Turn out the lights, the party's over. Colorado took a 10 point lead into the 4th quarter and managed to lose by 11 points, 41-30. Actually, the season was never much of a party. Maybe just a surprise party where the guest of honor was smart enough to not show up.
Although the Buffs mathematically have a chance to win another game, they won't. They make the worst rushing teams in the Pac-12 look like Barry Switzer's 1980's Oklahoma Sooners.
One could say that head coach Mike MacIntyre quit on his team by taking away their last chance for a win. The Sun Devils ran it down Colorado's throats all 2nd half, and Colorado was unable to stop them. Despite that, he choose to punt the ball back to ASU with less than three minutes left.
Most of us figured that ASU would run out the clock but Colorado failed to stop any runs and the Sun Devils scored another clinching touchdown.
The score against USC next week will be as embarrassing as the Washington and Washington State games. Mark that prediction. Whatever the line is, the Trojans will probably triple it.
Sadly, a season predicated on promised great success has turned out to be yet another lost season in Boulder. At least it's almost time to hit the slopes. Or maybe go traveling. Anything other than more wasted time.
Showing posts with label Oklahoma. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Oklahoma. Show all posts
Saturday, November 4, 2017
Saturday, October 14, 2017
Friday the 13th: The Wonderful, Crazy World of College Football
Some folks have an odd fear of Friday the 13th. Don't count me in there because I love it. Two coaches who will likely look back in dread on the day are Clemson HC Dabo Swinney and Washington State head coach Mike Leach. Both had excellent seasons hit massive road-bumps last night.
Defending national champion and current #2 Clemson traveled to Syracuse, New York and lost a close one 27-24 to the same Orange who had lost earlier in the season to Middle Tennessee State. Really.
Cal entered the game against Washington State with three losses already on their resume. But those losses were to USC, Washington, and Oregon. Nothing to be ashamed about. But most folks figured their game Washington State would be another loss to a Top 10 team.
Somebody forgot to tell the Bears, and they shellacked the #8 Cougars by a score of 37-3. It was some welcome good news to the Bay Area where wildfires have killed more than 34 with hundreds missing and more than 5000 buildings have been lost. Some fans in the stands wore masks due to the visible smoke.
There were only two FBS games last night, and the Top 10 team in both lost. Clemson was favored by 24 points. Washington State was a 17 point favorite. Oh well, now we know why they play the games.
Since these games were played on a Friday, it means that FOUR Top 10 teams have lost in the last week. Oklahoma and Michigan lost last Saturday.
Thank goodness for Friday the 13th and the wonderful, crazy world of college football.
Defending national champion and current #2 Clemson traveled to Syracuse, New York and lost a close one 27-24 to the same Orange who had lost earlier in the season to Middle Tennessee State. Really.
Cal entered the game against Washington State with three losses already on their resume. But those losses were to USC, Washington, and Oregon. Nothing to be ashamed about. But most folks figured their game Washington State would be another loss to a Top 10 team.
Somebody forgot to tell the Bears, and they shellacked the #8 Cougars by a score of 37-3. It was some welcome good news to the Bay Area where wildfires have killed more than 34 with hundreds missing and more than 5000 buildings have been lost. Some fans in the stands wore masks due to the visible smoke.
There were only two FBS games last night, and the Top 10 team in both lost. Clemson was favored by 24 points. Washington State was a 17 point favorite. Oh well, now we know why they play the games.
Since these games were played on a Friday, it means that FOUR Top 10 teams have lost in the last week. Oklahoma and Michigan lost last Saturday.
Thank goodness for Friday the 13th and the wonderful, crazy world of college football.
Wednesday, November 9, 2016
Nine Games Into 2016, Mike MacIntyre Off the Hot Seat and Up for Coach of the Year
Mike MacIntyre entered the 2016 season on everybody's list of hot-seat coaches. The Buffs had won a total of TWO conference games over Mac's first three years as head coach at Colorado. My oh my, how things have changed.
Through 9 games this season, the Colorado Buffaloes are 7-2 and alone in first place in the Pac-12 South. Their FIVE conference wins so far have already doubled their total wins against Pac-12 foes since joining the conference in 2011.
And, Mac has gone from being on everybody's hot seat to one of the favorites for National Coach of the Year awards. If the Buffs win out the season and Mac takes CoY honors, he will join his father in winning such an award. George MacIntyre won several national coach of the year awards in 1982 while coaching at Vanderbilt.
Unfortunately for Mac, the coach listed as the odds-on-favorite for the coaching honors is Chris Petersen of the undefeated and #4 ranked Washington Huskies. If UW and Colorado both win their remaining regular season games, they will meet in the Pac-12 championship game. The winning coach may very well win coach of the year.
Big turnarounds for Buffs programs leading to coaching awards is not new at Colorado. Bill McCartney's 4th season saw the Buffs go from one win the prior year to seven in 1985. The original Mac won Big 8 coach of the year that season, beating out Barry Switzer of Oklahoma. What made it all the more impressive for Bill Mac is that OU won the national championship that year.
Through nine games this year, MacIntyre has earned a solid A grade. There is even speculation that Mac is now being sought after by programs in search of a head coach. Baylor has been mentioned as the leading candidate.
What will Mac do if the Buffs win out, play in the Pac-12 title game, and defeat whoever represents the North? He'll be fielding calls and offers if it happens, and he just might walk away with coach of the year awards as well.
The worst case scenario, however, is that the Buffaloes continue to struggle on offense and lose one or more of their remaining games. That would likely end the possibility of playing for the Pac-12 title, and with it would go the elusive coach of the year award. He might still be sought after by other programs, but certainly not with the same fervor that would be present if the Buffs win 10 games.
If the Buffs do win 10, Mac's grade will rise to an A+. If the Buffs fall flat in the last few games, the grade could fall all the way down to a B.
The Buffs surprised everyone around the country early in the season with their explosive offense. Now that there is film to look at the Buffs have been slowed down considerably by opposing defensive coordinators. USC, Stanford and UCLA all put shackles on the big plays the Buffs made often early in the season.
USC exploited the Buffs' seeming inability to adjust on the fly and took the victory. Stanford and UCLA also shut down the Buffs, but the games were won by Colorado due to outstanding defensive play which held the Cardinal and Bruins to a combined 15 points between them.
It's up to Mac and his offensive staff to get the Buffaloes back on track to explosiveness and playing as well as the defense. If they do, the Buffs can play against anyone in the country. Just ask Michigan. Colorado scored more points against the Wolverines in Ann Arbor than anyone the Wolverines have played.
If not, the Buffs will still have had an outstanding turnaround season. But they also will have to deal with the fact that expectations for the program have risen substantially. Fans want them challenging for championships, not being content to just get to a bowl game.
My oh my, how things have changed. Stay tuned for how it ends up.
Through 9 games this season, the Colorado Buffaloes are 7-2 and alone in first place in the Pac-12 South. Their FIVE conference wins so far have already doubled their total wins against Pac-12 foes since joining the conference in 2011.
And, Mac has gone from being on everybody's hot seat to one of the favorites for National Coach of the Year awards. If the Buffs win out the season and Mac takes CoY honors, he will join his father in winning such an award. George MacIntyre won several national coach of the year awards in 1982 while coaching at Vanderbilt.
Unfortunately for Mac, the coach listed as the odds-on-favorite for the coaching honors is Chris Petersen of the undefeated and #4 ranked Washington Huskies. If UW and Colorado both win their remaining regular season games, they will meet in the Pac-12 championship game. The winning coach may very well win coach of the year.
Big turnarounds for Buffs programs leading to coaching awards is not new at Colorado. Bill McCartney's 4th season saw the Buffs go from one win the prior year to seven in 1985. The original Mac won Big 8 coach of the year that season, beating out Barry Switzer of Oklahoma. What made it all the more impressive for Bill Mac is that OU won the national championship that year.
Through nine games this year, MacIntyre has earned a solid A grade. There is even speculation that Mac is now being sought after by programs in search of a head coach. Baylor has been mentioned as the leading candidate.
What will Mac do if the Buffs win out, play in the Pac-12 title game, and defeat whoever represents the North? He'll be fielding calls and offers if it happens, and he just might walk away with coach of the year awards as well.
The worst case scenario, however, is that the Buffaloes continue to struggle on offense and lose one or more of their remaining games. That would likely end the possibility of playing for the Pac-12 title, and with it would go the elusive coach of the year award. He might still be sought after by other programs, but certainly not with the same fervor that would be present if the Buffs win 10 games.
If the Buffs do win 10, Mac's grade will rise to an A+. If the Buffs fall flat in the last few games, the grade could fall all the way down to a B.
The Buffs surprised everyone around the country early in the season with their explosive offense. Now that there is film to look at the Buffs have been slowed down considerably by opposing defensive coordinators. USC, Stanford and UCLA all put shackles on the big plays the Buffs made often early in the season.
USC exploited the Buffs' seeming inability to adjust on the fly and took the victory. Stanford and UCLA also shut down the Buffs, but the games were won by Colorado due to outstanding defensive play which held the Cardinal and Bruins to a combined 15 points between them.
It's up to Mac and his offensive staff to get the Buffaloes back on track to explosiveness and playing as well as the defense. If they do, the Buffs can play against anyone in the country. Just ask Michigan. Colorado scored more points against the Wolverines in Ann Arbor than anyone the Wolverines have played.
If not, the Buffs will still have had an outstanding turnaround season. But they also will have to deal with the fact that expectations for the program have risen substantially. Fans want them challenging for championships, not being content to just get to a bowl game.
My oh my, how things have changed. Stay tuned for how it ends up.
Saturday, October 1, 2016
Colorado Posts Largest Conference Winning Margin in 24 Years, Routs Oregon State 47-6 and Takes Over 1st Place in Pac-12 South
The question most Colorado fans had at the beginning of the season is whether the Buffs could finally "turn the corner" in Mike MacIntyre's 4th season at the helm. The question has been answered emphatically the last two weeks with a win on the road at Oregon and a Folsom Field annihilation of Oregon State.
The Buffs have not only turned the corner, they are accelerating out of the curve.
The comparisons between MacIntyre and the great Bill McCartney have been hot and heavy for several years now. The similarities are rather remarkable. McCartney's record after 3 seasons was 7-25-1. MacIntyre's record after 3 was 10-27. McCartney's first three teams won only 4 conference games. MacIntyre's first three won only 2 games against conference foes.
For the first coach Mac, the turnaround came in year four (1985) when the Buffs won 7 games after winning only one the previous year. The job of McCartney was so impressive to his fellow coaches in the Big 8 that he was voted Coach of the Year even though Barry Switzer's Oklahoma Sooner team won the National Championship.
Now, in Mike MacIntyre's 4th season, the Buffs stand at 4-1. More importantly, CU is 2-0 in conference play. What does that mean?
The Colorado Buffaloes will go to bed tonight knowing that they are alone in first place in the Pac-12 South Division.
With Cal's goal-line stand to win against Utah, and USC's throttling of Arizona State, the only team in the South with a perfect conference record is Colorado. To put it in more perspective, the last time the Buffs won consecutive conference games was 2010. This was different, however. The 2010 Buffs lost their first 5 conference games before the two game winning streak. The last time they won two in a row when it mattered was 2005.
Colorado still has seven conference games to play this season. But, none of the teams remaining on the schedule looks unbeatable. USC is 2-3. Arizona State, undefeated coming into today, was exposed as a horribly flawed team.
Even Stanford, a preseason pick to make the national championship playoff, was destroyed against Washington in their worst loss in almost a decade. The Buffs know they can play with anyone in the conference. But, they won't play Washington unless both make it to the Pac-12 Championship game.
But today, right now, the Buffs look like serious contenders to win the Pac-12 South. And Mike MacIntyre looks like a serious threat to win Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors.
Thursday, August 25, 2016
With Mike MacIntyre's 4th Season at Colorado Looming, A Look Back at Bill McCartney's 4th Year in 1985
With the Colorado Buffs' 2016 season opener against CSU approaching fast, Buff fans are hoping that the 4th year is the charm for head coach Mike MacIntyre, and that the season ends with a bowl game for the first time since 2007. For a little inspiration, Buff fans should be looking back to 1985, when Bill McCartney (CU's first "Coach Mac") coached his 4th season in Boulder.
Many Colorado fans younger than myself know that Bill McCartney was a coaching legend who led the Buffs to the National Championship and is also CU's all-time most winning football coach. But the winning ways for McCartney did not start right away, There was penance to pay and building to be done before the winning started.
In Mac I's first three years, his record as head coach was 7-25-1. That's only seven wins out of 33 games. Not only that, but the record in 1984 was only 1-10. The Buffs were a mainstay in the infamous Bottom 10. Nobody in the national or local sports media expected much (if anything) from Colorado.
But a funny thing happened at Colorado after the 1984 one-win season. The new athletic director Bill Marolt recognized something special in what McCartney was doing and realized that the changes were just not showing up in the win column yet. Despite Mac's abysmal record, Marolt chose to extend McCartney's contract. That decision was met with some surprise and amusement by the local media. But Marolt turned out to be right.
Back in 1985, the Big 8 was known around the country as the Big 2 and the Little 6. Those two, however, were two of the most winning football programs in the history of college football. The 1985 season ended with Oklahoma winning another National Championship and Nebraska finishing at number 10, continuing their traditions at Top 10 programs.
Something was very different for Colorado in 1985. They finished the regular season with SEVEN wins and 3rd place in the Big 8. Coach McCartney won as many games in 1985 as he had won in his first three seasons combined. The four losses in the regular season were to teams ranked in the Top 12 teams in the country, including a 3 point loss to eventual national champion Oklahoma. How impressive was that accomplishment? McCartney was voted Big 8 Coach of the Year in the same season as another coach in the conference (Barry Switzer) won a national title!
After that breakout year, McCartney never had another losing season again. In the 10 years following AD Bill Marolt extending Mac's contract, his teams won 86 games and played for the national title twice. In fact, they were one bad game from playing another championship in 1994.
Mike MacIntyre has a three year coaching record at Colorado of 10-27. Nobody in the national media would be surprised if the Buffs limped to another losing record and Mike MacIntyre was looking for a new job by the end of the year. By the same token, some of us wouldn't be surprised if the Buffs broke through this year and won 7 games (or more) like the first coach Mac in 1985.
It would be a tough task, tougher even than the one faced by McCartney. With Colorado now playing in the Pac-12, they have five teams in the conference in the Top 25, and a total of 7 in the top 29. Back in 1985, the Buffs only had 7 conference games to worry about. The current Buffs have NINE conference games (10 if they make it to the conference championship).
The Pac-12 is a much harder conference to play in than almost any other in the country, so the current coach Mac has his work cut out for him. But the foundation has been built, and Mac's gang is ready to bust out... or not.
Mike Tyson used to say, "Everyone has a plan 'till they get punched in the mouth!"
The first game is now just a week away. We'll find out then whether the Buffs will be punching back like the 1985 Buffs under Bill McCartney.
Many Colorado fans younger than myself know that Bill McCartney was a coaching legend who led the Buffs to the National Championship and is also CU's all-time most winning football coach. But the winning ways for McCartney did not start right away, There was penance to pay and building to be done before the winning started.
In Mac I's first three years, his record as head coach was 7-25-1. That's only seven wins out of 33 games. Not only that, but the record in 1984 was only 1-10. The Buffs were a mainstay in the infamous Bottom 10. Nobody in the national or local sports media expected much (if anything) from Colorado.
But a funny thing happened at Colorado after the 1984 one-win season. The new athletic director Bill Marolt recognized something special in what McCartney was doing and realized that the changes were just not showing up in the win column yet. Despite Mac's abysmal record, Marolt chose to extend McCartney's contract. That decision was met with some surprise and amusement by the local media. But Marolt turned out to be right.
Back in 1985, the Big 8 was known around the country as the Big 2 and the Little 6. Those two, however, were two of the most winning football programs in the history of college football. The 1985 season ended with Oklahoma winning another National Championship and Nebraska finishing at number 10, continuing their traditions at Top 10 programs.
Something was very different for Colorado in 1985. They finished the regular season with SEVEN wins and 3rd place in the Big 8. Coach McCartney won as many games in 1985 as he had won in his first three seasons combined. The four losses in the regular season were to teams ranked in the Top 12 teams in the country, including a 3 point loss to eventual national champion Oklahoma. How impressive was that accomplishment? McCartney was voted Big 8 Coach of the Year in the same season as another coach in the conference (Barry Switzer) won a national title!
After that breakout year, McCartney never had another losing season again. In the 10 years following AD Bill Marolt extending Mac's contract, his teams won 86 games and played for the national title twice. In fact, they were one bad game from playing another championship in 1994.
Mike MacIntyre has a three year coaching record at Colorado of 10-27. Nobody in the national media would be surprised if the Buffs limped to another losing record and Mike MacIntyre was looking for a new job by the end of the year. By the same token, some of us wouldn't be surprised if the Buffs broke through this year and won 7 games (or more) like the first coach Mac in 1985.
It would be a tough task, tougher even than the one faced by McCartney. With Colorado now playing in the Pac-12, they have five teams in the conference in the Top 25, and a total of 7 in the top 29. Back in 1985, the Buffs only had 7 conference games to worry about. The current Buffs have NINE conference games (10 if they make it to the conference championship).
The Pac-12 is a much harder conference to play in than almost any other in the country, so the current coach Mac has his work cut out for him. But the foundation has been built, and Mac's gang is ready to bust out... or not.
Mike Tyson used to say, "Everyone has a plan 'till they get punched in the mouth!"
The first game is now just a week away. We'll find out then whether the Buffs will be punching back like the 1985 Buffs under Bill McCartney.
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Colorado Fans Look to Past for Inspiration, Seek Upset Against Arizona State
BOULDER-- Heading into Saturday Night's Pac-12 clash at Folsom Field between the Arizona State Sun Devils and the Colorado Buffaloes, the tone that many Buff fans are taking is that the game will be a wipe-out, and that Colorado has no chance at all of making a stand and protecting their turf in the first home game and conference game of the season.
Some long-time fans, however, say "Look to the past!"
Since Colorado joined the Pac-12, the Buffs have played the Sun Devils three times and been beaten soundly at each turn. Arizona State comes into the game ranked #16 in the AP poll. In 2011, the Sun Devils were ranked 23rd, and were unranked in both 2012 and 2013.
Some older fans point out that while Arizona State is a good team and deserving of their current ranking, the fact is they are not a nationally dominant team by any stretch of the imagination. They say to look a few years (okay, 28) to the past to see what the Buffs have historically overcome.
The year was 1986. It was a turning point in Colorado Buffaloes history.
Buff faithful began the year with a swell of anticipation. The year before (1985) had seen Colorado win a total of SEVEN games. That may not seem like a lot, but the six seasons prior to 1985 saw the Buffs win only 14 out of 66 games. Fans were excited! They thought that seven wins and a bowl game would be an annual thing. Then the season started...
The CU Buffs under Head Coach Bill McCartney started the season 0-4.
That's right. They lost their first four games. Colorado State, Oregon, Arizona and Ohio State all beat the Buffs to start the season. And Oregon was pretty horrible back then.
Fans immediately started to worry that the Buffs would be back to their old ways where only a couple of wins per season was all they could expect. McCartney had been named Big 8 Coach of the Year in 1985, but some fans were calling for his head after the Buffs started the season so poorly in '86.
Then, something unexpected happened. The Buffs went to Missouri in week 5 and pulled out a thrilling 17-12 victory. The next week they dominated Iowa State in Boulder by 31-3.
The next game had big, bad Nebraska coming to Boulder.
No game on any football schedule at that time gave Buff fans more to dread than the hated Huskers. In the 24 years prior to 1986, Nebraska had beaten Colorado 23 times. They had outscored the Buffs 826-268 in that time. That works out to an average score of 34-11, which was a pretty standard ass-kicking back in the day.
How dominant a team was Nebraska back then? Year in and year out, they were one of the best in the country. During that 24 year stretch, Nebraska came into their game with Colorado ranked in the TOP 10 a remarkable 16 TIMES! In eleven of those games, the Fuskers were ranked in the TOP 5!
If Colorado fans are looking at challenges, Arizona State is nowhere near the challenge of Nebraska if taken in a historical perspective.
Even though Colorado had not beaten Nebraska since 1967, those 1986 Buffs showed up all the same. While those of us sitting in the student section were a loud bunch, many of the more than 52 thousand in attendance were wearing Nebraska red. Many Colorado fans with season tickets paid for the rest of their games by selling tickets at inflated prices to Nebraska fans with deep pockets.
Nebraska rolled into Boulder that beautiful October day undefeated at 6-0, and sporting the #3 ranking in the country. Like they had done for almost an entire quarter century, Husker fans entered the game with Colorado with delight, because it was as certain a victory as just about any conference rivalry could be.
Three hours later, the Colorado Buffs had won 20-10.
The final score stayed emphatically on the scoreboard throughout the day and into the night and "WE DID IT!" ran as the headline of the Boulder Daily Camera Sunday edition. The win against Nebraska was the third of six wins in seven games for Colorado to end the regular season. A nearly one hour highlight video shows the Buffs from the locker room before the game until the final celebration.
The win was a turning point toward the greatest era of Colorado football. They won seven games in '87, eight games in '88, and 11 games each year in 1989 and 1990. The Buffs were named National Champions after the 1990 season and played for the title after the 1989 season.
Those Big 8 (and one NC) championship teams came just three years after the Buffaloes had started the '86 season 0-4. Two victories set the stage for a remarkable upset that catapulted the Colorado Buffaloes to the top of the collegiate football world over the next few years.
Colorado Head Coach Mike MacIntyre has the Buffs poised to make a turn for the better.
After winning four games last year (and quadrupling the win total of 2012), Buff fans entered the 2014 season hoping for a breakthrough. A bad loss to Colorado State and an unimpressive win over UMass has left CU fans champing at the bit and sharing their anger on social media and news outlets.
Those fans should look to the past for inspiration. The Buffs may not defeat Arizona State, and Las Vegas odds-makers believe they won't. But the entire country believed the same thing about their chances against Nebraska in 1986, and instead of another defeat, the Colorado Buffs turned the corner toward becoming a national power.
Looking for another more recent example? The 2007 Buffs were coming off a 2-10 record in 2006. They were 2-2 when undefeated and #3 Oklahoma came to town and lost by a score of 27-24.
How about another Pac-12 story? Also in 2007, Stanford was coming off a 1-11 record in 2006. They were 1-3 when they faced the #1 USC Trojans in the Los Angeles Coliseum. USC was a 41 point favorite. Stanford won the game 24-23. Point spread wise, it's one of the biggest upset in the history of college football.
There's a reason they call it an upset. Whatever happens, it will not be the biggest upset in Folsom Field or Pac-12 history if the Buffs win. It won't even be close.
Some long-time fans, however, say "Look to the past!"
Since Colorado joined the Pac-12, the Buffs have played the Sun Devils three times and been beaten soundly at each turn. Arizona State comes into the game ranked #16 in the AP poll. In 2011, the Sun Devils were ranked 23rd, and were unranked in both 2012 and 2013.
Some older fans point out that while Arizona State is a good team and deserving of their current ranking, the fact is they are not a nationally dominant team by any stretch of the imagination. They say to look a few years (okay, 28) to the past to see what the Buffs have historically overcome.
The year was 1986. It was a turning point in Colorado Buffaloes history.
Buff faithful began the year with a swell of anticipation. The year before (1985) had seen Colorado win a total of SEVEN games. That may not seem like a lot, but the six seasons prior to 1985 saw the Buffs win only 14 out of 66 games. Fans were excited! They thought that seven wins and a bowl game would be an annual thing. Then the season started...
The CU Buffs under Head Coach Bill McCartney started the season 0-4.
That's right. They lost their first four games. Colorado State, Oregon, Arizona and Ohio State all beat the Buffs to start the season. And Oregon was pretty horrible back then.
Fans immediately started to worry that the Buffs would be back to their old ways where only a couple of wins per season was all they could expect. McCartney had been named Big 8 Coach of the Year in 1985, but some fans were calling for his head after the Buffs started the season so poorly in '86.
Then, something unexpected happened. The Buffs went to Missouri in week 5 and pulled out a thrilling 17-12 victory. The next week they dominated Iowa State in Boulder by 31-3.
The next game had big, bad Nebraska coming to Boulder.
No game on any football schedule at that time gave Buff fans more to dread than the hated Huskers. In the 24 years prior to 1986, Nebraska had beaten Colorado 23 times. They had outscored the Buffs 826-268 in that time. That works out to an average score of 34-11, which was a pretty standard ass-kicking back in the day.
How dominant a team was Nebraska back then? Year in and year out, they were one of the best in the country. During that 24 year stretch, Nebraska came into their game with Colorado ranked in the TOP 10 a remarkable 16 TIMES! In eleven of those games, the Fuskers were ranked in the TOP 5!
If Colorado fans are looking at challenges, Arizona State is nowhere near the challenge of Nebraska if taken in a historical perspective.
Even though Colorado had not beaten Nebraska since 1967, those 1986 Buffs showed up all the same. While those of us sitting in the student section were a loud bunch, many of the more than 52 thousand in attendance were wearing Nebraska red. Many Colorado fans with season tickets paid for the rest of their games by selling tickets at inflated prices to Nebraska fans with deep pockets.
Nebraska rolled into Boulder that beautiful October day undefeated at 6-0, and sporting the #3 ranking in the country. Like they had done for almost an entire quarter century, Husker fans entered the game with Colorado with delight, because it was as certain a victory as just about any conference rivalry could be.
Three hours later, the Colorado Buffs had won 20-10.
The final score stayed emphatically on the scoreboard throughout the day and into the night and "WE DID IT!" ran as the headline of the Boulder Daily Camera Sunday edition. The win against Nebraska was the third of six wins in seven games for Colorado to end the regular season. A nearly one hour highlight video shows the Buffs from the locker room before the game until the final celebration.
The win was a turning point toward the greatest era of Colorado football. They won seven games in '87, eight games in '88, and 11 games each year in 1989 and 1990. The Buffs were named National Champions after the 1990 season and played for the title after the 1989 season.
Those Big 8 (and one NC) championship teams came just three years after the Buffaloes had started the '86 season 0-4. Two victories set the stage for a remarkable upset that catapulted the Colorado Buffaloes to the top of the collegiate football world over the next few years.
Colorado Head Coach Mike MacIntyre has the Buffs poised to make a turn for the better.
After winning four games last year (and quadrupling the win total of 2012), Buff fans entered the 2014 season hoping for a breakthrough. A bad loss to Colorado State and an unimpressive win over UMass has left CU fans champing at the bit and sharing their anger on social media and news outlets.
Those fans should look to the past for inspiration. The Buffs may not defeat Arizona State, and Las Vegas odds-makers believe they won't. But the entire country believed the same thing about their chances against Nebraska in 1986, and instead of another defeat, the Colorado Buffs turned the corner toward becoming a national power.
Looking for another more recent example? The 2007 Buffs were coming off a 2-10 record in 2006. They were 2-2 when undefeated and #3 Oklahoma came to town and lost by a score of 27-24.
How about another Pac-12 story? Also in 2007, Stanford was coming off a 1-11 record in 2006. They were 1-3 when they faced the #1 USC Trojans in the Los Angeles Coliseum. USC was a 41 point favorite. Stanford won the game 24-23. Point spread wise, it's one of the biggest upset in the history of college football.
There's a reason they call it an upset. Whatever happens, it will not be the biggest upset in Folsom Field or Pac-12 history if the Buffs win. It won't even be close.
Friday, August 29, 2014
Colorado Buffaloes a Team in Search of an Identity in 2014 and Beyond
Heading into today's Rocky Mountain Showdown, the University of Colorado Buffaloes enter the game as a team in search of an identity. If they hope to win six games and become bowl eligible for the first time since 2007, they need to establish who they are and then be that team.
The Buffs have been a team in search of a real identity for a long time.
Their run toward to the bottom of the football pile began with Dan Hawkins, whose only apparent goal was to make his son Cody the all time leading passer in Colorado history. He accomplished that goal, but he turned a team that had been to bowl games 17 of the previous 21 seasons into a program that was a shell of its former glory. Hawkins destroyed the foundation of the house that Bill McCartney built, and left the program in a shambles with no depth, horrible player development and in-fighting on the team by young men who wanted to be more than supporting players for the head coach's son.
The run continued when the CU Brass decided to hire two ex-Buffs from the glory days to come in and run the program. Enter Jon Embree and Eric Bieniemy, who were great players for the Buffs but who were completely unqualified for their new jobs as Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator. Their main tone during their two year stay was to curse and yell at their players and to whine and sulk about how the school was not committed to football.
In truth, the school brass was definitely NOT committed to the football program and they showed that to the entire country by having the lowest paid football coaches and Athletic Director in the Big 12 and the Pac-12 following the change in conferences. However, lack of support from the top does not excuse the horrible relationship the coaches had with their players, the woeful recruiting of student athletes who were unqualified to get into the program, and game-day play calling that was so bad that it was embarrassing to CU fans around the country.
Colorado found its identity under Bill McCartney.
Following the horrible days of the Buffs under Chuck Fairbanks, the Buffs turned to Michigan assistant coach Bill McCartney, who was highly recommended by the Wolverines' legendary coach Bo Schembechler. McCartney played college ball at Missouri under another coaching legend, Dan Devine.
It took time for Mac to transform the the Buffaloes. They won only 7 out of 33 games during his first three years. What he did, however, was instill a philosophy of playing hardnose defense. He was named the Big 8 coach of the year in 1985 after his team went from one win in '84 to seven wins in '85. They gave up on average only 14.5 points per game, and all four of their losses in the regular season were to ranked teams (3 in the top 7, and one ranked #12).
To take advantage of his strong defensive team, McCartney abandoned the pass-happy days under Fairbanks in which the Buffs once gave up 82 points to Oklahoma while scoring 42 of their own. The 124 combined points was a shocker to the nation (this was before overtime games added 4 or 5 touchdowns to the real score).
McCartney went completely in the other direction and changed to the wishbone offense for the 1985 season. It was an offensive scheme that allowed a team without as much talent to compete against more dominant programs. They committed to running the ball with the triple option and began a run of nine bowl games in the next 10 years under McCartney (including a national championship).
McCartney knew that controlling the ball on the ground also controlled the clock and gave his strong defense a chance to stay fresh and dominate the other team. The coaching staff also went after great punters during recruiting. They realized that during defensive struggles with top teams like Nebraska and Oklahoma that they could move down the field slowly just by trading punts several times.The Buffs had three All-American punters during the late 1980's.
As the Buffs found more and more success, better players came knocking. With the addition of great talent, the Buffs were able to move back toward a traditional offense that more equally used both running and passing. Three years after winning the national title as a predominantly running team, the Buffs had Rashaan Salaam earn the Heisman Trophy playing for a team with a strong passing attack as well as a dominant running game.
Bill McCartney retired after the 1994 season.
After Mac stepped away from college football, the Buffs had 10 win seasons the next two years under Slick Rick Neuheisel. Buff fans thought that it would just be a continuation of the good times under McCartney. By year three, however, it became clear that Neuheisel was just a kid who had found the keys to his daddy's Ferrari and had taken it out for a two-year joyride.
When it came time for the players that he was responsible for developing to play, the Buffs were no longer a top program. The Buffs lost 10 games in the last two years of Neuheisel's reign. Mac's last six teams lost a combined 11 games. Knowing that the cupboard was bare and that NCAA rules had been broken, Neuheisel bolted to Washington after the '98 season. (His time in Washington also led to run-ins with the NCAA, but this article is about CU, not the Slickster.)
What lessons can be learned by Mike MacIntyre?
The first thing that Mac and his staff had to do when they got to Colorado was to take a group of individuals and turn them into a team. All indications are that his staff has done an excellent job of restoring a sense of family to a program had become completely dysfunctional.
They have had to work on developing skills for individual players while also facing down the fact that prior coaches had left important positions on the team bare of recruits. 2013 saw a total of nine offensive linemen available for nine positions. It also saw a bunch of underclassmen defensive backs getting their trial by fire in the Pac-12 while also learning a new system.
This year, the Buffs have much better depth and higher level of talent across the board. But they also play in the toughest conference in the country. If they want to compete and become a team that once again looks to go to a bowl at the end of each season, they need to commit to an offensive and defensive philosophy that will allow them to do that.
If their defense is weaker than their opponents offense, they need to find ways to control the ball to limit the opportunities to score by the other team. The Pac-12 offers an excellent example.
Look at how Stanford has consistently shut down the Oregon Ducks.
The Quackers want to score on every play, to wait only 10 seconds to run each play, and as many possessions as they can get. They want a minimum of five possessions per quarter and want their scoring drives to last less than minute.
Unfortunately for Oregon, Stanford knows how to control the ball and limit the Oregon possessions to 2 or even 1 per quarter. They know that Oregon cannot score touchdowns unless they have the ball. And Stanford also plays hard-nose, knock-down, rough-you-up defense. The do not allow the Ducks to get into a rhythm, and every year the Ducks high flying offense and national title aspirations are dashed by the boys from Palo Alto.
Stanford usually falls short once or twice a season, but their whole philosophy is designed to beat Oregon. And they implement that philosophy very well.
What will Colorado's "philosophy" be during the 2014 season?
Every team in the country "wants" to run and/or pass the ball well. They all "want" to play good defense. They all "want" to be winning teams. The question for Mike MacIntyre and his Colorado staff and team is:
What are they willing TO DO to make their wants come true? Are they going to give lip service to running the ball, or are they going to do it? Same goes for the passing game. As Yoda said a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...
"Do or do not. There is no try."
The Buffs have been a team in search of a real identity for a long time.
Their run toward to the bottom of the football pile began with Dan Hawkins, whose only apparent goal was to make his son Cody the all time leading passer in Colorado history. He accomplished that goal, but he turned a team that had been to bowl games 17 of the previous 21 seasons into a program that was a shell of its former glory. Hawkins destroyed the foundation of the house that Bill McCartney built, and left the program in a shambles with no depth, horrible player development and in-fighting on the team by young men who wanted to be more than supporting players for the head coach's son.
The run continued when the CU Brass decided to hire two ex-Buffs from the glory days to come in and run the program. Enter Jon Embree and Eric Bieniemy, who were great players for the Buffs but who were completely unqualified for their new jobs as Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator. Their main tone during their two year stay was to curse and yell at their players and to whine and sulk about how the school was not committed to football.
In truth, the school brass was definitely NOT committed to the football program and they showed that to the entire country by having the lowest paid football coaches and Athletic Director in the Big 12 and the Pac-12 following the change in conferences. However, lack of support from the top does not excuse the horrible relationship the coaches had with their players, the woeful recruiting of student athletes who were unqualified to get into the program, and game-day play calling that was so bad that it was embarrassing to CU fans around the country.
Colorado found its identity under Bill McCartney.
Following the horrible days of the Buffs under Chuck Fairbanks, the Buffs turned to Michigan assistant coach Bill McCartney, who was highly recommended by the Wolverines' legendary coach Bo Schembechler. McCartney played college ball at Missouri under another coaching legend, Dan Devine.
It took time for Mac to transform the the Buffaloes. They won only 7 out of 33 games during his first three years. What he did, however, was instill a philosophy of playing hardnose defense. He was named the Big 8 coach of the year in 1985 after his team went from one win in '84 to seven wins in '85. They gave up on average only 14.5 points per game, and all four of their losses in the regular season were to ranked teams (3 in the top 7, and one ranked #12).
To take advantage of his strong defensive team, McCartney abandoned the pass-happy days under Fairbanks in which the Buffs once gave up 82 points to Oklahoma while scoring 42 of their own. The 124 combined points was a shocker to the nation (this was before overtime games added 4 or 5 touchdowns to the real score).
McCartney went completely in the other direction and changed to the wishbone offense for the 1985 season. It was an offensive scheme that allowed a team without as much talent to compete against more dominant programs. They committed to running the ball with the triple option and began a run of nine bowl games in the next 10 years under McCartney (including a national championship).
McCartney knew that controlling the ball on the ground also controlled the clock and gave his strong defense a chance to stay fresh and dominate the other team. The coaching staff also went after great punters during recruiting. They realized that during defensive struggles with top teams like Nebraska and Oklahoma that they could move down the field slowly just by trading punts several times.The Buffs had three All-American punters during the late 1980's.
As the Buffs found more and more success, better players came knocking. With the addition of great talent, the Buffs were able to move back toward a traditional offense that more equally used both running and passing. Three years after winning the national title as a predominantly running team, the Buffs had Rashaan Salaam earn the Heisman Trophy playing for a team with a strong passing attack as well as a dominant running game.
Bill McCartney retired after the 1994 season.
After Mac stepped away from college football, the Buffs had 10 win seasons the next two years under Slick Rick Neuheisel. Buff fans thought that it would just be a continuation of the good times under McCartney. By year three, however, it became clear that Neuheisel was just a kid who had found the keys to his daddy's Ferrari and had taken it out for a two-year joyride.
When it came time for the players that he was responsible for developing to play, the Buffs were no longer a top program. The Buffs lost 10 games in the last two years of Neuheisel's reign. Mac's last six teams lost a combined 11 games. Knowing that the cupboard was bare and that NCAA rules had been broken, Neuheisel bolted to Washington after the '98 season. (His time in Washington also led to run-ins with the NCAA, but this article is about CU, not the Slickster.)
What lessons can be learned by Mike MacIntyre?
The first thing that Mac and his staff had to do when they got to Colorado was to take a group of individuals and turn them into a team. All indications are that his staff has done an excellent job of restoring a sense of family to a program had become completely dysfunctional.
They have had to work on developing skills for individual players while also facing down the fact that prior coaches had left important positions on the team bare of recruits. 2013 saw a total of nine offensive linemen available for nine positions. It also saw a bunch of underclassmen defensive backs getting their trial by fire in the Pac-12 while also learning a new system.
This year, the Buffs have much better depth and higher level of talent across the board. But they also play in the toughest conference in the country. If they want to compete and become a team that once again looks to go to a bowl at the end of each season, they need to commit to an offensive and defensive philosophy that will allow them to do that.
If their defense is weaker than their opponents offense, they need to find ways to control the ball to limit the opportunities to score by the other team. The Pac-12 offers an excellent example.
Look at how Stanford has consistently shut down the Oregon Ducks.
The Quackers want to score on every play, to wait only 10 seconds to run each play, and as many possessions as they can get. They want a minimum of five possessions per quarter and want their scoring drives to last less than minute.
Unfortunately for Oregon, Stanford knows how to control the ball and limit the Oregon possessions to 2 or even 1 per quarter. They know that Oregon cannot score touchdowns unless they have the ball. And Stanford also plays hard-nose, knock-down, rough-you-up defense. The do not allow the Ducks to get into a rhythm, and every year the Ducks high flying offense and national title aspirations are dashed by the boys from Palo Alto.
Stanford usually falls short once or twice a season, but their whole philosophy is designed to beat Oregon. And they implement that philosophy very well.
What will Colorado's "philosophy" be during the 2014 season?
Every team in the country "wants" to run and/or pass the ball well. They all "want" to play good defense. They all "want" to be winning teams. The question for Mike MacIntyre and his Colorado staff and team is:
What are they willing TO DO to make their wants come true? Are they going to give lip service to running the ball, or are they going to do it? Same goes for the passing game. As Yoda said a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...
"Do or do not. There is no try."
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Can Duck Dynasty Survive in the Rarified Air of Colorado?
With all due respects to Phil Robertson and his clan, there are now TWO duck dynasties that are dominant in America. Phil started the First Duck Dynasty after walking away from football (starting in front of future Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Terry Bradshaw) to focus his time and energy on his first true love, duck hunting.
Phil invented the Duck Commander duck call in 1972 and was awarded a patent for his work. Soon after, the Duck Commander Company was formed and the Robertson clan has ridden the wings of their commander ever since to fame and fortune and a hit television show on A&E.
The Second Duck Dynasty was started by current Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly. In four years in Eugene, Kelly led the Ducks to 46 wins and three straight top 4 finishes in the final AP poll. He also led them to the national championship game against Auburn, where they lost a heartbreaker by the score of 22-19.
But things were not always so Rose Bowly in Eugene. Oregon football had long been a run of the mill program at best. Head coach Rich Brooks led the Ducks to their first top 20 finish in nearly 40 years when they were ranked #11 following his last season in 1994.
Mike Bellotti then took over and made Oregon a half and half team. Half the years they finished in the AP Top 20, and half they did not. Twice during his 14 year tenure, the Ducks won the Pac-10 Conference Title. They were consistently good... but certainly not the juggernaut they have become now.
Former Colorado Buff Offensive Coordinator Mark Helfrich took over the Duck program when Kelly flew off to the NFL, and so far the Ducks have not missed a beat. They are ranked #2 in the country behind two-time defending National Champion Alabama. Although many people think the Ducks are playing better than the Crimson Tide this year, most people will keep 'Bama #1 until they lose it on the field.
In the Ducks' last game, they scored 55 points against conference foe California to bring their record to 4-0. The 55 points was the fewest they have scored this season. One big difference this year over years past is the level of defense being played by Oregon. Instead of just outscoring everybody, the Ducks are now dominating on both sides of the ball. On top of scoring 60 points a game, the Ducks only give up around 11.
Can they keep it up when they travel to Boulder this weekend? On one hand, history says they will. Since Colorado joined the Pac-12, Oregon has outscored them in two games by 99 points (115-16). The other hand, however, points out that the last two games were under head coach Jon Embree, and monstrous losses were the norm during his tenure in Boulder.
The Colorado Buffaloes started the Mike MacIntyre era this year by winning their first two games to double the win total from 2012. New Defensive Coordinator Kent Baer has the Buffaloes playing a whole new level of D compared to years past. Some critics might even say that the Buffs are playing ANY D for the first time in several years.
But is it enough to derail the Oregon Duckernaut? The game has to be played, of course, but the Buffaloes do have a history of upsetting teams at Folsom Field in Boulder.
In 1986, the Buffs started the season very roughly by losing their first four games. This included a close loss to Oregon. They rebounded to win their next two games before the mighty (and #3 ranked) Nebraska Corncobbers came to town. Nebraska had defeated the Buffs for 20 straight years, and as usual, Folsom Field was awash in red as the Nebraska faithful did their best to cheer their team to victory.
It was not to be, however, as Bill McCartney led his Buffs to a 20-10 victory. The win was the turning point that propelled Colorado toward becoming one of the top teams in the nation over the next decade. They played for the National Championship twice (winning once), and were denied a third shot at the title when they lost in Lincoln despite having nine NFL draft picks and the Heisman Trophy winner in 1994.
In 2007, the #3 Oklahoma Sooners came into Boulder and met with a similar fate. Like Oregon this year, the Sooners were considered the top offensive team in the country. Sam Bradford would go on to win the Heisman in 2008. When they arrived in Colorado, the Sooners were averaging more than 60 points a game and giving up only 11. Sound familiar?
Do the Buffs have what it takes to bring down the high flying Ducks? Grab your Duck Commander and your shotgun. It's time to go duck hunting. One can only hope the Ducks do as well in the altitude as the Eagles did when they visited the Denver Broncos at Mile High last week. What was that score again? Oh yeah, Broncos 52 and Eagles 20.
Go Buffs!
----------------------------------
To see video and write-ups of these upsets, see our good friends from:
CU at the Game -- Oklahoma Upset
CU at the Game -- Nebraska Upset
Phil invented the Duck Commander duck call in 1972 and was awarded a patent for his work. Soon after, the Duck Commander Company was formed and the Robertson clan has ridden the wings of their commander ever since to fame and fortune and a hit television show on A&E.
The Second Duck Dynasty was started by current Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly. In four years in Eugene, Kelly led the Ducks to 46 wins and three straight top 4 finishes in the final AP poll. He also led them to the national championship game against Auburn, where they lost a heartbreaker by the score of 22-19.
But things were not always so Rose Bowly in Eugene. Oregon football had long been a run of the mill program at best. Head coach Rich Brooks led the Ducks to their first top 20 finish in nearly 40 years when they were ranked #11 following his last season in 1994.
Mike Bellotti then took over and made Oregon a half and half team. Half the years they finished in the AP Top 20, and half they did not. Twice during his 14 year tenure, the Ducks won the Pac-10 Conference Title. They were consistently good... but certainly not the juggernaut they have become now.
Former Colorado Buff Offensive Coordinator Mark Helfrich took over the Duck program when Kelly flew off to the NFL, and so far the Ducks have not missed a beat. They are ranked #2 in the country behind two-time defending National Champion Alabama. Although many people think the Ducks are playing better than the Crimson Tide this year, most people will keep 'Bama #1 until they lose it on the field.
In the Ducks' last game, they scored 55 points against conference foe California to bring their record to 4-0. The 55 points was the fewest they have scored this season. One big difference this year over years past is the level of defense being played by Oregon. Instead of just outscoring everybody, the Ducks are now dominating on both sides of the ball. On top of scoring 60 points a game, the Ducks only give up around 11.
Can they keep it up when they travel to Boulder this weekend? On one hand, history says they will. Since Colorado joined the Pac-12, Oregon has outscored them in two games by 99 points (115-16). The other hand, however, points out that the last two games were under head coach Jon Embree, and monstrous losses were the norm during his tenure in Boulder.
The Colorado Buffaloes started the Mike MacIntyre era this year by winning their first two games to double the win total from 2012. New Defensive Coordinator Kent Baer has the Buffaloes playing a whole new level of D compared to years past. Some critics might even say that the Buffs are playing ANY D for the first time in several years.
But is it enough to derail the Oregon Duckernaut? The game has to be played, of course, but the Buffaloes do have a history of upsetting teams at Folsom Field in Boulder.
In 1986, the Buffs started the season very roughly by losing their first four games. This included a close loss to Oregon. They rebounded to win their next two games before the mighty (and #3 ranked) Nebraska Corncobbers came to town. Nebraska had defeated the Buffs for 20 straight years, and as usual, Folsom Field was awash in red as the Nebraska faithful did their best to cheer their team to victory.
It was not to be, however, as Bill McCartney led his Buffs to a 20-10 victory. The win was the turning point that propelled Colorado toward becoming one of the top teams in the nation over the next decade. They played for the National Championship twice (winning once), and were denied a third shot at the title when they lost in Lincoln despite having nine NFL draft picks and the Heisman Trophy winner in 1994.
In 2007, the #3 Oklahoma Sooners came into Boulder and met with a similar fate. Like Oregon this year, the Sooners were considered the top offensive team in the country. Sam Bradford would go on to win the Heisman in 2008. When they arrived in Colorado, the Sooners were averaging more than 60 points a game and giving up only 11. Sound familiar?
Do the Buffs have what it takes to bring down the high flying Ducks? Grab your Duck Commander and your shotgun. It's time to go duck hunting. One can only hope the Ducks do as well in the altitude as the Eagles did when they visited the Denver Broncos at Mile High last week. What was that score again? Oh yeah, Broncos 52 and Eagles 20.
Go Buffs!
----------------------------------
To see video and write-ups of these upsets, see our good friends from:
CU at the Game -- Oklahoma Upset
CU at the Game -- Nebraska Upset
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