Colorado Reaches Crossroads Against Washington State

It's been a particularly odd and peculiar year for the Colorado Buffaloes and their fans. 

Last season was a remarkable run that ended with the Buffs playing in the Pac-12 Championship game after winning 10 games during the regular season. And after a decade of losing football, the wonder and joy of returning to winning form was a welcome respite from the years of disappointment.

Before this season began, excitement permeated all who had an interest in Colorado football. The coaches, the players, and fans expected the team to continue their winning ways based on the foundation  built by head coach Mike MacIntyre. 

Through recruiting and player development, it took Mac three years to turn a down program into a team able to compete in the Pac-12. Just looking at wins and losses, however, did not tell the whole story. Mac's teams won four, two, and then four games again in those first three years. But each year the Buffs got closer and closer to competing equally in the Pac-12. 

Then, in year four, they finally started winning the close games.

And they also started to win big against some of the struggling teams. Things were finally good again in Buff land. And the Colorado faithful were excited. First a trip to the conference title game, and then a bowl for the first time in a decade. Thanksgiving weekend in 2016 left the Buffaloes with a 10-2 record and most CU fans were giving football thanks for the first time in longer than they cared to remember. Excitement for the future was sky high.

Since that weekend last November, the Buffaloes have won only four of nine games.

There not only lost, but were blown out of both the conference title game and the bowl game. And this season, the Buffs are limping along with a 4-3 record. They were 3-0 against over-matched non-conference foes Colorado State, Texas State and Northern Colorado. And even though the Buffs won those games, they looked very uninspired doing so.

Once they started Pac-12 play, things got ugly quickly. Washington came to Boulder and handed Colorado a beating that was eerily similar to the one the Huskies dealt CU in the Pac-12 title game. Fans and coaches rationalized that game by pointing out that UW was a top 10 team.

Following the Washington debacle, CU lost their next two conference games to teams that were struggling so badly that their coaches were rumored to be on the hot seats as far as job security. Both Jim Mora at UCLA and Rich Rodriguez at Arizona got much needed wins against Colorado. Those two losses left Colorado looking stunned at 3-3.

Last week, finally, the Buffaloes played a team truly struggling. In fact, things were so bad that the Oregon State head coach Gary Anderson walked away from a guaranteed $12 Million contract and resigned. The Buffs faced one of the worst teams in the country, and walked away with come-from-behind 36-33 win. More discouraging is that the 3 point win came against a team that had not been within 28 points of any FBS teams this season.

But, it has been argued, the Buffs won the on road in a Pac-12 game. They were the ONLY team in the league to win a conference game on the road last week. 

It's a tough conference to begin with and winning on the road is very difficult. Last week, three Top 25 teams in the conference went on the road against Pac-12 foes and they all lost. Top 5 Washington lost at Arizona State. Top 10 Washington State was thrashed by California 37-3. And Top 25 Utah lost on the road to USC.

Utah lost to a fellow Top 25 team, but UW and Wash State lost to teams with records of .500 or worse. It's a tough league.

Now the Buffaloes reach a crossroads in their away game at #15 Washington State.

If they win, they move to within one game of qualifying for a bowl game. If they lose, they fall to .500 with a 4-4 record with giant-killers Cal and Arizona State looming before season ending games against heavyweights USC and Utah.

Will the Buffaloes play like they aspire to be in the Top 25? Or will they play like a team that loses big to every Top 25 team on their schedule? The Buffs haven't beaten a Top 25 team ranked above them anywhere since 2008 when they beat West Virginia. And they haven't beaten a Top 25 team on the road since 2002 against UCLA.

Time is running out if the Buffaloes want to make a bowl game for the second consecutive year. Are they and their coaches up to it? Will they celebrate an important victory or find more ways to rationalize another loss?

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.

 

How Do the Power Five Conferences Perform Academically According to the World University Rankings?

How do the Power Five Conferences perform academically?

Football season has begun with a bang, and once again fans from around the country are in heated debate as to which schools and conferences are the best in the land.

Of course, most of those debates are centered around football. Especially down in SEC country, where football is much more important than academics.

The World University Rankings were released today and this article will look at where Power Five Conference schools landed on the Top 100 of the charts. 

This is a tough ranking because the Power Five schools are competing not only with each other but also other top universities from around the world.

In Grand Countdown Fashion, the list of Power Five Conferences from Worst to First. 

 

#5 -- The Southeastern Conference (SEC) -- ZERO

The SEC landed a big fat ZERO for schools on the "Wonderful One Hundred" list of top universities in the world. The closest to making the Top 100 was Vanderbilt at #105.

#4 -- The Big 12 Conference -- ONE

The Big 12 beat the SEC by one by landing the University of Texas on the Top 100. The Longhorns came in at #49 worldwide.

#3 -- The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) --  FOUR

The ACC landed FOUR schools on the "Wonderful One Hundred" that was released today. Those schools were:
-- #17 - Duke University
-- #33 - Georgia Tech University
-- #56 - North Carolina University
-- #100 - University of Pittsburgh 

#2 -- The Pac-12 Conference -- SIX

The Pac-12 landed SIX schools on the Worldwide Top 100, including four on the ultra prestigious Top 25. Those four were more than any other Power 5 conference.
-- #3 - Stanford
-- #15 - UCLA
-- #18 - California
-- #25 - Washington
-- #66 - USC
-- #100 - Colorado (tied with ACC's Pittsburgh)

#1 -- The Big Ten Conference -- TEN

The overall academic excellence award surely goes to the Big Ten, which placed 10 of their conference schools on the Worldwide Top 100. The Pac-12 may have had a few higher up in the rankings, but the Big Ten pounded the rankings like no other conference.
-- #20 - Northwestern
-- #21 - Michigan
-- #37 - Illinois
-- #43 - Wisconsin
-- #56 - Minnesota
-- #60 - Purdue
-- #69 - Maryland
-- #70 - Ohio State
-- #77 - Penn State
-- #83 - Michigan State


The verdict is in and three of the Power Five conferences put a total of 20 schools on the Top 100 worldwide. Those were the Big Ten with 10, the Pac-12 with six, and the ACC with four. The SEC, the self-proclaimed kings of college football had a total of zero.

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.

 

 

Colorado Buffaloes Look to Reverse History Against USC Trojans, Stay Atop Pac-12 South

The Colorado Buffaloes came into the 2016 knowing full well that they had only won only five conference games in five years in the Pac-12. Two of those came in 2011, their first in the conference. That season was followed by two years with only one Pac-12 victory apiece. 2014 had zero conference wins for the Buffs, and 2015 had a single conference win.

With their only conference victories over Arizona, Utah, Washington State, California and Oregon State, the Buffaloes were also well aware that there were SIX teams in the conference that they had never defeated since joining the Pac-12.

Oregon, Stanford, Washington, USC, Arizona State and UCLA had yet to lose to Colorado as a Pac-12 foe. The Trojans and the Sun Devils have never lost to Colorado in their histories. And the Buffs only have winning records (all-time) against three of their conference brethren (Arizona, Utah, and Washington State).

The Buffaloes came into the season with a stated goal of winning the Pac-12 championship.  Given their conference history, it was a bold goal to say publicly. And they knew that the only way it was going to happen is if they got some wins against teams that they had never defeated since joining the conference.

The first team on the schedule that met that criteria was the Oregon Ducks. Although Oregon was 16 games from playing for the national championship, the Buffs went into Eugene and defeated them 41-38.

Oregon State came to Boulder last week and became the first team in the Pac-12 to lose to the Buffaloes twice, and also became the first team with a multi-game losing streak to Colorado. And it wasn't even close. The Buffaloes won handily 47-6, in their largest conference victory in more than two decades.

The next two teams the Buffs play are ones that they have never defeated in their history. The Buffs are 0-10 against the USC Trojans going back to 1927, and 0-7 against the Arizona State Sun Devils going back to 2006. 

For the Buffs to achieve their stated goal of winning (or playing in the Pac-12 title game), they must first get by the two teams they have never beaten over the next two weeks. A loss to either team would put a serious damper on their ability to win the South, and losses to both would likely eliminate them from the race.

First up, tomorrow, is USC at the Coliseum (a place with marvelous history and a horrible place to watch football games). The Buffs are the better team so far this year, but the Trojans are trying to salvage their reputations after a dismal start to the season.

Some point to their dominating win over ASU last week as evidence that the Trojans have turned things around, but the reality is that before the ASU game, USC had lost all three games they played against FBS opponents. Alabama crushed them 52-6, and conference foes Utah and Stanford also took them down.

The losses to the Cardinal Trees and the Utes looked better before both teams lost last weekend. Stanford was shellacked  by Washington 44-6 and Utah lost to an unranked Cal.

The only team the Colorado has lost to this year was in Ann Arbor to a Michigan team that is ranked #4 in the country. On top of that, the Buffs were beating the Wolverines until their punting team fell apart (leading to 28 points for Michigan) and were still in the game until losing their starting QB Sefo Liufau.

More importantly, the Buffs showed at Oregon that they could come back late in a game after two turnovers gave the Ducks the lead. And the game was sealed by a defensive stop in the end zone.
The Buffs have been battle tested and have been hardened. They showed that to be true by their big win over the Beavers last week.

The Trojans lost the only close game they played, and they have been beaten badly once (by 46) and handily once (by 17) in their three losses. A bad ASU defense offered little to test USC and the game was out of hand quickly.

What we will find out tomorrow is whether the Buffs are as good as they have looked so far. Can they win another game on the road against a traditionally top program? Can they get over their history emotionally to play the Trojans strong?

We will see. The first quarter will likely be the telling period. If the Buffs are ahead or close after the first quarter, things bode well. If the Buffs can avoid turnovers and special teams mistakes, things also bode well.

If their defense plays as strong as they have for the entire year, the Buffs should win this game. If the offense plays as strongly as they have the entire season (minus the interceptions at Oregon), the Buffaloes should win handily.

If the Buffaloes don't win, chances are they will be able to look in the mirror and know why.

Open Letter to Colorado AD Rick George: Both Mike MacIntyre and Sefo Liufau Should Sit Out the First Half Against Idaho State

Dear Rick George, Colorado Athletic Director:

First, I want to congratulate you for the stellar performance you have put in since coming home to Boulder to take the reins as Athletic Director. Colorado Athletics have not been in such good hands since Bill Marolt. The facilities improvements are nothing short of phenomenal and are truly world class.

While most every CU fan has been reveling in the big blowout of Colorado State in the Rocky Mountain Showdown, I want to point out that there are serious issues simmering below the euphoria. 

Head Coach Mike MacIntyre has done a good job of rebuilding a moribund program. Although the number of wins, especially in conference play, have not met expectations, the Buffs have been getting better since Mac took over.

The problem I see, is that Mac is supposed to be looking out for the long term health and growth of the program. That means that every position on the team needs to have competent and well trained backups. It also means that the coaches need to protect the health of their players.

For the most part, the Buffs have done that. The glaring exception is the most important player on the team -- the quarterback. Since senior captain Sefo Liufau became the starter his freshman year, the Buffs and Liufau have steadfastly REFUSED to give any meaningful reps to the backup quarterbacks.

What has been the result? When Sefo has gone down to injury, whoever was thrown into the games was in reality being thrown to the wolves. 

In 2014, Jordan Gehrke got to start at #3 Oregon in the penultimate game of the season. As Sefo's primary backup in 2014, he attempted a grand total of 44 passes on the season. In 2015, he attempted 24 passes. 

The 2015 main backup, Cade Apsay,  attempted 92 passes for the season. All but 9 of those passes were attempted AFTER Liufau went down with a Lisfranc injury against USC. That means the primary backup was thrown to the wolves (Trojans, Cougars and Utes) with only 9 passes under his belt as quarterback. Needless to say, the Buffs lost all three games to end the season.

Early in the season, Liufau went the ENTIRE game against Massachusetts even though the Buffs won handily 48-14. The game was a PERFECT opportunity to play the backup (coming off a redshirt year) to get him some reps so that he would be more comfortable with the speed of the college game. 

Mac and Liufau preferred to pad Liufau's stats instead of preparing the Buffs for playing with another quarterback. Against Nicholls State, Apsay got to throw 6 passes in the Buffs 48-0 victory. 

Is it any wonder that neither the Gehrke nor Apsay were prepared when their numbers were called?

This year, the Buffs had their biggest winning margin over CSU in 60 years, 44-7. How many passes did backup Steven Montez get? ZERO. Even though Liufau got knocked goofy at the end of the third quarter running and diving (instead of the protected QB slide), Montez only came in with a couple minutes left, where he proceeded to hand-off to true freshman Beau Bisharat four times before time expired.

EVERYBODY knew that Sefo Liufau should have been out of the game (the announcers, the sportswriters, every fan commenting on web sites) but Mac kowtowed once again when Sefo had a tizzy fit on the sideline and threw his helmet when the medical staff wanted to keep him out of the game whose victory had long been determined.

After the game against Idaho State, the Buffs head into a brutal schedule that includes games on the road against Michigan, Oregon, USC and Stanford. These are not the teams you want to play against with a backup QB with NO MEANINGFUL EXPERIENCE.

If the Buffs and MacIntyre (and Liufau) hold form against Idaho State, Montez will get a handful of plays in a big win, playing only with the 2nd and 3rd string. They will head into the meat of their schedule with Sefo and no experience behind him.

Does Mac even realize that Sefo graduates this year? Does Sefo care about the Buffs nearly as much as his own stats and insistence on playing every down? If the Buffs make it to a bowl game this year, chances are that a backup QB will be called upon to save their butts if and when Sefo gets dinged up.

If the Buffs don't make it to a bowl game, chances are that MacIntyre will be looking for new employment, and Liufau will go down as the most losing quarterback in Colorado and Pac-12 history. Yes, football is a team sport and the quarterback is just a small part... but it is the most important part. 

BUT... with the glory comes the blame when you fail to win when you are a QB or a head coach. Rewriting the record books doesn't mean anything if you can't win enough games.

It seems kind of fitting that many of the records that Liufau (under MacIntyre) has broken were set by Cody Hawkins, the son of former CU coach Dan Hawkins. Cody and Sefo are all over the record books, but no one with any knowledge of CU football history would have either of them anywhere near the top half dozen quarterback since the first Coach Mac (Bill McCartney) roamed the sidelines. And it hasn't been that long (34 years).

Mr. George, it is time that you let MacIntyre know that the best thing for Colorado is to prepare a backup QB so that he is ready when called upon. Even if Sefo stays healthy this year, he is gone after this season. 

The Colorado Buffaloes need to prepare for a team without Sefo, and possibly, without Mike MacIntyre. The Buffs will go on without them, but next year (and maybe this year) will look a whole lot more promising with a well-prepared backup.

That is why I would suggest that both MacIntyre and Sefo Liufau sit out the first half against Idaho State. The Pac-12 has a history of eating up QB's who are thrown to the wolves.

As head coach, MacIntyre gets paid a lot of money to watch out for the entire team. As QB and a  multi-year captain, Sefo Liufau needs to think about the entire team first instead of his own stats. A good message to both of them would be to have them sit out the first half against Idaho State. 

The Buffs are in NO DANGER of losing no matter who plays QB. Therefore, let Montez play with the first string, and get a chance to work on his timing with the fast guys. He'll also be playing against the first string (An FCS first string, for sure, but better than FCS 3rd stringers). And no matter how well Montez plays against Idaho State, the speed at which the Trojans, Duck, Wolverines, and the Palo Alto Trees play will be eye opening if he is forced to play. Sort of like being fed to the wolves

Not much chance Mac and Sefo sitting out will happen, I realize, but I am waiting with bated breath for the other shoe to drop when the Buffs actually need a backup QB to win a game. I am quite sure there are coaches on the CU staff (other than Mac and Lindgren) who think the backup QB's should be prepared.

As always, GO BUFFS!

Mark Rubi
Boulderdevil

As Predicted Yesterday, the Colorado Buffs hand the CSU Rams a Beating of Epic Proportions 44-7

You have to go all the way back to October 13, 1956 to find a game between Colorado and Colorado State in which the winning margin was as large as the one the Buffaloes walked away with tonight. By a final score of 44-7, the Buffs hammered the Rams in the Rocky Mountain Showdown and most likely put the final nails in the coffin of CSU's delusional fantasy of being invited to join the Big 12 conference.

To add insult to injury for the Lambies from Fort Collins, there's nothing quite like being embarrassed on national television by an in-state rival who walked away from the Big 12 for the more exclusive and academically inclined Pac-12. The Rams can be certain that the Big 12 Poobahs were none-too-impressed.

The defense put together by Jim Leavitt and his staff more than lived up to expectations from the outset. The Rams first six possessions all went three and out. By the end of the first quarter, the Rams had run 18 plays for a total of 16 yards, while the Buffs had more points than the Rams had offensive plays. 

Long before the first half was over, the Rams knew they were in for their worst loss to Colorado in 60 years. By the third quarter, the coaches and players from the Fort were just hoping to score a point and not be further embarrassed by ending the game with a goose-egg on the scoreboard.

More posts to come as stats and interviews become available.



 

Buff "Fringe" Fans Hoping for Davis Webb Failure find Frustration in Cal's Big Win

When Davis Webb committed to attend the University of Colorado for his final year of eligibility following his graduation from Texas Tech, many Buff fans rejoiced. Webb is considered by ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. to be the top senior QB in the country.

Between his commitment and graduation, however, Webb opted to go to Cal to replace Jared Goff, the recent #1 pick in the NFL draft. Many of the CU Buff's more vocal "fringe" fans went berserk when Webb opted to go to Cal and immediately started wishing him ill and bad fortune for turning his back on the Buffs.

Many rationalized their bad sportsmanship by pointing out that Cal was also in the Pac-12, and therefore a rival school... They conveniently fail to remember that Cal is in the Pac-12 North and Colorado is in the Pac-12 South and ARE NOT even scheduled to play this year. They also forget that this is Webb's last year of college play and that he will NEVER play against Colorado, except in the unlikely instance that CU wins the South and Cal wins the North division of the Pac-12. There is also a very remote possibility that the Buffs and Bears could meet in a bowl game.

Like myself, most of the Buff alumni from out of state grew up in Pac-12 (or Pac-10 or Pac-8) territory. They are familiar with schools from the Conference of Champions. And in most cases, they root for fellow conference teams to win against non-conference opponents. The Pac-12 doing well against every other conference makes the Pac-12 look better.

That's why it's frustrating when the "fringe" fans take the sporting world much too seriously, and take a young man's decision to the best thing for his possible future in the NFL as a personal affront.
To hear folks wish Webb failure or injury is sickening, and should be strongly repudiated by real fans.

Cal and Hawaii (two teams the Buffs have played each of the last 2 years) opened the college football season last night in Sydney, Australia. After a less-than-stellar start that saw the two teams tied 14-14 in the first quarter, Cal showed the Pac-12 is stronger. The Bears outscored the Rainbow Warriors 37-17 over the rest of the game and headed back to California with a 51-31 victory.

How did Webb do? 

It depends on who you ask, I suppose. Remember that Cal lost not-only the #1 NFL draft pick this year, but they also lost their TOP SIX receivers as well. That meant that Webb was throwing to a bunch of guys with little game-day experience. And early in the game it showed..., but the final numbers were pretty darn impressive.

Davis Webb had 38 completions in 54 attempts for 441 yards, with four touchdowns and zero interceptions. He also rushed for a touchdown. Webb threw completions to 12 different receivers.

Cal as a whole put up 630 yards of offense, and scored 6 of 7 times in the red zone. The Golden Bears rushed for 189 yards.

Conclusions?

Webb and his receivers looked like they were getting used to each other early in the game, but kept after it and achieved what they were trying to achieve. Webb looked every bit the top senior quarterback in the country playing in a new system with inexperienced receivers. By the time Pac-12 play starts, Webb and gang should be firing on all cylinders.

The Buffs' "fringe" fans should be relieved that the Buffs do not face Webb this year. Davis looks very much like a young man destined to put up big numbers this year and hear his name called in next year's NFL draft.

I, for one, wish him nothing but the best.
 

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.

Breathe Easily, Mike MacIntyre is rebuilding the Colorado Buffaloes the Right Way

With the most recent National Letter of Intent Day now come and gone, fans of the University of Colorado football program have breathed a collective sigh of relief. 

The Buffs ended last season knowing that attrition had ravaged the vaunted 2012 class (rated in the mid 30's nationally by the recruiting services) to the point that only 10 of the original 29 remained to graduate. The endless task of recruiting is what allows college football programs to bring in the annual wave of graduating high school seniors to replenish their programs.

With only 85 scholarships available for the entire team, most schools shoot to have an incoming class of 25-28 young men each year, with expected attrition bringing down the total so that the total always remains at the NCAA mandated 85.

Attrition happens for numerous reasons. Kids get homesick or have family issues and transfer to be closer to home. Some leave for greener pastures and greater opportunity to play, while some are forced to quit due to injury. Others fail to make the transition to college level student commitments and leave due to grades, and others are asked to leave because the have failed to live by the standards of conduct their schools expect of them. And some are taken from the school after society has determined that criminal activity has necessitated a move to local jails or state or federal prison.

One of the primary reasons that the Colorado Buffaloes had fallen so far from their gloried past was bad recruiting over the last decade. And that bad recruiting is not based on the amateur evaluations of the so-called recruiting services. No, the bad recruiting was based upon coaches prior to Mike MacIntyre not effectively determining which young men had the academic and social skills to make it in college life, or in some cases, which young men would end up as convicted felons instead of being student athletes.

The collective sigh of relief felt by the Buffs faithful was due to the team  bringing in 18 quality young men in this year's class. Mike MacIntyre and his coaches were able to recover from the  horrible hole left from a class with 67% attrition due to Mac having a number of young men who are scheduled to graduate ahead of schedule. Due to the severe time commitments of being a college football player, most young men take 5 years to graduate, and that fact is built into the system though the use of a redshirt year.

This is MacIntyre's fourth class at Colorado, although he was not responsible for most of the first class. Unlike many coaches who take over at a Power Five conference school, MacIntyre did not rescind any of the scholarship offers that the prior coach had made. He felt that the University of Colorado needed to honor those commitments, and that integrity from his first months as head coach has carried over to this day.

Recruits and their parents KNOW that Mac and the University of Colorado are committed to these young men not only getting an education, but also graduating before they leave. Many schools try to sign up to 30 young men a year knowing that 30% of them will be pushed aside before graduation ever has a chance to come along. Those schools are known as football factories, where football takes precedence over academics.

That is not the University of Colorado, and that is not the Pac-12. MacIntyre has rebuilt the program the right way. His young men are here for the long haul, and when they leave they will have a real degree to take with them.

And fans of the University of Colorado football program can breathe better knowing that winning days ahead will have been achieved honorably and without lowering the standards of the university and the Boulder community. The players for the CU football program are the very proper definition of student-athletes.

Moment of Truth Time for Mike MacIntyre's Colorado Buffaloes

In around two hours, Ralphie the Buffalo will lead the CU Buffs onto Folsom Field as they take the field against the UMass Minutemen. Last year the Minutemen held an 11 point lead in the second half before the Buffs rallied to a three point victory at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.

It was one of only two victories for the Buffs in 2014. The other was against Hawaii, who got their revenge last week as the Buffs fell 28-20 against the Rainbow Warriors.

The Buffs came into the season brimming with confidence and spoke openly about a bowl game at the end of the season. A month's worth of miscues (or, as head coach Mike MacIntyre put it, "shooting themselves in the foot, the leg, the head") doomed the Buffs to their 9th straight loss despite a strong effort from the revitalized defense under Jim Leavitt.

The Buffs enter this game knowing that any loss before the beginning of Pac-12 play pretty much dooms this team to yet another losing year. No bowl, no nothing. That means the Buffs have to hold serve against the Minutemen, CSU next week, and then a school called Nicholls before taking on the Pac-12. To paraphrase Stuart Whitehair over at "CU at the Game" -- Who the hell is Nicholls?

The Buffs are steadfastly claiming that they have not lost their confidence. That is good. Unfortunately, the head coach and offensive coordinator (and the Special Teams guy) all seem to think there was nothing wrong last week. They seem to be in some serious denial.

MacIntyre claims that Hawaii was able to put "a little bit of pressure" on quarterback Sefo Liufau. The reality? Four sacks, numerous knockdowns, little time to throw, and unplanned scrambles because the blocking schemes were a mess. If that only qualifies as "a little bit" most fans shudder to think what it will be like when the Buffs play a top defensive team.

OC Brian Lindgren sees no problem with the Buffs play calling last week, despite the fact that the team averaged only 4 yards a play both running and passing the ball. That's pretty scary when you throw the ball 40 times and only get 159 yards for the effort. Lindgren also completely abandoned the running game after starting to dominate on the ground. The offense also wasted two of three timeouts for no apparent reason, and as the game was winding down, seemed completely oblivious to the fact the clock was running. Sure, the refs botched the last play, but that was to be expected because they were pretty awful all day.

Fans all hope that special teams doesn't do all it can to lose the game. To take a quote from the movie "The Big Chill" (they were watching the Michigan game and making many mistakes) -- "Come on, Bo (Schembechler) , teach 'em the basics!" Just insert Toby (Neinas) for Bo.

Expect the defense to take it to Mass. They know that they might be ones needing to score points if Lindgren and Neinas put the Buffs in a hole again. Mike MacIntyre does not usually panic, but if the Buffs come up short today he will need to start working on his resume.

Colorado Buffaloes Football 2015: What to Expect

BOULDER-- The Colorado Buffaloes left early this morning on a flight to O'ahu for their opening game against the Rainbow Warriors of the University of Hawai'i this Thursday.

Head Coach Mike MacIntyre is starting his third season at the helm in Boulder. His first two seasons produced four wins, and two wins, respectively. Entering his third season, the head coach knows the expectations for his Buffs is much higher than in the first two.

Mac took over a program that was arguably one of the very worst in the country at the Division 1 level, and absolutely the worst team from one of the Power Five Conferences. He knew he had his work cut out for him at Colorado, but he was fresh off an amazing job turning San Jose State from a perennial cellar dweller to a 10 win bowl team in three years.

Nobody expects the Buffs to reel off 10 wins this year, but seven wins and a bowl game are what most Buff fans have in mind. They need to remember that the Buffs won only two games last year. On the other hand, the Buffs were a few lucky bounces from being a six game winner last year. The goal this year is to win those close games, particularly against Pac-12 foes. The Buffs lost in DOUBLE overtime not once, but twice last year (UCLA and CAL).

Facing the Buffs is the reality that they play in the Pac-12 South, the toughest (bar none) conference division in college football. How do the other teams of that division rank in the opening AP poll?

• USC is ranked #8
• UCLA is ranked #13
• Arizona State is ranked #15
• Arizona is ranked #22 
• And Utah is ranked #30

Add to that tough division schedule is the fact the Buffs also have to play conference foes Oregon (#7) and Stanford (#21) from the Pac-12 North. That means the Buffs will be playing SEVEN teams in the Top 30 in the country, which are also all within the Pac-12. For the Buffs to win seven games this season, they need to beat every other team on the schedule besides those listed above, AND they need to beat one of those teams as well to be bowl eligible.

Even for an experienced rebuilder like MacIntyre, it will still be a tough row to hoe. But if anyone can achieve it, it is Mac and his staff. Mac is known for his organizational prowess. When he got into Boulder following the disastrous 2012 season, he started putting the foundational blocks down to build the Colorado football program back to respectability.

He brought in Brian Lindgren as his offensive coordinator. Lindgren's first year as OC at San Jose State saw the Spartans win 10 games. Lindgren took the raw and young Colorado offense which was one of the worst in the country and made the passing attack #34 in the country last year. The Buffs also rushed for more than 4 yards a carry and more than 150 yards a game for the first time in a decade.

Mac also brought Dave Forman, one of the best young Sports Performance Directors in the country. Forman came in and transformed the old "strength and conditioning" routine into a modern machine capable of increasing strength, speed, and stamina for athletes across many collegiate sports. The Buffs were routinely out-muscled back when Mac and Company arrived, but the Buffs are now able to compete in the Conference of Champions knowing they are just as strong or stronger than their opponents.

The results on the field on the defensive side of the ball have been slower to arrive to the casual fan. At the end of the day (or season), many look only at the wins and losses. But it is important to remember how the wins and losses occurred. In 2012, the Buffs were losing by an average for more than FOUR touchdowns a game (28.17 pts.). In 2013, that dropped to less than 13 points a game, and in 2014 it dropped to 10.5 points per game.

The response of the defense, which still ranked in the bottom fifth in the country last year, was not fast enough for Mac. He responded by bringing in two "Home Run" type hires for his defensive staff. The legendary Jim Leavitt was coaxed away from the San Francisco 49ers and joined the staff as defensive coordinator, and brought in Joe Tumpkin from Central Michigan University, where he had served as defensive coordinator. At Colorado, Tumpkin will coach the Safeties, which now have the added responsibility of calling the on-field defensive plays.

Leavitt is known as one of the finest defensive minds in all of football. His style of defense is known for its aggressive and attacking style. Tumpkin is known for creating hard hitting defenses which cause a lot of turnovers. That experience and prowess can only help the Buffs, which was one of the worst teams in the country last year in creating turnovers. In fact, the Buffs only had three interceptions the entire year, despite the fact that they play in one of the most pass-happy conferences in the country.

Expect much to change this year. The Buffs offense should be even better this year, perhaps a top 30 in the country if the rushing game can jump to the next level. The defense should be a great surprise to fans and opponents alike. Expect to see waves of defensive players going into and out of games to keep the players fresh. Expect more turnovers created by the defense and fewer committed by the offense.

Expect Nelson Spruce to again be one of the best receivers in the country and expect to hear his name called in the next NFL draft. Expect Sefo Liufau to cut his number of interceptions by more than half, while continuing to be a very efficient passer.

Expect Colorado to win at least seven games this year and go bowling. Expect one or more of those rated teams coming into Folsom Field this year to leave with a loss. Expect Colorado to have turned the corner after a decade of futility.

Expect the Colorado Buffaloes to be a winning football team.

2015: Colorado Buffs and their Fans Looking for a Team to HATE, or Vice Versa... or Maybe Just to Care Again!

Heading into the 2015 NCAA football season, Colorado Buff fans in Boulder and around the country are searching and hoping for a reason to care about college football again. At least when it comes to their Buffaloes.

Football is a PASSIONATE sport! It's one of the reasons that it has often been compared to war. One of the things that is necessary for that passion is deeply held feelings. And those feelings only come with time and hard fought wins and losses.

Unfortunately, the Buffs have not been in the Pac-12 long enough to have strong feelings about their conference foes. So far, it has just been "we're happy to be here" in the Conference of Champions. And since the Buffs have been nothing but the designated "Gimme" in the Pac-12 since joining the league, the other schools have been happy to have Colorado around as well.

Boulder is a new favorite among fans around the Pac-12 to travel to for away games as well. One reason is they can usually count on a victory. Boulder is also one of the most beautiful towns in the country. And, judging by the lines outside the legal marijuana dispensaries on game days, Boulder's social activities are popular among college students around the Pac-12.

Back on the gridiron, however, things are different. Due to a decade of futility, nobody in the Pac-12 spends time being worried about the Buffs when it comes to football. (That's not true in basketball and other sports where the Buffs are already teams to be feared.) Nobody in the conference fears Colorado... because the Buffs haven't earned it yet.

Last year was close. Two double-overtime losses (Cal and UCLA) would have done a great deal toward earning the Buffs some respect had the games gone the other way. But they didn't. So they enter 2015 as a team flying under everyone's radar. Again.

Only when the Buffs have broken the dreams of some conference foes will they get the respect they desire. That's how rivalries are built.

---------------------------------

Heading into the 1986 season, the Colorado Buffaloes were coming off a 7-5 record under Bill McCartney. That was considered an amazing feat since the Buffs had only won ONE game the year prior. Those seven wins earned McCartney his first of three conference coach of the year awards.

After the seven wins in 1985, Buff fans were excited about the possibility of even better things to come in '86. The Buffs started the year with FOUR straight losses before finally getting their first win in a nail-biter against Missouri. The next game the Buffs demolished Iowa State. The Buffs stood at 2-4 and would be hosting the hated #3 ranked Nebraska Cornholers at Folsom Field.

Almost nobody around the country, and very few around Boulder, gave the Buffs much of a chance. Nebraska had beaten the Buffs every single year since 1967, and the Buffs had not beaten the Fuskers in Boulder since 1961. Nebraska marched into Boulder undefeated and ranked #3 and ready to dominate.

Part of the turnaround made by coach McCartney was to designate the Nebraska game as Colorado's "red letter" game because he felt the Huskers were a model of consistency over decades and that if the Buffs wanted to be a national caliber team, they would have to be good enough to beat Nebraska on a consistent basis.

Husker fans laughed aloud at Mac declaring Nebraska a rival. Many of them had grown up without ever seeing Colorado win against their beloved Huskers. Back here in Boulder, Colorado fans were sick and tired of the condescending Nebraska faithful, who loved to swarm into Boulder and fill the bars and restaurants with tobacco smoke and boast about their team. Up until that point, Nebraska fans LOVED Boulder because they could count on a win and gloat their way around town.

Somebody forgot to tell Mac and his team, however. The Buffs came out and played hardnosed defense and beat the hated Huskers by a score of 20-10. Twenty-five years of frustration came to a boil in a party of exuberance that had been long missing at Folsom Field. The goal posts came down and the words "WE WIN!" blazed from the scoreboard through the night and across the front pages of the Colorado papers.

After that game, Colorado was indeed a rival for Nebraska. Husker fans refused to acknowledge the Buffs as a rival but their hatred shined through loud and clear. Whereas Boulder was once their favorite road trip of the season, they started complaining long and loud that Buff fans were "rude" to them (completely ignoring how Lincoln treats their out-of-town fans).

If you asked just about any Buff fan which team they loved to hate, Nebraska would be at the top of the list. The Fuskers and their fans were a classless bunch, by far the worst that Buff fans had encountered.

Some examples of Nebraska classlessness follow: In 1989, as the Buffs were rolling through a miraculous undefeated regular season marred by the death of their quarterback Sal Aunese. His death made national news and brought condolences from around the country.

But the slimeballs in Nebraska reacted to his death by writing "SAL IS DEAD, GO BIG RED!" across the highway where it crossed from Colorado into Nebraska. Talk about a rivalry gone wrong! Those poor jackasses were willing to glory in the death by cancer of a young man just because he played for a team they didn't like.

The next year, the Buffs won the National Championship. It should have been a unanimous National Championship, but the Buffs had to share it with Georgia Tech because Husker's head coach Tom Osborne ballot amazingly left #1 ranked Colorado off the list of top twenty teams. Osborne later claimed someone else filled out the ballot for him, but it was in HIS name and HE was responsible. Classless from the bottom and classless from the top. That's Nebraska.

-------------------------------

What's the point of the story? Mike MacIntyre's Colorado Buffaloes have to give up being happy to be in the Pac-12. They need to kick some doors down and piss some people off. They need to ruin some team's hopes for a Conference or National Championship. They need to deny someone a bowl game. They need to make Folsom Field a place where every other team fears to play.

Boulder will still be beautiful. And the fans from around the Pac-12 can still appreciate the social activities that Colorado has to offer. But they need to make Folsom Field THEIR HOUSE once again. Only then can bowl games and championships come back to Boulder.

Colorado Looking to Improve on the Arizona State Experience

The 1970's were a very good decade for the Arizona State Sun Devils. The were coached by the legendary Frank Kush. He was 176-54-1 as a head coach. He was 6-1 in bowl games. The field at Sun Devil Stadium is named after him.

Kush's teams were so good that the Fiesta Bowl was created in response to the Sun Devils being shut out of major bowls around the country. Nobody wanted to play them. So the Fiesta Bowl was created for the winner of the Western Athletic Conference and played at Sun Devil Stadium.

In the first five Fiesta Bowls, the Sun Devils played in (and won) four of them. All this after the undefeated (11-0) ASU squad was shut out of the major bowls in 1970. The Fiesta Bowl was in place starting in 1971 and the Sun Devils were on their way.

• 1971 -- Sun Devils go 11-1 and defeat Florida State in the inaugural Fiesta Bowl.
• 1972 -- ASU goes 10-2 and defeats Missouri in the Fiesta.
• 1973 -- Devils go 11-1 and defeat Pittsburgh.
• 1975 -- Arizona State again goes undefeated (12-0) and beats Nebraska in the Fiesta Bowl.
• 1977 -- ASU wins only 9 games and finally loses their first Fiesta Bowl to Penn State.

In 1978, Arizona State and Arizona joined the Pac-8, which was renamed the Pac-10. The joke in the western part of the country at that time was that the newly expanded conference should have been named the Bigger 10, a reference to the Pac tie in with the Big 10 for the Rose Bowl.

Arizona State fans were excited to have their team be a member of the biggest and baddest conference in the country. They were part of the Conference of Champions and an undefeated season would usually be considered a National Championship.

Things did not work out as they planned. Kush was fired during the 1979 season after a former player filed a lawsuit against the university and the coaching staff for mental and physical harassment. Kush would eventually be found to be not liable in the case, but by then he was no longer in collegiate coaching.

Without their head coach of 21 years, the dreams of conference and national championships in football took a severe detour. In the 35 years since joining the Pac-12, Arizona State has only TWO outright conference championships (1986 and 1996). They tied USC in 2007 for their only other claim to a conference championship. 

In that same time frame,

• USC has 10 outright titles, and six shared titles.
• UCLA has 4 outright and three shared titles.
• Washington has 4 outright and three shared titles.
• Oregon has 4 outright and one shared title.
• Stanford has 3 outright and one shared title.

The point is that the Pac-12 is a tough conference to play and win in. Few teams in the entire country have the financial support of Oregon and USC, and NO teams in the country have more D-1 high school prospects in their backyard than USC and UCLA.

Now in their 4th season in the Pac-12, Colorado has yet to qualify for a bowl game, let alone win a conference championship. Fans of the Buffaloes are excited to be a member of the Pac-12. They are excited that the program seems to be moving in the right direction under head coach Mike MacIntyre.

But the Buff faithful are hoping for a better record over the next 30 years than a paltry 2 outright conference championships. They are doing their best to upgrade the facilities and selling points of the university, but sometimes that is not enough. In the Big 8 days, Colorado was the academic powerhouse of the conference. In the Pac-12, they're lucky if they are considered to be in the upper half.

The Pac-12 is a tough place to play, but it is an honor to be in that company. Colorado fans need to remember that, and glory in the fact that nearly EVERY destination on a road trip to see the team in conference play is a major improvement on the old options of Norman, Lincoln, or any place in Kansas.

Go Buffs!

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.

Colorado Buffs Win a Rare One on the Road

All Buff fans know that the Colorado football team has been having a tough time for a good long while now. 2007 was the last time that CU managed to win half their games and qualify for a bowl game.

That Independence Bowl game following the 2007 season was a pivotal point for two programs with great histories. The Colorado Buffs and the Alabama Crimson Tide entered the game with identical 6-6 records. The Tide prevailed 30-24 in a close game that was supposed to be the start of good things for both programs.

It was the turning point for Alabama under Nick Saban, as they went on to win 3 of the next 5 National Championships, and are now considered to be the most dominant program in the country.

What about Colorado? Following a rare road win in 2007 against Texas Tech, the Buffs went on to lose 23 straight games played on the road, not counting neutral site games. They haven's been to a bowl game since the clash with Alabama.

They finally broke that string at the end of the 2011 season when they managed to take down Utah on the road in the season finale. Their next road game took the Buffs to Fresno State, where they gave up 35 points in the first quarter on their way to losing 69-14.

They were on their way to being blown out again the next week at Washington State when the Cougars pulled one of the biggest meltdowns in conference history by giving up a 20 point lead in the final 7 minutes of the game and losing to CU. If nothing else, that gave the Buffs 2 wins out of their previous three road trips. That winning percentage would not hold up, however, as the Buffs had lost every road game since then until...

Colorado 41, UMass 38

Forget the fact that Colorado was a 17 point favorite going into the game.

Forget that since the Minutemen had joined the FBS, they had a combined record of 2-23.

Forget everything about UMass, and remember that road victories for the Buffs don't happen very often. That being the case, Buff fans should savor this victory because it might be a good long time before they see another one.

In fact, it might be a good long time before the Buffs see a victory of any kind. Arizona State's potent offense, led by chief gunslinger Taylor Kelly, is champing at the bit to get on the field with the Buffs. Even Hawaii, who comes to Boulder the week after the Sun Devils, is greatly improved. Their one point loss to a top 25 Pac-12 team in the first game of the season has them thinking that the Buffs might be ripe for the taking. And after that, it's nothing but Pac-12 level offenses and defenses for the Buffs to contend with.

For one week, at least, Buff fans and players should enjoy the knowledge that the team won one on the road. Enjoy the feeling. You never know when you'll be able to feel it again.

CU Buffs Draw Pitt Panthers for the Big Dance of March Madness

Colorado basketball fans did not have to wait long to find out where and who they would be playing in the Big Dance. Right after it was announced that the Florida Gators were overall #1 seed in the tournament and #1 in the South bracket, the CU Buffs were announced as a #8 seed, and the potential next victim to the mighty Gators.

Florida must first face the stronger of two sacrificial lambs -- the winner between Albany and Mt. St. Mary's. In case anyone thinks an upset might be in the making, history is certainly not on their side. A #16 seed has NEVER beaten a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

For Colorado to get a crack at the Gators (who will be playing a mere 112 miles from home), the Buffs must first defeat the Pitt Panthers. CU and Pitt will face off Thursday (March 20th) at the Amway Center at 11:40 AM Mountain Time (1:40 PM Eastern Time) on TBS.

Fortunately for the fans of both CU and Pitt, the games will be played in Orlando, Florida, which has the widest array of densely packed tourist attractions in the world.

Fans can look forward to Disney World, EPCOT Center, SeaWorld, Universal Studios, Wet 'n Wild, Gatorland, Aquatica, Disney's Typhoon Lagoon, and Ripley's Believe it Not. If Florida DOES manage to lose their first game, they will most likely become a permanent addition at Ripley's.

Tad Boyle has done an amazing job of turning Colorado into a bonafide basketball school. Indeed, if Spencer Dinwiddie had not had his season ended by injury, Colorado might very well be entering the tournament with a #3 or #4 seed instead of a #8. This will be the third straight trip to the tournament for Colorado, who was snubbed in 2011 and relegated to the NIT.

The Pac-12 has now moved into the upper echelon of basketball conferences. Their 6 selections were only bettered by the 7 of the Big 12. Two years ago, the Pac-12 had only two teams named to the tournament.

The Buffs will be led into the tournament by All Pac-12 center Josh Scott and playmaking fireball Askia Booker. With Dinwiddie out, Booker is the ONLY upperclassman on the team who gets significant playing time.

The youth of the Buff team bodes well for the future of the program. For this year, many fans would be happy with one win in Orlando. The Buffs, however, are looking for more. Playing top-10 teams is nothing new to them, and their RPI going into the tournament is among the top 10% in the country. They may go down, but they will go down swinging. Now that they have become a team that is expected to make the tournament, they know it is time to move past the point where they are just happy to be there. They are there to compete and to win.

Why Pac-12 Coaches are Starting to Fear Sefo Liufau and the Colorado Buffaloes

Colorado's true freshman quarterback Sefo Liufau heads back home to Washington this week to lead his CU Buffs against the UW Huskies. Coaches and teammates alike hope and expect that Liufau will continue the strong start to his "era" as starting quarterback for the Buffaloes.

Washington coach Steve Sarkisian hopes the Huskies do not become the first conference "victim" this year to the Buffs and Liufau. Many consider a loss to Colorado a longshot, especially considering the long losing streak the Buffs have to conference opponents. The last time CU beat a Pac-12 team was all the way back to Sept. 22, 2012 against Washington State. It was the only win of the season for Colorado.

If one looks at the various team statistics for the Pac-12 conference this season, it is easy to see that Colorado ranks last or nearly last in most categories. What the stats DON'T show is that the numbers are changing drastically since Liufau became the quarterback for the Buffaloes.

Colorado is last in the Pac-12 in 3rd down conversions at 30.8%. Take away the 2 out of 33 conversions that CU had BEFORE switching to Liufau during conference play, and one finds that Liufau has led the Buffs to a conversion rate of almost 49%, which would be #1 in the conference.

Colorado's pass completion percentage is also at the bottom of the conference at only 51.5% of passes completed. When Liufau is on the field, however, things are much better. Sefo has completed 64.9% of his passes, and in three of the games he has played in the completion percentage has been at least 69%. Liufau's 64.9% would be third in the conference behind only UCLA and Oregon.

It is easy to see why Sarkisian and other coaches around the conference are starting to get concerned about the intangibles that Sefo Liufau brings to the Colorado offense. After all, he has started only three games and played in only one more at the collegiate level. Although he has been roughed up by opposing defenses, he has maintained his level-headed demeanor throughout his time at the helm of the CU offense.

As good as his play has been so far, opposing coaches know that Liufau will get better as he gets more experience. Then, the touchdown to field goal ratio when the Buffs get into the red zone will start to get better. Getting more points on the board will ease the duty of the Colorado defense, and time of possession will continue to grow as a strength for the Buffaloes.

Liufau is a Washington kid. He was a very successful high school quarterback there. His coaches from high school knew Sefo to be a great leader. Colorado's head coach, Mike MacIntyre, recognized those leadership abilities and burned Liufau's redshirt for the good of the team.

With each passing game, his teammates have grown to trust and respect him. Indeed, the way he stood up to the pounding (and cheap shots which drew penalties) from UCLA, inspired his offensive line to such a degree that by the end of the game they were willing to fight for him, leading to a skirmish with several Bruin players.

The emotional bonding into brotherhood between Liufau and his teammates is the crucial step that Colorado has been missing for years. As they continue to rebound from their lost decade away from the Top 25, the "coming together" of Colorado team will make them a much greater foe for any opponent.

UW coach Sarkisian does not want his Huskies to be the first victim to the rejuvenated Buffaloes and Liufau. That makes sense, because he knows that once those conference dominoes start to fall, a lot of teams in the Pac-12 will find out what it's like to be on the losing side across from Sefo Liufau.

Sefo Liufau will have droves of family and friends on hand at Husky Stadium this Saturday at 5 pm pacific time (6 pm mountain time). The game will be televised on the Pac-12 Network. Those friends and family will be there to support and cheer Sefo and the Buffaloes as they try to take the next step back to respect. Liufau and his coaches and teammates want desperately not to disappoint them.

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.

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.