Colorado Quarteback Sefo Liufau's Fine Ability to Convert on 3rd Downs A Key to the Buffs' Second Half

If 3rd down conversions are the key to an offense's ability to hold onto the ball and keep opposing teams from getting their hands on the pigskin, then Mike MacIntyre's decision to promote Sefo Liufau to starting quarterback may very well be one of the best decisions he has made this year.

If one goes back and looks at the stats to the two games against Oregon State and Oregon, one sees that the Buffs converted only 2 of 15 third downs against the Beavers in Corvallis and converted 0 of 15 against the Ducks. Before Sefo Liufau entered the game in Tempe against Arizona State, the Buffs were 0 for 3 against the Sun Devils. That means that before Liufau entered the game, the CU Buffs had converted only 2 of their prior 33 third downs. It doesn't take a PhD in statistics to know that those kinds of numbers would make it difficult for any team to win.

How did Sefo do when thrust into the spotlight when his team was already trailing by 25 points? All things considered, he did marvellous. Liufau consistently led Colorado down the field. He did throw two interceptions and fumbled a snap, leading to more scores by the ASU, but he was extremely efficient at converting 3rd downs into first downs or better.

How good was he at converting? Seven of 10 (70%) of CU's third down tries with Liufau at the helm ended with either a first down or a touchdown. That not only kept the Sun Devil offense off the field, but also managed to give the Buff defense a rest. Rest for the defense has been in short supply since kickoff at Oregon State.

If Colorado and Liufau can drastically cut turnovers and continue to convert 3rd downs at a high rate, the Buffs could literally turn their season around on a dime. 

The 1989 Buffs ended the regular season undefeated and played for the national championship against Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. That team dominated almost every team they played that year. For the season, that great team converted 53.9% of their 3rd downs. The 1990 team which won the national championship (also against ND) converted 48.9% of their 3rd downs. The 1994 team which featured Heisman Trophy Winner Rashaan Salaam and a plethora of NFL draft picks converted 43.8% of their 3rd downs.

Make no mistake, the ability to hold onto the ball when facing 3rd down is an extremely important statistic. In the first two games of this year, Colorado converted 40% of their 3rd downs and won both games. In the games where the rate of conversion dropped into the single digits, the Buffs were blown out.

The game against undefeated Charleston Southern this week will give Liufau the chance to lead the Buffs from the opening kick. If they convert at over 50% on third down (and win the turnover battle) the team will walk off Folsom Field with a huge win.

The Buff defense under Kent Baer has been much maligned the last three weeks, but it must be remembered that the Colorado offense did nothing with any consistency during that same time. There were a few big plays, of course, but the Buffs failed miserably to hold onto the ball for any length of time. If Sefo Liufau can help the CU offense control the ball and the clock in the upcoming games, the Colorado defense will almost magically get much better.

Football is a game that is fueled by emotion. Nothing fires up the defense like watching from the sideline as their teammates on offense control the ball and the clock and drive for a touchdown. On the other hand, nothing does more to dishearten a defense than watching their offense go three and out over and over again. Or turning over the ball.

If Colorado can turn those two things around and do it on a weekly basis, they will immediately become competitive once again for the first time in many years.

Just Say No to Denver Hosting the Rocky Mountain Showdown

In just about 48 hours, the University of Colorado Buffaloes will take the field against Colorado State at the home of the Denver Broncos, known this year as Sports Authority Field at Mile High. It is a beautiful venue and a wonderful place to watch Colorado's favorite team. But that team is neither the CU Buffs nor the CSU Rams, it is the Broncos. Period.

I have been a long time fan of both the NFL and NCAA football. I have seen every Super Bowl. I attended my first college football game at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, AZ back when it held only 41,000 people. Hint: It was way back in the 1960s. I was raised on college football.

I moved to Colorado in 1983, and started to attend CU Buff games in 1985. I had season tickets for many years and followed the Buffs on the road several times, most notably to the National Championship game at the Orange Bowl in 1990, and to the Fiesta Bowl in Tempe in 1995. I am willing to travel to see the Buffs play ball.

When I was living overseas, I had my son Skype me the games by turning his computer toward the TV. This meant watching games in the wee hours of the morning. I go out of my way to watch my alma mater play.

That said, I am NOT willing to go to Denver to watch the Rocky Mountain Showdown. Yes, of course, I will watch on TV and enjoy the game immensely. But I will not go to the Broncos field to watch the game, and here are the reasons:

• The stadium is too big. If everyone who attends games at CU and CSU attended the RMS, the stadium would still look like no one was there.
• If the people who put the RMS together want a raucous crowd, the need to put them in the LOWER LEVEL.
• IF they want casual fans to attend the game, they cannot price the tickets as if it was an NFL game. The Broncos tickets are at a premium, since there has been a waiting list to get them for decades. By contrast, the Buffs sell out several games a year in a stadium which hold 25,000 fewer people, and the Rams generally draw fewer fans than Texas high school games. (As an aside, why is CSU spending so much money to build a new, bigger stadium when they can't even fill the tiny one they already have?)
• $20-30 for parking? Are you freaking kidding me?
• Numerous press releases telling folks to behave themselves, and warning people of the great number of regular and plain clothes police that will be on hand to be certain that no one has too much fun. I don't remember this many warnings when the Broncos play in front of a lot more people.
• The Denver media, particularly the Denver Post, have made it perfectly clear that they could not care less about CU or CSU. The only reason they want this game in Denver is so they do not have to drive to Boulder or Fort Collins.
  

  • PS - It really pisses me off that the media in Denver are willing participants in the extortion attempt this game presents. No, I do not care any less for the Buffs because I am not willing to spend an exorbitant  amount of money to see them in Denver.

   
• Rivalry games belong on campus, or at least in the city where the campus is located. There are no CU or CSU banners strung around Denver. College football is just a diversion for Broncomania.
• Folks running the RMS need to understand that we live in a capitalist society, where the concepts of supply and demand dictate the going market rate for anything. They have WAY more tickets than customers, yet they price their commodity as if it was in short supply.
• I have a good chuckle on a daily basis watching Craigslist and StubHub and Ticketmaster. The closer we get to the game, the lower the prices for tickets seem to go. By the time kickoff arrives, they will probably be GIVING them away for practically nothing outside the stadium. It reminds me of the CU game at the Orange Bowl. Even though the Buffs and Notre Dame were playing with a National Championship on the line, tickets outside were going for $5-10 apiece because there were no teams from Florida playing.
• I know the folks at CSU like playing in Denver. Of course they do, who wants to stay home to play in front of 18,000 people? Maybe they should start scheduling the CSU vs. Air Force game in Denver. Similar drive for both sets of fans and it gets the Ram fans a chance to get out of town. Of course, it has been a long time since CSU beat Air Force anywhere.

For some ungodly reason, this game is scheduled to be played in Denver through 2019. Somebody somewhere is apparently making good money off this. Unfortunately, I do not think it is either CU or CSU. Their fans are paying the freight, though. This game being played in Denver should be ended as soon as possible. The vigorish paid by the schools and fans is too great.

For those of you going to the game in Denver, I wish you a great time. I am going to save my money for a game out of town which will actually get me out of town. Looking forward to maybe a return trip to Sun Devil Stadium against Arizona State on October 12^th. The Phoenix Craigslist has tickets offered to the ASU vs. CU game for as little as $20. They money saved by not going to the Rocky Mountain Showdown will just about pay for my gas to get down to Tempe.

The Bill McCartney Connection Still Runs Deep for the University of Colorado Buffaloes

Getting out to watch the CU Buffs fall football camp was made even more exciting on Monday when I noticed that one of the men moving along the sidelines of the practice fields was none other than retired Colorado coaching legend Bill McCartney. Even now, almost 18 years since he roamed the hallowed grounds of Folsom Field, his presence is still commanding.

Bill still has the great smile and his deep voice remains capable of stirring the soul and rousing passion for life and football. Having him there was a great thing for new coach Mike MacIntyre. After all, McCartney is the man who led Colorado to two National Championship games (and barely missed out on a third) and one title. He also earned national Coach of the Year honors once as well as Big 8 Coach of the Year 3 times. Earlier this year he was inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame

All these years later, when Bill McCartney talks, coaches and players alike are well advised to listen. That being the case, one of the great things that the CU football team has going for it is the fact that the team has TWO grandsons of McCartney involved in the program.

Graduate assistant T.C. McCartney is the son of former CU starting quarterback Sal Aunese, who died on Sept. 23, 1989, from stomach cancer. That CU team rallied around Aunese and, led by Darian Hagan, ran the table during the season to go undefeated and was ranked number one in the country going into the Orange Bowl in Miami. The Buffs lost the national title after playing their worst game of the season to Notre Dame. After a poor start the following year, the Buffs rallied from a 1-1-1 record to begin the season to winning the national championship following a rematch victory over Notre Dame.

Sal Aunese was recruited to Colorado by current LSU coach Les Miles. Media reports have said that Miles made a promise that he would make sure that Sal's infant son would have a scholarship waiting when he graduated high school. Miles kept that promise, and T.C. was a member of the LSU National Championship team in 2007.

Following his graduation from LSU, T.C. worked with Les Miles as a graduate assistant and helped get his team to the BCS title game. Following that year, he moved back to Boulder to become a graduate assistant at CU.

On the field itself for Buffs is another McCartney grandson. Derek McCartney is a redshirt freshman defensive lineman who father Shannon Clavelle played for the Buffs in the 1990s before moving on to the NFL Green Bay Packers in 1995. Clavelle also played for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Both T.C. and Derek attended high school in Colorado. T.C. played for his uncle Tom McCartney at 4A Fairview High School in Boulder before attending LSU. Derek played his high school ball at 2A Faith Christian High School in Westminster.

It was a great thrill to see Bill on the practice field with the Buffs, and it gives hope for the future that two of his grandsons are with the program. They have had their whole lives to learn from their grandfather, and the lessons they have learned can only help their teammates.