Next Season
by DABUFFS50 on Dec 19, 2008 9:43 AM MST
Email
PrintCSU - W
Miami,OH - W
Wyoming - W
WVU - Unknown
Texas - L
Kansas - W
KSU - W
Mizzou - Unknown
TA&M - W
ISU - W
OSU - Unknown
Nebraska at home - W
I think we have to be at 8+ wins next year. Schedule is not as lethal as it was this year. If we can get consistent QB and Line play, we are going to start rolling. Hawk has stated 10 wins and I would be more than OK with that. Texas will be tough but you never know what Mizzou, OSU, and WVU will come up with next year.
What does everyone think??
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I would probably feel a little more confident in beating Mizzou
rather than Kansas. Reesing is king and 3 – 0 against the Buffs
The Ralphie Report - Go Buffs!...All Colorado Buffaloes on SBNation - http://www.ralphiereport.com/
Kansas loses...
far less than Missouri this year…both are home games so I expect an improved CU squad capable of beating either but I wouldn’t go as far as a sure win by any means.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
In my opinion, West Virginia is a must win game.
Hawk needs to show he can win on the road and I just don’t think they will be nearly as dangerous next year. I see losses in Texas, Oklahoma St and Kansas (being at home will help a ton). Nebraska and Mizzou games will make and break Hawk this year. Win those, it will be a good year, lose those…another .500 year, here we come
The Ralphie Report - Go Buffs!...All Colorado Buffaloes on SBNation - http://www.ralphiereport.com/
scale of 1-5 for each game (1 being no way in hell we'll win, 5 being a lock)
CSU-4
should win at Folsom but CSU always plays us tough
Miami, OH-3
absolutely should win, but Hawkins doesn’t win on the road, will be a big game for them as it will be on ESPN
Wyoming-4
maybe on paper our easiest game, but they won in Knoxville this year and won’t be intimidated
WVU-2
they should be rebuilding a bit, winnable game, but again, Hawkins doesn’t win on the road, if we could start out 4-0 it would be huge
Texas-1
it would be a miracle if we beat Texas in Austin
Kansas-3
tough game, they’ve still got Reesing
Mizzou-4
4 may sound high after how they’ve beat us the last 2 years
TA&M-4
gotta beat them at home after how we lost to them in College Station, absolute must win
ISU-3
again an absolute must win, but it’s on the road and they came about 6 inches from beating us this year
OSU-1
really tough, they’ve got all their studs returning, would be an incredible win
NU-4
gotta beat em, this game might be for the north crown and hopefully we’ll have an angry team and a stadium full of angry fans after what happened a few weeks ago and we’ll get this one
So yeah, the schedule does break down pretty well, but I still don’t see any “locks” for us. 8 wins would be barely acceptable, 9 would be great, 10 would be awesome
I was reading your NU description and it got me thinking...
that thanksgiving weekend in my opinion could see 4 teams with a chance at the North with NU playing CU and MU playing KU it will probably thin out over the year but any one of those could probably pull it off.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
no doubt
hopefully it will be a great finish for the north title
by nebraskasux on Dec 19, 2008 12:04 PM MST up reply actions
I'm not sure why
you have Miami (OH) and Wyoming games not at 5. Even if they aren’t realistically a 5, they HAVE TO BE. If our program is to be taken seriously at all, we have to wafflestomp the living bajeezus out of the CSU/Miami (OH)/Wyomings of the world. Put those at 5, and if we fail on that front, then you can pretty much guess how the rest will be going. Also, I think Pat White’s loss is going to be pretty hardcore devastating to that team and pounding the ball 35 times with a guy the size of Devine is just asking him to get killed. I think WVU is a game we SHOULD win, but because it’s on the road, I think 3 is reasonable. I think we’ll have more talent on the field, and Bill Stewart has already proven himself to be batshit crazy, so we might have an edge on the sidelines, too.
How you have A&M and Mizzou as more of a lock than ISU is beyond me. A program that’s already fairly devoid of talent going through a coaching change without a massive influx of serious talent is somehow going to make them that much better? All that being said, I think Kansas will be the pivotal game on the schedule. A talented team who has had our number recently in the real beginning of conference play (the game against UT is probably going to be, eh, well, not good) in our house who should be one of the North division favorites this year. If we can take care of business there, I think the stage will be set for a good run. If we get walloped, well, shit.
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 19, 2008 12:35 PM MST up reply actions
I would agree...
much like this year, the Kansas game will be one that could bolster or shatter team confidence going forward.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
all good points slam, and I probably should of ranked them on a 1-10 scale, I was having trouble narrowing it down
but part of it (having @ISU a 3) is that we are 2-14 outside the state of Colorado during Hawkins’ tenure and the Buffs have ALWAYS struggled on road trips outside of Big 12 country (WVU, Miami OH).
No doubt we should beat the s___ out of CSU/Miami/Wyoming but I am just not ready to pronounce any of our games “locks.” Just can’t do it yet. Like I said below, if we start out 3-0 with 3 comfortable wins I would definitely rethink the rest of the schedule.
But yeah, KU, MU, NU. Those are the big must-win games of the season and it sure is nice to have them all at home.
Good points
I see OSU being really tough and Texas will be nasty.
I don’t think Kansas will be that much better. Reesing is good, but I think we choked the game away this year and last year we took them to the wire. I think we put them away next year, but who knows. After they put 70 on the first 5 teams they play, I think we knock them out. Northern Colorado, UTEP, Duke, Southern Miss, Iowa State — What a bunch of patsies.
As a side note...
I’m going to go out on a limb and say you have marked Kansas as a win for the last three years haven’t you….?
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
Here is my thought...
CSU – W
Miami,OH – W
Wyoming – W
WVU – 50/50
Texas – L
Kansas – 50/50
KSU – W
Mizzou – 50/50
TA&M – W
ISU – W
OSU – 50/50
Nebraska at home – 50/50 (sorry, I think they will make it a game)
So for me that’s 6 wins and 5 50/50 games at this point based on percentages that gives CU between 8-9 wins and I’ll say 2nd-3rd in the Big 12 North 5-3 conference record will likely win the North next year as it did this year and it will come down to tiebreakers in my opinion.
Needless to say though there are a ton of question marks at this point:
CU, can they come back from all the injuries and we all think the talent is there but we still haven’t seen it mesh right (coaching).
MU, can they reload and make another run. Big losses on offense.
NU, there is some turnover here as well and the quarterback position is a big ? right now
KU, everyone keeps waiting for a crash back to reality but I will say this if any “name” team returned what they do next year they would be getting more respect. I think we’ve got a good shot but with a conference schedule that includes Texas, OU and Tech it’s going to be tough, and they’ll need to beat most teams in the North.
KSU, Yes Bill Snyder is back but you’ve got to believe there is a long way to go after Prince went all in on JUCO guys in 2008.
ISU, FAIL
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
the north is going to be interesting next year.
If the Buffs can do anything on offense you never know.
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100% Agree...
It’s just too bad we aren’t interesting because everyone has outstanding teams like they do in the south.
I’m curious to see how the Buffs approach there offense next year, there was some indecisiveness throughout the year this year and I would expect if everyone is back an healthy hopefully we won’t see that.
I would like to see them lean on the running game much more and use that to setup the pass…right now the spread is king in college football, but there have been major strides made in exposing that offense and with CU not setup for it as well as others I would like to see them buck the trend, control the clock and use there strengths of the o-line and stable of running backs to beat teams.
You don’t have to put up video game numbers with your offense like the spread does to claim it a success, all you have to do is score more than the other guy…and if that means your offense is a defensive weapon, keeping other offenses of the field, so be it.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
The big question with Mizzou can they get a QB to replace Chase Danials
I thought they got a 5 star last year, so they may be tougher than people are giving them credit for.
"Me fail english, that unpossible" - Ralph Wiggum
They have a five star...
who will be a RS Freshamn Blaine Gabbert. He originally committed to NU and changed to Mizzou middle of last year. Has all the tools but has had a couple of minor shoulder issues and doesn’t have the background in the spread that Daniel did so it’s a bit of a wild card at this point.
Think of it like Darrell Scott, all the tools are there but he still has to get on the field and perform.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
Losses to UT and OSU
… and probably WVU (no pat white but still have Noel Devine and a tough D; they’ll be fired up after the loss at Folsom this year as well). Beyond that the Buffs should win the remaining games on this schedule. Presuming they’ll stumble somewhere along the way. That leaves 9-3 or 8-4. A 9 win regular season and Hawk can still meet his 10 win prediction by winning a bowl game. BIG expectations but certainly attainable with the players they have on the roster now.
This prediction is doable IF Hansen or Ballenger step it up or, at minimum Lil Hawk returns to Frosh form, boucning back from the sophomore slump. While we can always use more playmakers, the talent is there, especially with this schedule, to meet these expectations. Don’t forget that Simas and Tau will be returning from academic hell to make significant contributions. Not to mention Major, Rippy, Katoa and the boyz.
Agree? Disagree? Talk amongst yourselves!
I would only change one word...
you said “Beyond that the Buffs should win the remaing games.” After a 5-7 season I always have a hard time using the word “should” and would replace that with “could.” There are definitely some should win games in there but there are also some could win games in there as well.
I mean hell Steve Fairchild has made big strides up at CSU and that game has had competitive at moments when it shouldn’t so you never know.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
yeah, we could also use could with
simas and tau “could” be returning to make significant contributions and from what I’ve heard it is certainly no lock that katoa will see the field next year.
by nebraskasux on Dec 19, 2008 12:01 PM MST up reply actions
Those are key parts of the puzzle...
that’s what makes predictions this early so fun to debate sometimes.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
Personally
I’m planning on life without Katoa. I just don’t think it’s gonna happen for him at CU.
But oh my god do I hope I’m wrong.
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 19, 2008 12:23 PM MST up reply actions
I am of the same opinion at this point too
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
The Buffs still have a ton of question marks like DL, playmakers, WR, etc...if they don't solve some of these problems,
The Buffs will win 5 or 6 games. I agree with jhawk that before we can start talking about winning 8, 9 and somehow 10 games, the Buffs will need to show us more than they have shown the last three years.
The Ralphie Report - Go Buffs!...All Colorado Buffaloes on SBNation - http://www.ralphiereport.com/
what is the over/under on how many times we will debate wins and losses this offseason
I got 6, at least. I love this stuff. Too bad we are 260 days away :(
The Ralphie Report - Go Buffs!...All Colorado Buffaloes on SBNation - http://www.ralphiereport.com/
I'm always up for a good win/loss debate anytime and for any reason...
I mean you never know, our opinions could change with a Troy Tulowitzki groundout single in June…there are a lot of reasons you might get an itch to change your mind :D
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
6??
Dude, come on! Bowl season hasn’t even started and we’re already at one (right? I haven’t missed anymore of these, have I?). Just wait until recruiting season really heats up, then Signing Day, and spring practice, and eligibility questions, and potential of more guys getting arrested, I mean the number could just as easily be 10.
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 19, 2008 12:27 PM MST up reply actions
12+ is my guess
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
irish's post (and my reply) about the first 3 games of the season vanished
so I’ll say again that I was thinking the same thing and that I totally agree that the first 3 games will be a good barometer for what kind of team we have. This year we had such a tough time with bad teams (EWU, ISU) and although we were all happy to start 3-0 this year it could of very easily been 1-2. If we come out and win our first 3 games by 14+ that would be a very promising sign.
I deleted because my spelling was
that of a four year old who had been drinking all night
The Ralphie Report - Go Buffs!...All Colorado Buffaloes on SBNation - http://www.ralphiereport.com/
No offense to 4 year olds
but I don’t think their spelling is exactly “refined” at that time in their life (you know, before they even start school), so I’m not entirely sure how much of an effect drinking would have on them.
Just sayin.
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 19, 2008 12:25 PM MST up reply actions
I'm offended
I was a great speller when I was 4 (of course except for when I was up drinking all night)
by nebraskasux on Dec 19, 2008 12:28 PM MST up reply actions
drinking is the x factor
The Ralphie Report - Go Buffs!...All Colorado Buffaloes on SBNation - http://www.ralphiereport.com/
Hey
You aren’t eligible to be offended unless you’re CURRENTLY 4 years old.
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 19, 2008 12:38 PM MST up reply actions
i'm good with the "could"
as I figured on 7-5 this year and they lost two games i didn’t see them losing, especially A&M. I also agree that Katoa appears to be really struggling with the ole transition and heightened expectations. Who knows if he’ll get it together?
That said, all accounts I’ve seen/heard have Simas destroying the starters from his perch on the practice squad. His, and Tau’s academic issues are purportedly behind them, Major was climbing the depth chart before his injury and Rippy has been a stud on the scout team as well, so they “should” make contributions which we didn’t get this year. Most importantly, we are dealing with “expectations” here, the team (players,coaches) has to prove it in the end with the work product they put out on the field. To my mind, if the coach goes on record calling for “10 wins and no excuses” then they should meet those expectations.
Guess we’ll all have to wait and see. In the end, that’s why they play the games
All fair points
and that may be why they play the games, but this whole discussion is why we spend valuable life time on blogs chatting about things 260 days away. Just to dig more into that, that’s 6, 240 hours. Think about how much stuff you can accomplish in that time! It’s really nice weather for blogging, too.
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 19, 2008 12:38 PM MST up reply actions
Two things...
One I think Major will make an impact and I agree that he is an exciting guy to have coming back from injury…
Secondly…I disagree with Hawkins claiming 10 wins and no excuses for the very reason you just said. There are now expectations behind this team and you yourself have already stated you will be holding them to it.
Now with that said I’m sure other less friendly supporters and certainly the media won’t be forgetting that and you wonder how this could come back to haunt the team if they start off 3-0 as expected but then drop 3 in a row again this time to WVU, Texas and Kansas. At that point 10 wins is no longer even a viable goal and you’ve got a team that collapsed this year getting that quote thrown back in their face all season.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
I am worried about a collapse too
which is the reason I put up a Countdown Timer on the right side of the page that counts the number of days until Dan Hawkins retreads on that statement in some sort!
Like you said, the 10 win statement is unbelievably irresponsible for a ton of reasons. Even if you are Florida, OU, Texas, etc. you don’t claim win counts. It will be a fun topic to discuss when the over/unders come out for next year.
If this team wants to make it to the next level, WVU is a must win. Kansas and Texas are losable and still be okay as I think if the Buffs are 4 – 2.
New topic within a topic, on Dec 19, rank the schedule -
CSU – 7
@ Miami,OH – 12
Wyoming – 11
@WVU – 4
@Texas – 1
Kansas – 3
@KSU – 8
Mizzou – 6
TA&M – 9
@ISU – 10
@OSU – 2
Nebraska – 5
The Ralphie Report - Go Buffs!...All Colorado Buffaloes on SBNation - http://www.ralphiereport.com/
Topic within a topic...sweet!!
I’m pretty much in agreement the only one I’m interested in is TA&M, yes they struggled this year but they also seemed to steadily improve. They interest me because they have recruited well despite the struggles and still have talent, again it’s a matter of if and when it gels. I think that could be tougher than we all think at this point but it’s a shot in the dark at best.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
Honestly
If the worst suited coach for college football in recent memory (Sherman) can put things together and make it happen at A&M, then there’s no reason it shouldn’t happen for us. Also, he should be able to recruit well because Texas kids usually LOVE staying in Texas. I’ve had the joy of spending lots of time around Texas kids being recruited and they constantly are in a state of “Longhorns or Aggies?”
People here love love love love love love Austin and College Station. I have no idea why, but they do. Bunch of weirdos down here, I tell you what.
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 19, 2008 1:03 PM MST up reply actions
Yes...
the coach is by far the biggest problem in College Station, but I do think there just might be enough talent because of the exact reason you mentioned to make them dangerous.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
@ Miami,OH - who the hell scheduled a home and home with Miami of Ohio????? Thanks Big Ben for making
Miami Ohio good for a couple of years.
The Ralphie Report - Go Buffs!...All Colorado Buffaloes on SBNation - http://www.ralphiereport.com/
if I remember correctly (and I may not)
we only wanted them to come play here for one game but Miami got ESPN to promise to televise the game in Oxford so we agreed to the home and home (hence my ESPN reference above). I think it will be a thursday night game. Does anybody else remember hearing that?
by nebraskasux on Dec 19, 2008 12:55 PM MST up reply actions
fair enough jhawk
good points delivered with perspective. Call me a pragmatic optimist (glass half full of eggnog . . . it is the Holiday Season!). As for Slam, I’m on vacaaaaashun the rest of the year so I got nothin better to do.
Yes the Miami game is/was slated to be a thursday night gig, which offers great exposure for our young team, oh wait, “no excuses” right? BTW, Stan Mckay is a beast, anybody watch that Cali HS championship game on Fox last night?
Happy Holidays to all you BuffNiks!
I'm on vacation, too!
But it’s the busiest vacation of my freaking life. In 6 days, I’ve done more stuff than I had in the past two months. This is my first time being able to sit down and do some quality internetting in a while.
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 19, 2008 1:00 PM MST up reply actions
Nothing wrong w/being an optimist...
when your a Fan(atic) of a team…but that’s why I’m here, to play a little devils advocate because while I enjoy CU football, follow CU football and am a fan of Hawkins, it takes something more to be a full on fan.
I’ll be on vacation next week…so maybe we can get this topic in the several hundred comments before it’s all said and done.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
Hell yes
This site doesn’t get nearly enough reader activity for the quality of the material that’s constantly produced (of course, I’m totally guilty of that myself)
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 19, 2008 1:09 PM MST up reply actions
You guys can help
There’s tons and tons of Buff fans out there who still have no idea we exist. Spread the word!
The Ralphie Report - University of Colorado Athletics
I'll be honest
I have never, ever met a Buffs fan in the ten years I’ve lived in Texas.
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 19, 2008 1:35 PM MST up reply actions
I'll be honest...
I have never met a Buffs fan in my 4 years in Colorado…maybe I picked the wrong four years.
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
Been a Buff fan
. . . since the days of Charlie Davis, Cliff Branch, Cullen Bryant, Herb Orvis, Dave Logan, Don Hassleback yada yada yada, circa 1970ish. Course I was just a wee tyke at the time. Those were some great teams that regularly stocked NFL rosters.
Love the site Woodrwow and Irish, I’ve been spreading the link around. BTW, any chance we can get spell check for all the drunken 4 year olds and the rest of us keyboard challenged individuals?
We appreciate mam.
It should do the spell check on it’s own. At least it does for me. It underlines the misspelled word in red just like MS Word does. Then you can right click and it will show you what it thinks is the correct spelling.
The Ralphie Report - University of Colorado Athletics
no spell check here...
and not to be picky, but tell your spell check that when using “its” as a possessive, there’s no apostrophe. The only time “it’s” gets an apostrophe if it’s standing in for “it is.”
Not wanting to waste my perfectly good CU degree, I thought I’d start proofreading posts.
Wait.
never mind.
I see the problem. I had to intentionallllly mispellll someee wordsss to see the red underlinnnnne.
You’re right. I’m wrong.
Does your really have spell check...
I’m not seeing any red underlines
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
I never have either, and I tried by intentionally spelling everything wrong
by nebraskasux on Dec 21, 2008 10:41 AM MST up reply actions
Weird
I wonder if it’s a firefox (which i use) thing
The Ralphie Report - University of Colorado Athletics
It very well could be
Mine has the red lines when using Firefox, but not when using IE (and I do keep them both updated).
They call me Bubblegum.
by A.J. Haefele on Dec 21, 2008 11:14 PM MST up reply actions
Insight.com Bowl
My boss has 30 tickets to the Insight.com Bowl
God damn Buffs, couldnt pull out another win or two.
Any extras???
Some people are like Slinkies...not really good for anything but they make you smile when pushed down the stairs.
he bought tickets just expecting the buffs would play there?
thats not too smart, it’s not like tickets would be hard to come by anyway :-)
by nebraskasux on Dec 23, 2008 12:05 PM MST up reply actions
he should sell them all for 10 bucks a pop and get two tickets to the
Fiesta Bowl…
The Ralphie Report - Go Buffs!...All Colorado Buffaloes on SBNation - http://www.ralphiereport.com/
I live in Phoenix
We give them to our clients. I am getting on a plane right now anyway and I won’t even be here for New Years, but I would have definitely stayed here if the Buffs were playing. I am pretty sure they are worth like $2 a piece with the matchup not selling a ton.
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