lose by one. Colorado was twice up by 14 points against Cal only to lose the game by three points in double overtime. The "Berkeley Shootout" saw 115 points scored and 14 touchdown passes.
Colorado showed against Arizona State that they could move the ball up and down the field against a very good Pac-12 team. Turnovers and mistakes led them to lose after dominating the last three quarters against the Sun Devils. Against California, the Buffs again put massive yards up, but this time put up a score to match with 56 points. Unfortunately, Cal scored 59, but the game confirmed that the Buffs finally possessed the offensive firepower to put big points on the board in conference play.
The next step for Colorado is continuing improvement toward eliminating big plays by the competition. Take away five defensive breakdowns for Colorado against Cal and the Buffs win by 20 or more.
California scored 35 points on plays of 25, 26, 40, 75, and 92 yards. Those 258 yards in five plays represented 44% of the Golden Bears' yardage on the day. They also led to almost 60% of the Bears' points.
By comparison, Colorado's ball control offense moved the ball in much smaller chunks. The yardage on their longest 5 touchdowns combined was only 96 yards total. Those scores covered 30, 25, 22, 12 and 7 yards. The yardage on those 5 touchdowns represented only 15% of their total offense of 630 yards.
What the Buffs have going for them is that their offensive style allows them to control the ball and the clock. If opposing defenses play deep to take away the long ball, the Buffs are adept at chipping their way down the field. If opponents play too close to the line, the Buffs can go over the top to score. Going forward, that style of ball control gives the Buffs their best chance to win. As they continue to improve and their running game becomes more reliable, the Buffs will be harder and harder to stop.
The Buff defense is still giving up a lot of points, but other league teams are working much harder to score them. In years past, the Buffs were usually going against 2nd and 3rd stringers (or 4th!) in the second half. This year, Cal and ASU had their starters in the entire game. The Buff D has also developed a swagger that has not been seen in Boulder for a long time. It's good to see and a sign of better things to come.
If fans only look at the final scores, it might seem hard to see the great improvements made by the Buffs in 2014. It is necessary to watch the games to see how improved they are. They are hitting harder as a group and scoring more points as well. They are scratching and clawing to become relevant in the best conference in the country. Before our very eyes, they are learning to compete to the final whistle. And before long, they will be learning to win in the Pac-12 on a consistent basis.
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Seeing the Buffs play this year, especially in person at Folsom Field, will also give Buff fans a chance to see Nelson Spruce obliterate the record book for receivers at Colorado. Just as casual fans turned out to watch Chauncey Billups play hoops at CU, they should also do the same for Spruce. They should also cross their fingers that Spruce blesses Colorado with one more year before going off to the NFL.
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Buff Fans Should Look to Arizona and Lute Olson for Inspiration
Not all that long ago, the Colorado Buffaloes Men's Basketball program was the mostly forgotten little brother to the mighty CU Football program. Over the years, heck, over the decades, the CU hoopsters were a model of mediocrity. Not that they were lacking in excitement, mind you. On occasion they played top 20 teams very tough when they cam to Boulder. On the road, though, especially in conference play, the Buffs were frequently a guaranteed a big fat L in the loss column.
Those who are new to rooting for the Buffs have been spoiled by the excellence of head coach Tad Boyle. In his four years at the helm in Boulder, the Buffs have won 92 games. For you non-math people, that's an average of 23 wins per year. To put that number in the proper perspective, remember that in the more than 100 years that Colorado played basketball before Boyle arrived, they had exactly FOUR twenty win seasons. Boyle has had the same number in only 4 years.
The most dominant team in the Pac-12 for the last 30 years has been the University of Arizona. Indeed, most younger people seem to think that Arizona's basketball excellence goes back a LONG, LONG time like Kansas, Kentucky, or North Carolina. But it is not true. It was the arrival of Lute Olson in 1983 who turned Arizona into a basketball powerhouse.
Like Colorado, the University of Arizona had a long history of mediocrity in college basketball. Before the arrival of Lute Olson, the Wildcats were one of the worst teams in the entire country. Arizona did not make it to the Big Dance in Olson's first season in Tucson. The same can be said for Tad Boyle's first team at Colorado.
The next three years, Arizona and Colorado have in common three trips to March Madness and three early losses in the tournament (only the 2012 CU team got past the first game). For Arizona, they were the first three of 23 CONSECUTIVE trips to the Big Dance. Included in that 23 year run were a national championship, a runner-up, 4 trips to the Final Four, 7 spots in the Elite Eight, and 11 appearances in the Sweet 16.
The last team that won fewer than 20 games for Lute Olson was the 1986-7 team which finished only 18-12, but still made it to the NCAA tournament. The next year the Wildcats went 35-3 and made it to the Final Four.
Why the history lesson? Many fans of Colorado took the 3rd straight defeat in the opening round (Round of 64, maybe? I refuse to call it the 2nd round) as a sign that bad things are ahead for the Buff basketball program.
The truth is that this is the early stages of the the Golden Era for Colorado basketball. Earlier this year we were ranked in the top 15 in the country! A couple of injuries changed everything, and the Buffs limped into postseason play with one of the youngest teams in the country.
Next year the Buffs youngsters will be a year older and a year stronger. New blood is coming in as well. Count on 20 wins again, and maybe considerably more. Also count on the Buffs to be in the NCAA tournament once again. And if the University of Colorado knows what is in the best interest of the school and fans, they will do what is necessary to keep Tad Boyle the head coach at Colorado for a long, long time.
Those who are new to rooting for the Buffs have been spoiled by the excellence of head coach Tad Boyle. In his four years at the helm in Boulder, the Buffs have won 92 games. For you non-math people, that's an average of 23 wins per year. To put that number in the proper perspective, remember that in the more than 100 years that Colorado played basketball before Boyle arrived, they had exactly FOUR twenty win seasons. Boyle has had the same number in only 4 years.
The most dominant team in the Pac-12 for the last 30 years has been the University of Arizona. Indeed, most younger people seem to think that Arizona's basketball excellence goes back a LONG, LONG time like Kansas, Kentucky, or North Carolina. But it is not true. It was the arrival of Lute Olson in 1983 who turned Arizona into a basketball powerhouse.
Like Colorado, the University of Arizona had a long history of mediocrity in college basketball. Before the arrival of Lute Olson, the Wildcats were one of the worst teams in the entire country. Arizona did not make it to the Big Dance in Olson's first season in Tucson. The same can be said for Tad Boyle's first team at Colorado.
The next three years, Arizona and Colorado have in common three trips to March Madness and three early losses in the tournament (only the 2012 CU team got past the first game). For Arizona, they were the first three of 23 CONSECUTIVE trips to the Big Dance. Included in that 23 year run were a national championship, a runner-up, 4 trips to the Final Four, 7 spots in the Elite Eight, and 11 appearances in the Sweet 16.
The last team that won fewer than 20 games for Lute Olson was the 1986-7 team which finished only 18-12, but still made it to the NCAA tournament. The next year the Wildcats went 35-3 and made it to the Final Four.
Why the history lesson? Many fans of Colorado took the 3rd straight defeat in the opening round (Round of 64, maybe? I refuse to call it the 2nd round) as a sign that bad things are ahead for the Buff basketball program.
The truth is that this is the early stages of the the Golden Era for Colorado basketball. Earlier this year we were ranked in the top 15 in the country! A couple of injuries changed everything, and the Buffs limped into postseason play with one of the youngest teams in the country.
Next year the Buffs youngsters will be a year older and a year stronger. New blood is coming in as well. Count on 20 wins again, and maybe considerably more. Also count on the Buffs to be in the NCAA tournament once again. And if the University of Colorado knows what is in the best interest of the school and fans, they will do what is necessary to keep Tad Boyle the head coach at Colorado for a long, long time.
Saturday, January 25, 2014
CU Basketball: Buffs Thrashed by ASU -- Time to Take a Cold Hard Look at the Future
One of the great things about having a ranked team when most of your players are underclassmen is that the future looks bright for your program. One of the bad things about having a team dominated by youngsters is the risk that they will wander aimlessly without a true leader.
Such is the case with Tad Boyle's Colorado Buffaloes, who have looked lost and clueless as to which way to turn since projected first round NBA pick Spencer Dinwiddie blew out his knee and was lost for the season. Add in that Tre'Shaun Fletcher hurt his knee and is lost for the next couple months, and the Buffs' psyche just added insult to injury.
After Dinwiddie went down with CU enjoying a lead on the road at Washington, the Buffs proceeded to fall apart and lose that game. The shocking loss of one of the best players in the country gave a viable excuse to the Buff faithful. Even the next game, a loss at home to a ranked UCLA team, seemed reasonable as the Buffs looked to retool their game without Dinwiddie.
Thankfully, a bad to mediocre USC team came into town and the Buffs jumped on them early before coasting to a 21 point win. Unfortunately, what the Trojans gave the Buffs may very well have been bad medicine.
Their next game was on the road at the #1 team in the country, the University of Arizona. The Wildcats did to CU what the Buffs had done to USC. Arizona raced out to an 18-4 lead before coasting to a 12 point win in which they were never challenged.
Buff fans held out high hopes that the loss to Arizona was to be expected even WITH Dinwiddie in the lineup, and that the 69-57 loss was MUCH better than the 90-65 shellacking the Buffs took last year in Kansas. Fans said the only game the Buffs could expect to win on this trip was against Arizona State in Tempe.
Unfortunately, the Sun Devils exposed the Colorado team to be a rudderless team without a captain to lead them. ASU destroyed the Buffs 72-51. Colorado fell out of the top 25 last week and after the game at ASU, the chances they make it back this year are slim and none.
After starting the season 14-2, Colorado has lost four of the last five. The Buffs now own a record of 15-6 and have ten games remaining in the regular season to see if they can win five and salvage a 20 win season. Two of those games come against Washington State and USC, who are the the only weak basketball links in the Pac-12. (Some might argue that Oregon State belongs in that list, but the Buffs don't play them again anyway).
The rest of the Buffs schedule is much tougher. They can look forward to their next three games being played here in Boulder at the Foam Dome, where they have been very tough to beat since Boyle became the coach. Then it's off to Los Angeles for two games, back to Boulder for two, then they play their last three on the road in Utah and the Bay Area.
Can the Buffs win five of the last ten? Not if they continue to play like they did tonight. Earlier this year, the Buffs set a team record by making ALL 27 free throws in game. Tonight, CU tossed brick after brick from the line and made only 9 of 24. Sadly to say, even if they had made the other 15, they still would have lost.
The next three games will be key for Colorado. If they win all three (and they should be winnable at home), the team has a chance to right the course. Winning even two of the three will be a good sign. If they win one or none, the season is effectively over. Even the NIT will look the other way.
Boyle really needs to evaluate the best and most efficient way to use this team. Maybe they need to run on offense and pressure on defense to take advantage of their athleticism. The problem with the young guys is that if you give them too much time to think, they end up thinking too much and forgetting to play the game.
NOTE: The Buffs have been slipping all over the floor the last several games, going back to the Dinwiddie injury. Maybe CU should be taking a hard look at what shoes they are choosing to wear.
Such is the case with Tad Boyle's Colorado Buffaloes, who have looked lost and clueless as to which way to turn since projected first round NBA pick Spencer Dinwiddie blew out his knee and was lost for the season. Add in that Tre'Shaun Fletcher hurt his knee and is lost for the next couple months, and the Buffs' psyche just added insult to injury.
After Dinwiddie went down with CU enjoying a lead on the road at Washington, the Buffs proceeded to fall apart and lose that game. The shocking loss of one of the best players in the country gave a viable excuse to the Buff faithful. Even the next game, a loss at home to a ranked UCLA team, seemed reasonable as the Buffs looked to retool their game without Dinwiddie.
Thankfully, a bad to mediocre USC team came into town and the Buffs jumped on them early before coasting to a 21 point win. Unfortunately, what the Trojans gave the Buffs may very well have been bad medicine.
Their next game was on the road at the #1 team in the country, the University of Arizona. The Wildcats did to CU what the Buffs had done to USC. Arizona raced out to an 18-4 lead before coasting to a 12 point win in which they were never challenged.
Buff fans held out high hopes that the loss to Arizona was to be expected even WITH Dinwiddie in the lineup, and that the 69-57 loss was MUCH better than the 90-65 shellacking the Buffs took last year in Kansas. Fans said the only game the Buffs could expect to win on this trip was against Arizona State in Tempe.
Unfortunately, the Sun Devils exposed the Colorado team to be a rudderless team without a captain to lead them. ASU destroyed the Buffs 72-51. Colorado fell out of the top 25 last week and after the game at ASU, the chances they make it back this year are slim and none.
After starting the season 14-2, Colorado has lost four of the last five. The Buffs now own a record of 15-6 and have ten games remaining in the regular season to see if they can win five and salvage a 20 win season. Two of those games come against Washington State and USC, who are the the only weak basketball links in the Pac-12. (Some might argue that Oregon State belongs in that list, but the Buffs don't play them again anyway).
The rest of the Buffs schedule is much tougher. They can look forward to their next three games being played here in Boulder at the Foam Dome, where they have been very tough to beat since Boyle became the coach. Then it's off to Los Angeles for two games, back to Boulder for two, then they play their last three on the road in Utah and the Bay Area.
Can the Buffs win five of the last ten? Not if they continue to play like they did tonight. Earlier this year, the Buffs set a team record by making ALL 27 free throws in game. Tonight, CU tossed brick after brick from the line and made only 9 of 24. Sadly to say, even if they had made the other 15, they still would have lost.
The next three games will be key for Colorado. If they win all three (and they should be winnable at home), the team has a chance to right the course. Winning even two of the three will be a good sign. If they win one or none, the season is effectively over. Even the NIT will look the other way.
Boyle really needs to evaluate the best and most efficient way to use this team. Maybe they need to run on offense and pressure on defense to take advantage of their athleticism. The problem with the young guys is that if you give them too much time to think, they end up thinking too much and forgetting to play the game.
NOTE: The Buffs have been slipping all over the floor the last several games, going back to the Dinwiddie injury. Maybe CU should be taking a hard look at what shoes they are choosing to wear.
Monday, December 2, 2013
USC Again Shows Poor Form, Hires Sarkisian Away From Washington
You gotta hand it to those Trojans, they don't give a damn about any "gentleman's agreements" when it comes to their head football coaches. Today, USC hired Washington head coach Steve Sarkisian to be their new head coach, even though he was under contract to a fellow Pac-12 school.
It's not the first time that Southern Cal has pulled this stunt. Following the 1986 season, they reached across the desert to Tucson, Arizona and hired Larry Smith away from the Wildcats with the much deeper coffers available to USC. Arizona fans, and even those from other conference schools, were outraged. The Trojans just shrugged.
The only other case of a conference coach jumping programs in recent memory is when Bruce Snyder left Cal for Arizona State following the 1991 season. Although the Cal athletic director claimed that Snyder was lured away by bigger dollars in Tempe, Snyder vigorously denied that before his death in 2009.
Snyder had taken a very down Cal program and turned it into a 10 win team for the first time since Pappy Waldorf's 1949 Cal team. Snyder said that he had a handshake agreement with Cal AD Dave Maggard for a new contract, but that Maggard left Cal for a job with Miami before the contract was signed. The interim AD, Bob Bockrath, refused to honor the deal and Snyder felt he was honor-bound to leave Cal.
Rick Neuheisel left Colorado for Washington following the 1998 season, but Colorado was then in the Big 12 conference and NOT a fellow conference member.
Twice in 27 years, the USC Trojans have gone trolling for head coaches within their own conference. They know that it cannot happen to them because no one else in the Pac-12 pays nearly as much as USC. They also know that they do not even have to disclose how much they pay their head coaches, or AD's, since they are a private school with no state requirement to share that information.
Of course, critics of the program also point out that USC also has a history of their boosters paying at least some of their players very well also. That being the case, hiring coaches away from fellow conference members is hardly their biggest sin. Let's just not have to listen to them bitch and moan about how few players they have under scholarship, which was due entirely to the penalties handed down to them for cheating in the first place.
Update:
Any moral high ground held by Washington after Sarkisian was hired away was lost after UW reportedly offered to double the pay of UCLA coach Jim Mora to come to Washington. Mora turned them down, but did use the offer to sweeten his contract with the Bruins.
Fortunately for Washington, they were able to do what many other schools had tried and failed -- they convinced Chris Petersen to leave Boise State. Petersen has the highest winning percentage in the FBS with a 92-12 record over eight seasons with the Broncos.
Washington and Petersen hope the moves works better than it did for former Boise State coaches Dan Hawkins and Dirk Koetter. Both had great success at Boise State, but found the winning much harder to do in the big boy conferences the Pac-10 and the Big 12. Koetter could not turn things around at Arizona State and Hawkins pretty much destroyed the program at Colorado.
It's not the first time that Southern Cal has pulled this stunt. Following the 1986 season, they reached across the desert to Tucson, Arizona and hired Larry Smith away from the Wildcats with the much deeper coffers available to USC. Arizona fans, and even those from other conference schools, were outraged. The Trojans just shrugged.
The only other case of a conference coach jumping programs in recent memory is when Bruce Snyder left Cal for Arizona State following the 1991 season. Although the Cal athletic director claimed that Snyder was lured away by bigger dollars in Tempe, Snyder vigorously denied that before his death in 2009.
Snyder had taken a very down Cal program and turned it into a 10 win team for the first time since Pappy Waldorf's 1949 Cal team. Snyder said that he had a handshake agreement with Cal AD Dave Maggard for a new contract, but that Maggard left Cal for a job with Miami before the contract was signed. The interim AD, Bob Bockrath, refused to honor the deal and Snyder felt he was honor-bound to leave Cal.
Rick Neuheisel left Colorado for Washington following the 1998 season, but Colorado was then in the Big 12 conference and NOT a fellow conference member.
Twice in 27 years, the USC Trojans have gone trolling for head coaches within their own conference. They know that it cannot happen to them because no one else in the Pac-12 pays nearly as much as USC. They also know that they do not even have to disclose how much they pay their head coaches, or AD's, since they are a private school with no state requirement to share that information.
Of course, critics of the program also point out that USC also has a history of their boosters paying at least some of their players very well also. That being the case, hiring coaches away from fellow conference members is hardly their biggest sin. Let's just not have to listen to them bitch and moan about how few players they have under scholarship, which was due entirely to the penalties handed down to them for cheating in the first place.
Update:
Any moral high ground held by Washington after Sarkisian was hired away was lost after UW reportedly offered to double the pay of UCLA coach Jim Mora to come to Washington. Mora turned them down, but did use the offer to sweeten his contract with the Bruins.
Fortunately for Washington, they were able to do what many other schools had tried and failed -- they convinced Chris Petersen to leave Boise State. Petersen has the highest winning percentage in the FBS with a 92-12 record over eight seasons with the Broncos.
Washington and Petersen hope the moves works better than it did for former Boise State coaches Dan Hawkins and Dirk Koetter. Both had great success at Boise State, but found the winning much harder to do in the big boy conferences the Pac-10 and the Big 12. Koetter could not turn things around at Arizona State and Hawkins pretty much destroyed the program at Colorado.
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Midweek Thoughts Regarding Colorado Loss to Arizona Wildcats
Looking back on the game between the Colorado Buffaloes and the Arizona Wildcats, it seems there were some blown opportunities all around. The result of those blown chances was yet another loss to a conference opponent.
I am willing to take some of the blame. After all, I did offer good advice that was not specific enough. Since UA All-American Ka'Deem Carey had rushed for an ungodly 366 yards against CU last year, I had recommended that a key to the game was that the Buffs take Carey out of the game and limit him to 150 or less yards rushing. The Buffs did just that, and only allowed Carey 119 yards.
The problem with the recommendation was that it was too specific to Carey. I should have advised that the Buffs dedicate themselves to shutting down the Wildcat running game, and force them to beat the Buffs with the pasHes. But I didn't, and the Buffs didn't. Arizona put up 405 yards rushing, with 286 coming from folks other than Carey. The biggest hit on the ground came from quarterback B.J. Denker, who averaged almost 13 yards per carry on his way to 192 yards rushing.
On top of the rushing, Denker added 265 yards of passing to earn Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors. UCLA QB Brett Hundley must be licking his chops this week, since the Pac-12 OPW generally goes to the QB facing Colorado during conference play.
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Colorado special teams continued their upward spiral this past week. That does not include the idiotic decision to run a fake punt from their own red zone. Coach MacIntyre gets the blame for that. Kickoff returner Ryan Severson continues to edge ever closer to going the distance. On his two returns Saturday, he averaged 39.5 yards. Punter Darragh O'Neill had three punts downed inside the 20 with no touchbacks, and had none returned. Kicker Will Oliver had only 1 return of his kickoffs.
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True freshman quarterback Sefo Liufau continued to show positive signs while also showing the growing pains of a young quarterback. His completion percentage against the Wildcats was only 53% (17 of 32, 1 interception), compared to the near 70% he showed against ASU and Charleston Southern). On the positive side, Liufau was not sacked. It was the first time a Buff QB has not been sacked since the Arizona game last year.
Liufau also showed his youth and inexperience by throwing the ball out of the endzone on 4th and goal. As the TV announcer pointed out, you gotta give your own guy a chance to catch the ball since the other team is gonna get the ball anyway on 4th down.
WR Paul Richardson again demonstrated himself as one of the best in the Pac-12 and the country. Unfortunately, he sprained an ankle late in the game and is now listed as day to day. He is hoping to be able to play Saturday against UCLA at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
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The Buff passing game under offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren continues to be predictable, as can be seen by the chart below:
Key to the graphic:
Like the game against Charleston Southern, the Buffs had only THREE passes between the hashmarks (and two ON the left hashmarks). 85% of the passes thrown by the Buffs went to the outside 50% of the field, leaving only 15% to the inner half of the field. Note -- the field is 160 feet wide, which means only 5 of 32 passes were thrown within 40 feet of the center of the field.
Considering that the Wildcats had both starting safeties out with injury, one might think that the Buffs would have been better served by attacking the middle.
Another thing to note is that the Buffs were damn lucky that at least one of their passes to the flat was not only almost intercepted but would have been taken to the house for a pic-six. It seems that Pac-12 defensive coordinators are noting (like myself) that the Buffs are very predictable in where they throw the ball. 24 of their 33 passes were thrown within 12 yards of the line of scrimmage, and mostly to the outside part of the field. That's much easier to defend than spreading it across the entire field of play. It also means the ball is spending a lot of time in the air going sideways instead of up the field.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
MacIntyre and the team thought that Arizona was a beatable foe. That may be true, but the same can and is said about Colorado. And right now, CU is more beatable. They have a great deal of young players in starting positions, and that inexperience is being taken advantage of.
The CU offensive and defensive lines are currently losing the battles in the trenches in conference play. That may take a couple years of development to change.
The CU passing game is the most predictable and easiest to defend in the conference. Only the presence of Paul Richardson keeps opposing defenses honest. The Buffs should also do whatever they can to get the ball into the hands of D.D. Goodson -- he is better built for the pounding of reverses and over the middle catches than Richardson.
I am willing to take some of the blame. After all, I did offer good advice that was not specific enough. Since UA All-American Ka'Deem Carey had rushed for an ungodly 366 yards against CU last year, I had recommended that a key to the game was that the Buffs take Carey out of the game and limit him to 150 or less yards rushing. The Buffs did just that, and only allowed Carey 119 yards.
The problem with the recommendation was that it was too specific to Carey. I should have advised that the Buffs dedicate themselves to shutting down the Wildcat running game, and force them to beat the Buffs with the pasHes. But I didn't, and the Buffs didn't. Arizona put up 405 yards rushing, with 286 coming from folks other than Carey. The biggest hit on the ground came from quarterback B.J. Denker, who averaged almost 13 yards per carry on his way to 192 yards rushing.
On top of the rushing, Denker added 265 yards of passing to earn Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors. UCLA QB Brett Hundley must be licking his chops this week, since the Pac-12 OPW generally goes to the QB facing Colorado during conference play.
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Colorado special teams continued their upward spiral this past week. That does not include the idiotic decision to run a fake punt from their own red zone. Coach MacIntyre gets the blame for that. Kickoff returner Ryan Severson continues to edge ever closer to going the distance. On his two returns Saturday, he averaged 39.5 yards. Punter Darragh O'Neill had three punts downed inside the 20 with no touchbacks, and had none returned. Kicker Will Oliver had only 1 return of his kickoffs.
----------------------------------------------------------
True freshman quarterback Sefo Liufau continued to show positive signs while also showing the growing pains of a young quarterback. His completion percentage against the Wildcats was only 53% (17 of 32, 1 interception), compared to the near 70% he showed against ASU and Charleston Southern). On the positive side, Liufau was not sacked. It was the first time a Buff QB has not been sacked since the Arizona game last year.
Liufau also showed his youth and inexperience by throwing the ball out of the endzone on 4th and goal. As the TV announcer pointed out, you gotta give your own guy a chance to catch the ball since the other team is gonna get the ball anyway on 4th down.
WR Paul Richardson again demonstrated himself as one of the best in the Pac-12 and the country. Unfortunately, he sprained an ankle late in the game and is now listed as day to day. He is hoping to be able to play Saturday against UCLA at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
-----------------------------------------------------------
The Buff passing game under offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren continues to be predictable, as can be seen by the chart below:
- Black Circle with R inside = completed pass
- Large R = touchdown reception
- Red null symbol (circle with a slash) = incomplete pass
- Blue null symbol = incomplete pass in the endzone
- Yellow lightning bolt = interception
- 30 yard line as line of scrimmage is used only as a reference
- Click on the graphic to see an enlarged version
Like the game against Charleston Southern, the Buffs had only THREE passes between the hashmarks (and two ON the left hashmarks). 85% of the passes thrown by the Buffs went to the outside 50% of the field, leaving only 15% to the inner half of the field. Note -- the field is 160 feet wide, which means only 5 of 32 passes were thrown within 40 feet of the center of the field.
Considering that the Wildcats had both starting safeties out with injury, one might think that the Buffs would have been better served by attacking the middle.
Another thing to note is that the Buffs were damn lucky that at least one of their passes to the flat was not only almost intercepted but would have been taken to the house for a pic-six. It seems that Pac-12 defensive coordinators are noting (like myself) that the Buffs are very predictable in where they throw the ball. 24 of their 33 passes were thrown within 12 yards of the line of scrimmage, and mostly to the outside part of the field. That's much easier to defend than spreading it across the entire field of play. It also means the ball is spending a lot of time in the air going sideways instead of up the field.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
MacIntyre and the team thought that Arizona was a beatable foe. That may be true, but the same can and is said about Colorado. And right now, CU is more beatable. They have a great deal of young players in starting positions, and that inexperience is being taken advantage of.
The CU offensive and defensive lines are currently losing the battles in the trenches in conference play. That may take a couple years of development to change.
The CU passing game is the most predictable and easiest to defend in the conference. Only the presence of Paul Richardson keeps opposing defenses honest. The Buffs should also do whatever they can to get the ball into the hands of D.D. Goodson -- he is better built for the pounding of reverses and over the middle catches than Richardson.
Thursday, October 24, 2013
University of Colorado Calls for Homecoming Blackout Against Arizona, but Buff Fans Should Refuse to Go Pink
The Arizona Wildcats make their way to Boulder this weekend for Colorado's homecoming festivities game. The Buffaloes have designated the night game as a "Blackout" -- meaning that fans are encouraged to wear black to the game.
Since October is designated as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, CU has added that pink is an acceptable alternative to black. Since Boulder is very progressive in their social awareness and politics, they should do the right thing and refuse to bow to the marketing of pinkwashing.
Pinkwashing is a term used to describe how companies use so-called "causes" as a way to market their products. The Susan G. Komen (For the Cure) Foundation is the entity which very effectively marketed their pink ribbons and pushed for breast cancer awareness. The NFL has donned various pink uniform parts over the last half decade, along with putting a pink ribbon on the field.
At stores around the country, thousands of products now sport a pink ribbon that indicate that money will be donated to Komen with each product purchased. The problem with all the effort going to the pinkwashing is that very little of the profits are going into breast cancer research. Many of the products donate less than a penny per purchase, and a sizable number of those will only do so if consumers mail in their proof of purchase. Worse yet, many products with the pink ribbons actually raise their price during the campaign, using the illusion of charity work to increase their bottom lines.
Critics of the pinkwashing campaign point out that many of the products that partner with Komen contain known carcinogenic ingredients that have been tied to causing breast cancer. To find out more, check out the Environmental Working Group's SKIN DEEP database about known carcinogens in cosmetics.
And others point out that Komen spends a great deal of money pursuing legal action against other charities for "infringing" on their marketing "rights." This has led to many coming to the conclusion that Komen is more interested in the money it raises than actually finding a cure.
Groups taking issue with the "marketing" emphasis include Breast Cancer Action and Think Before You Pink. They are actively pushing for action from the federal government to eliminate known toxins and carcinogens from cosmetics and other personal care products. After all, an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure, and a hell of a lot more than pink helmets and towels at football games.
Komen has also angered many by taking stands that appear to be politically motivated. The backlash to Komen cutting funds to Planned Parenthood (the largest provider of mammograms in the US) led to a severe drop in participation in Komen sponsored "3 day for the Cure" events. Komen also ended their financial support of embryonic stem cell research in 2011.
Dr. Samuel S. Epstein is an internationally recognized expert on cancer and cancer prevention. He is the founder and chairman of the Cancer Prevention Coalition. He was also the whistle-blower who made public the dangers of growth hormones given to cattle. In 2009, he published a book called Toxic Beauty which outlines the dangers of the ingredients used in cosmetics and other personal care products.
So, before you run out and buy a pink shirt to wear to the game, learn more about how to prevent breast cancer instead of being a willing lemming in the pinkwashing of a very serious disease.
Is there really ANYONE in the US or the modern world that is NOT "aware" of breast cancer? Not unless they live in a cave. Maybe it is time to end the marketing of this terrible disease and begin the process of eliminating it.
Maressa Brown at The Stir points out that The American Cancer Society only spends 26 cents for every dollar it raises to actually fund cancer work. The majority of the remainder goes to fundraising and overhead. If you think that is bad, know that only 13 cents out of every dollar at Komen goes to cancer work. Fighting cancer (or pretending to) is BIG business, and business is just fine, thank you.
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Please note -- The author of this blogpost has published a number of articles about breast cancer and also spent a year and half as a stage four cancer patient caregiver.
Since October is designated as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, CU has added that pink is an acceptable alternative to black. Since Boulder is very progressive in their social awareness and politics, they should do the right thing and refuse to bow to the marketing of pinkwashing.
Pinkwashing is a term used to describe how companies use so-called "causes" as a way to market their products. The Susan G. Komen (For the Cure) Foundation is the entity which very effectively marketed their pink ribbons and pushed for breast cancer awareness. The NFL has donned various pink uniform parts over the last half decade, along with putting a pink ribbon on the field.
At stores around the country, thousands of products now sport a pink ribbon that indicate that money will be donated to Komen with each product purchased. The problem with all the effort going to the pinkwashing is that very little of the profits are going into breast cancer research. Many of the products donate less than a penny per purchase, and a sizable number of those will only do so if consumers mail in their proof of purchase. Worse yet, many products with the pink ribbons actually raise their price during the campaign, using the illusion of charity work to increase their bottom lines.
Critics of the pinkwashing campaign point out that many of the products that partner with Komen contain known carcinogenic ingredients that have been tied to causing breast cancer. To find out more, check out the Environmental Working Group's SKIN DEEP database about known carcinogens in cosmetics.
And others point out that Komen spends a great deal of money pursuing legal action against other charities for "infringing" on their marketing "rights." This has led to many coming to the conclusion that Komen is more interested in the money it raises than actually finding a cure.
Groups taking issue with the "marketing" emphasis include Breast Cancer Action and Think Before You Pink. They are actively pushing for action from the federal government to eliminate known toxins and carcinogens from cosmetics and other personal care products. After all, an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure, and a hell of a lot more than pink helmets and towels at football games.
Komen has also angered many by taking stands that appear to be politically motivated. The backlash to Komen cutting funds to Planned Parenthood (the largest provider of mammograms in the US) led to a severe drop in participation in Komen sponsored "3 day for the Cure" events. Komen also ended their financial support of embryonic stem cell research in 2011.
Dr. Samuel S. Epstein is an internationally recognized expert on cancer and cancer prevention. He is the founder and chairman of the Cancer Prevention Coalition. He was also the whistle-blower who made public the dangers of growth hormones given to cattle. In 2009, he published a book called Toxic Beauty which outlines the dangers of the ingredients used in cosmetics and other personal care products.
Is there really ANYONE in the US or the modern world that is NOT "aware" of breast cancer? Not unless they live in a cave. Maybe it is time to end the marketing of this terrible disease and begin the process of eliminating it.
Maressa Brown at The Stir points out that The American Cancer Society only spends 26 cents for every dollar it raises to actually fund cancer work. The majority of the remainder goes to fundraising and overhead. If you think that is bad, know that only 13 cents out of every dollar at Komen goes to cancer work. Fighting cancer (or pretending to) is BIG business, and business is just fine, thank you.
----------------
Please note -- The author of this blogpost has published a number of articles about breast cancer and also spent a year and half as a stage four cancer patient caregiver.
Sunday, October 20, 2013
Passing Game Predictability Working Against Colorado Buffs in the Pac-12
Going into game seven of the 2013 season, the Colorado Buffaloes hope to defend their home turf on Saturday against the University of Arizona Wildcats and their All-American tailback Ka'Deem Carey.
To accomplish that task, the Buffs and their offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren (and head coach Mike MacIntyre, too) must take a long hard look at the utter predictability of their passing game. The passing game has worked well against lesser opponents (Colorado State, Central Arkansas, and Charleston-Southern), but against Pac-12 foes it has been far from effective.
One could argue that Pac-12 teams just play better defense... but one could argue back that Colorado's heavy reliance on outside passes makes it much easier for Pac-12 defensive coordinators to prepare for the Buffaloes.
A small lesson about the playing field in college football:
Key to the graphic:
With that spirit in mind, I am hoping that someone (anyone, please!) can share this with the CU coaches. It would make the likelihood of a Colorado win during conference games much greater.
During the game with Charleston Southern this past Saturday, the Buffs threw 21 passes and completed 15 without any interceptions. That was very good, even against an overmatched opponent.
If one looks at the chart above, it shows:
The CU coaches need to ask themselves why 67% of their pass attempts are being force fed into less than 34% of the field width within 12 yards of the line of scrimmage? What makes it worse is that the preferred landing location of Buff passes just happens to be the farthest from the Colorado quarterbacks.
The longer the ball is in the air, the more time that defensive backs have to react to the ball. Worse yet, out patterns where the receiver must stop and wait for the ball gives them little chance to catch the ball with momentum.
For the Buffs to make a serious impact on Pac-12 teams with their passing game, they must learn to spread the ball around to include the rest of the playing field. Pac-12 teams are used to fast paced games in which the ball is thrown all over the field. When Colorado concentrates two-thirds of their pass attempts into two small boxes along the sidelines, it makes it much easier for opposing coaches to devise a plan to defend them.
For the Buffs to succeed against Pac-12 teams, they must learn to throw regularly over the middle. Just look at the one passing touchdown this past week. Paul Richardson caught one ball over the middle just three yards from the line of scrimmage. But he caught the ball with momentum and 61 yards later the Buffs had a touchdown.
Richardson is a great receiver, but the Buffs MUST learn to spread the ball around. While Paul was in the game, 10 out of the 17 passes thrown were directed at him. Good teams with excellent defensive backs will double down on Paul Richardson, and make Liufau find other receivers to beat them.
The 2013 season has been a learning experience for the Colorado football players. One hopes that it has been a learning experience for the CU coaches as well. Here's to hoping that they learn to spread the ball around the field and not to focus more than 50% of their passes on one receiver. If they don't, conference wins in the Pac-12 are going to be hard to come by.
To accomplish that task, the Buffs and their offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren (and head coach Mike MacIntyre, too) must take a long hard look at the utter predictability of their passing game. The passing game has worked well against lesser opponents (Colorado State, Central Arkansas, and Charleston-Southern), but against Pac-12 foes it has been far from effective.
One could argue that Pac-12 teams just play better defense... but one could argue back that Colorado's heavy reliance on outside passes makes it much easier for Pac-12 defensive coordinators to prepare for the Buffaloes.
A small lesson about the playing field in college football:
- Everyone who watches football knows that the field of play between the end zones in 100 yards long.
- Most people DO NOT know that the playing field is more than 50 yards wide. In fact, it is 53 yards and 12 inches wide (160 feet).
- The center of the field between the hash marks is 40 feet wide.
- It is 60 feet from each sideline to the hash marks.
- It is only 27 feet from the sideline to the tops of the numbers.
Key to the graphic:
- Circle with an R inside signifies a completed pass.
- Null symbol (circle with a slash) signifies an incomplete pass.
- The big R signifies a pass that went for a touchdown.
- The 30 yard line of scrimmage is used simply as a reference.
- Click on the graphic to see an enlarged version.
With that spirit in mind, I am hoping that someone (anyone, please!) can share this with the CU coaches. It would make the likelihood of a Colorado win during conference games much greater.
During the game with Charleston Southern this past Saturday, the Buffs threw 21 passes and completed 15 without any interceptions. That was very good, even against an overmatched opponent.
If one looks at the chart above, it shows:
- The Buffs threw 2 out of every 3 balls within 9 yards of either sideline.
- 1/3 of the passes went at least to the numbers on the left.
- 1/3 went to the numbers or further on the right.
- In addition, all those passes to the outside were thrown within 12 yards of the line of scrimmage.
- Only 3 of the 21 passes were thrown inside the hash marks.
- 3 more passes were thrown on the right hash mark.
- 1 pass was halfway between the right hash mark and the numbers.
The CU coaches need to ask themselves why 67% of their pass attempts are being force fed into less than 34% of the field width within 12 yards of the line of scrimmage? What makes it worse is that the preferred landing location of Buff passes just happens to be the farthest from the Colorado quarterbacks.
The longer the ball is in the air, the more time that defensive backs have to react to the ball. Worse yet, out patterns where the receiver must stop and wait for the ball gives them little chance to catch the ball with momentum.
For the Buffs to make a serious impact on Pac-12 teams with their passing game, they must learn to spread the ball around to include the rest of the playing field. Pac-12 teams are used to fast paced games in which the ball is thrown all over the field. When Colorado concentrates two-thirds of their pass attempts into two small boxes along the sidelines, it makes it much easier for opposing coaches to devise a plan to defend them.
For the Buffs to succeed against Pac-12 teams, they must learn to throw regularly over the middle. Just look at the one passing touchdown this past week. Paul Richardson caught one ball over the middle just three yards from the line of scrimmage. But he caught the ball with momentum and 61 yards later the Buffs had a touchdown.
Richardson is a great receiver, but the Buffs MUST learn to spread the ball around. While Paul was in the game, 10 out of the 17 passes thrown were directed at him. Good teams with excellent defensive backs will double down on Paul Richardson, and make Liufau find other receivers to beat them.
The 2013 season has been a learning experience for the Colorado football players. One hopes that it has been a learning experience for the CU coaches as well. Here's to hoping that they learn to spread the ball around the field and not to focus more than 50% of their passes on one receiver. If they don't, conference wins in the Pac-12 are going to be hard to come by.
CU Buffs Hope to Slow Down All-American Carey and the Arizona Wildcats
Six games into the 2013 season, and the Colorado Buffaloes football team is 3-3. Back in the glory days, a .500 record halfway through the season would be cause for alarm. Following the 2012 team which went 1-11 (and generally regarded as the worst team in Colorado history), most serious Buff fans are convinced that the football program is heading in the right direction under new head coach Mike MacIntyre.
Unlike last year, the Buffs are finally winning the games that they are "supposed" to win. After three conference losses by wide margins this year (and 8 games last year), the next thing on the agenda of both coaches and players is to be competitive within the conference. The Buffs have lost their last 11 conference games by an average of more than 35 points (as in FIVE touchdowns).
To be fair, the Buffs only lost at home to Utah last year by 7 points, but that just goes to show how bad the other losses were. Two of the losses this year were by 41 points, and the other by "only" 28.
There is a bright side however. The Buffs have played the Pac-12's three strongest offensive teams to start conference play. And the shocking numbers put up on the Buffs during those games have been quite similar to the numbers put up by those teams against teams other than Colorado.
Oregon is averaging 55 points a game in conference play. Oregon State is averaging 48 points. And Arizona State is averaging 49, which includes scoring 62 against USC.
The Buffs next opponent is the University of Arizona. They bring a conference record of 1-2 to Boulder on Saturday. They average just over 26 points per game within the Pac-12. Their passing game ranks only 111th in the country, but their offense does feature All-American running back Ka'Deem Carey. Last season, Carey ran for 1926 yards and 23 touchdowns (including a Pac-12 record of 366 yards and five touchdowns against Colorado).
After last year's 56-31 thrashing in Tucson, the Buffs will look to shut down (or at least contain) Carey and earn their first conference win of the season. To do so, the Buffs will have to force Arizona QB B.J. Denker to do the damage instead of Carey.
On offense, the Buffs must continue on the pace set by new quarterback Sefo Liufau. To win, Liufau must continue to complete nearly 70% of his passes and convert 50% of CU's third downs. Overall, for the Buffs to have a chance they must also win the turnover game, limit dumb penalties, and not be done in by "home run" touchdowns by the Wildcats.
To become a bigger threat on offense, the Buffs and offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren must become much less predictable when passing the football. As will be detailed in the next post, the Buff's passing game has made it very easy for opposing defensive coordinators by focusing the vast majority of their passes into two nine yard wide pockets on either side of the field, and leaving the middle 35 yards of the field relatively free of flying footballs.
If the Buffs can play some good run defense and throw the pigskin somewhere besides the sidelines, Colorado has a chance to rack up their first conference win of the season. If they cannot stop the run, and continue to throw in the same manner, another big conference loss is on the horizon.
Unlike last year, the Buffs are finally winning the games that they are "supposed" to win. After three conference losses by wide margins this year (and 8 games last year), the next thing on the agenda of both coaches and players is to be competitive within the conference. The Buffs have lost their last 11 conference games by an average of more than 35 points (as in FIVE touchdowns).
To be fair, the Buffs only lost at home to Utah last year by 7 points, but that just goes to show how bad the other losses were. Two of the losses this year were by 41 points, and the other by "only" 28.
There is a bright side however. The Buffs have played the Pac-12's three strongest offensive teams to start conference play. And the shocking numbers put up on the Buffs during those games have been quite similar to the numbers put up by those teams against teams other than Colorado.
Oregon is averaging 55 points a game in conference play. Oregon State is averaging 48 points. And Arizona State is averaging 49, which includes scoring 62 against USC.
The Buffs next opponent is the University of Arizona. They bring a conference record of 1-2 to Boulder on Saturday. They average just over 26 points per game within the Pac-12. Their passing game ranks only 111th in the country, but their offense does feature All-American running back Ka'Deem Carey. Last season, Carey ran for 1926 yards and 23 touchdowns (including a Pac-12 record of 366 yards and five touchdowns against Colorado).
After last year's 56-31 thrashing in Tucson, the Buffs will look to shut down (or at least contain) Carey and earn their first conference win of the season. To do so, the Buffs will have to force Arizona QB B.J. Denker to do the damage instead of Carey.
On offense, the Buffs must continue on the pace set by new quarterback Sefo Liufau. To win, Liufau must continue to complete nearly 70% of his passes and convert 50% of CU's third downs. Overall, for the Buffs to have a chance they must also win the turnover game, limit dumb penalties, and not be done in by "home run" touchdowns by the Wildcats.
To become a bigger threat on offense, the Buffs and offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren must become much less predictable when passing the football. As will be detailed in the next post, the Buff's passing game has made it very easy for opposing defensive coordinators by focusing the vast majority of their passes into two nine yard wide pockets on either side of the field, and leaving the middle 35 yards of the field relatively free of flying footballs.
If the Buffs can play some good run defense and throw the pigskin somewhere besides the sidelines, Colorado has a chance to rack up their first conference win of the season. If they cannot stop the run, and continue to throw in the same manner, another big conference loss is on the horizon.
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