Response from Mike Bohn

During the Toledo game thread someone gave out the e-mail addresses for Mike Bohn and the Chancellor so I fired off a couple e-mails giving them a piece of my mind.  Thought you all might want to see Bohn's response.  It's obviously a form e-mail with nothing personal in it so I don't see anything wrong with posting it (I'm sure a few of you received the same thing).  It's pretty much exactly what you'd expect.  Bohn has got to go before anything is ever done about Hawkins.

On behalf of the CU administration I want to personally respond to your communication regarding the disappointing start of the Golden Buffaloes this year. Let me begin by saying that I, too, am very disappointed in the outcome of both the CSU and Toledo games, and in the performance of our team. I know I share that disappointment with Coach Hawkins, our coaches and players and CU fans, alumni and supporters everywhere.

But with that disappointment, I want you to know that I am committed, along with our Athletic Department, university leadership, and our players and coaches, to excellence on and off the field and to a winning program in football. In that long-term effort, there will always be victories and milestones, as well as disappointments and setbacks. But at CU, we have a history of not letting bad starts, and sometimes even bad seasons, disrupt the trajectory toward our long-term goals.

In 1984, in the middle of a 1-10 season, then-CU Athletic Director Bill Marolt gave Bill McCartney, who was in his third year as Buffs head coach and was en route to a 7-25-1 start, a contract extension. At the time, some CU fans, alumni and the media called for both Marolt's and McCartney's firing and/or resignation. Coach Mac, if you recall, switched to the wishbone on offense and we went 7-5 in 1985, going to a bowl for the first time in nine years, and had appeared to turn the corner. Then in 1986, the Buffs opened 0-4, with renewed calls for Mac's resignation. Nonetheless, the team finished the season 6-1, notched a home win over Nebraska and earned a berth in the Bluebonnet Bowl. Of course, three seasons later, we played for the national championship, and a season after that, we won it. Even in that aforementioned national championship season, a lot of people forget that CU opened the year at 1-1-1. More recently, in 2001, we opened the season with a bitter loss to Fresno State at home before going on to win the Big 12 title and finishing the regular season ranked No. 2. 

I am not offering excuses here, nor am I promising an amazing rebound this season. I recognize that hopes have been high for steady improvement with our team and that we're not seeing the improvement we'd all like. But a look at the state of college football today shows that, each year, upsets and slow starts are not unusual, even among the nation's elite programs. Further, I believe there is great progress to report with all our programs, and I am encouraged by the commitment of our players and by the values and leadership of Coach Hawkins. In fact, I believe now is the time to rally behind our coach and our players, give them our support, and set our sights on having the best season we can.

In this spirit, despite our disappointment and our high hopes for this year, I am asking you to stick with us as we work to meet the challenges this season will hand us.

Go Buffs!