25 hours of course work in six months in order to become academically eligible to play at CU.

That is what linebacker Shaun Mohler did at Orange Coast College this spring and summer to just have a chance to come to the University of Colorado. He passed all seven of those classes and still had to wait for the NCAA Clearinghouse to tell him he was eligible.

What LB Shaun Mohler did was truly amazing. One thing that hampers the Buffs especially in recruiting junior college players, is the admission standards that comes with playing in Boulder. No, its not Stanford or Notre Dame but it is close. That is why he was the only junior college transfer to become a Buff last year. Let's just say what happened at Kansas State last year with 19 JUCO's signing would never happen at the University of Colorado. That total might not happen over the next 10 years!

Mohler, a one time Nebraska commit, would have coasted easily into Nebraska but after Bill Callahan got fired, he wanted out of Lincoln and visited Colorado. The rest is history.

Shaun Mohler has always been a favorite of The Ralphie Report. Fans want players to immerse themselves into their respective universities as much they do. We want to believe that every player bleeds the colors of the university. Shaun Mohler made us feel that way. When he was taking 25 hours of course work, he still found the time and motivation to work out to be in top shape when he arrived in Boulder. Some other big time recruits had to take one class and couldn't find the time. So it is easy to make Shaun Mohler a favorite.

He wasn't just a feel good story either. The Buffs knew they were getting a player out of Orange Coast College. Rivals.com ranked Shaun as the best Junior College outside linebacker prospect in last year's recruiting class. Mohler was named Orange Coast's most valuable player both of his seasons, he was first-team All-American, All-State and All-Mission Conference, earning the league Player of the Year last year. His highlight film showed why he received all of the accolades.

Mohler saw playing time from day one with the Buffs. A reserve at first, the coaches couldn't keep him off the field. Once he was on the field, he become one of the Buffs most consistent defenders.

Against Colorado State, Mohler did not start and in the Iowa State game, he was hurt. Other than those two games, he was a very consistent defender. The best part is Mohler got better as the year went on. To his own admission, he had a tough time adjusting to the speed of the game. Looking at these stats, I think he adjusted pretty well.

Looking at the overall defensive team stats for the Buffs this year, Mohler excelled.

If Shaun starts against CSU and doesn't get hurt against Iowa State, he is probably the team's leading tackler this year. Finishing second on the team in both tackles (97) and tackles for loss (7.5) right out of junior college is an amazing feat. Mohler was rewarded for his play today as he was named by the AP, Honorable Mention All Big 12. He also might be the overall best story of the year in the Big 12.

Great find by Hawkins, Cabral and the staff on this one. An offseason of aggressive training and lifting will also do wonders for Mohler. Next year, he will once again be a stud and with Jeff Smart, B.J. Beatty, Jon Major, Doug Rippy and Lynn Katoa back, linebacker is one position the Buffs don't have to worry about.

Shaun Mohler is a player that makes you feel good to root for the Buffs!

see the best of and worst of list so far after the jump...

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I don't want to call any players out because they are college kids but coming into this year, the senior trio of George Hypolite, Brandon Nicolas and Maurice Lucas were going to rededicate themselves and become the strenghth of this team. Even Coach Hawkins called this unit the strength of the team in the offseason. Rivals.com said one of the main reasons for Jordon Dizon's success in 2007 was because of Brandon Nicolas and George Hypolite, which led them to label the defensive line as the strongest unit on the defense in 2008:

No doubt, Dizon was a tremendous player for the Buffs, but there also is no doubt that he benefited from having tackles Hypolite and Brandon Nicolas in front of him. Nicolas, who began his career at Notre Dame, tied for the team lead in tackles for loss with 11. He and Hypolite form one of the best tackle tandems in the Big 12.

Well, this year they weren't the strength of the defense. That honor goes to the cornerback position where Cha'pelle Brown, Jimmy Smith and Jalil Brown emerged as a bright spot. I don't necessarily blame the players, their is plenty that falls on the scheme. The Buffs were erratic in their defensive identity. Against Kansas State, the Buffs attacked from multiple areas on the field from the back seven and allowed the double teams to loosen up. Against Kansas and Missouri, the Buffs went to a three man rush and well, were unable to generate any pressure. The best pressure player this year was LB Brad Jones, who was honored with honorable mention All Big 12.

One big problem that will continue to haunt CU next year is the issue of depth. Other than a rare productive appearance from true freshman Curtis Cunningham, the senior trio was the only group to touch the field with any presence. That obviously took it's toll on the Buffs especially in the finale against Nebraska. Hypolite had his moments especially against weaker competition in Texas A&M and Iowa State. Many give Hypolite the benefit of the doubt due to teams recognizing him as the star of the line and doubling him but then where is the production from the rest of the pass rushers who face one on one assignments?

Another reason for the down production and impact is also attributable to the inept offense. The Buffs offense ranked eighth in the Big 12 in time of possession so CU's front four saw the field a lot more than they wanted to.

see after the jump for some more analysis on the drop off of production from the front four...

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When football stops, it seems like the Colorado sports scene comes to a halt. A few links for you today as we get ready for the basketball game tonight against TCU. TCU lost to a Big 12 North foe earlier this year in Nebraska, 62 - 50. The Buffs are 5 point favorites at home at last glance. The Buffs are giving away free tickets tonight and next week against the Rams with this flyer.The game is also on Fox Sports Rocky Mountain tonight in case you don't have a chance to get up there.

Freshman guard Nate Tomlinson has been implored by coaches to play more aggressive to keep defenders honest and to take advantage of his scoring ability. Tomlinson has been playing at about 75% due to suffering a sprained ankle in the first game of the season but he answered the call to play more aggressive, scoring 18 points against Stanford last Saturday night.

Here is a preview for tonight's game from the Daily Camera. I will try to put one up this afternoon as well.

Here is a complete transcript of Dan Hawkins' last conference call with the media on Monday.

Kyle Ringo of the Daily Camera thinks this off-season's quarterback battle will be hotly contested. Neil Woelk calls the off-season the most critical of Dan Hawkins' career at CU.

Jalil Brown, Devin Head, Blake Behrens, Curtis Cunningham and Riar Geer are slated for shoulder surgeries in the next month. Jake Behrens is scheduled to undergo knee surgery and Markques Simas will have a procedure on his hand.

Bo Pelini made his first in home visit yesterday to fellow Buff recruit DT Latu Heimuli, who is a big prospect right now. Florida and Nebraska look to have the edge on the kid but the Buffs are still in the top 5. We should be posting some interviews with a commit and a 3*/4* WR recruit within the next couple of weeks.

The only member of the senior class to receive an invitation to an All-Star game so far is George Hypolite, who has been contacted about playing the Texas vs. The Nation game.

Someone upstairs must have not liked the Buffs this year. And that someone capped off the season with a knock out blow today. We were in euphoria. 1:51 seconds left, 4th and 25. Pelini and the Huskers, who took a horrible sack to get in that position, was thought to have only one decision: he had to go for it. Nope, on trots #90 K Alex Henery. A little sophomore whose career long was 48 yards. The Buffs, of course, because we never practice special teams and it shows, failed to blitz or rush the middle to block what would have to be a low line drive kick for "just reached puberty" kicker Alex Henery. Have to give the kid credit for jerking that over the cross bar, give Pelini credit for making that call after attempting to throw the ball after his team was pounding the Buffs on the ground and of course, the Buffs for having George Hypolite, who could hardly get in his stance in the second half because he was so tired, to try and block the kick with his credit card high vertical. It was the second worst possible way to end the season in my mind. First would have been a blowout. It stings. All Buffs fans today leave their bar, their armchair, their friends' house with their head down. Where do we go from here? It was a straight shot to the gut that most Buffs fans won't recover from for a long time. We will talk about this game for a while and that little #90 will haunt our memory. It shouldn't have been that way. The Buffs, regardless of how bad the play calling, the defensive line, the offensive inconsistency and the special teams was, were in a position we all would have taken in a heartbeat. A little sophomore kicker would have to make a 57 yard field goal to win the game. Where do I sign? I would take it right now without hesitation because no way that guy makes it again. Just a bad way to go out.

Here are some initial positives and negatives of today's game:

Positives

• The Buffs scored 31 points, away from home. The Buffs haven't scored 31 points since week two of the season and to do it on the road, no less, was a positive.
• The Buffs made some plays today. They had big touchdowns, exciting touchdowns, a big sack by Mahnke, a fumble recovery in the Huskers red zone, etc. CU hasn't had this many plays in a game all year. The Buffs had a chance to win at the end of the game. Honestly, not many of us, if any at all, thought that would happen.
  
• I thought RB Demetrius Sumler played well. He made some good blocks in pass protection. He averaged 7.2 yards a rush. The problem for the Buffs is that they either scored so fast or could not sustain drives, which ultimately wore down their defense and most importantly, their defensive line. The Buffs had almost 20 minutes less TOP and Nebraska had 29 more plays including running the ball 51 times.
• The tight ends got involved and made some good plays. Four catches for over 100 yards is something that we haven't seen this year.
• Cody Hawkins. Surprised? I know he threw a few interceptions but they were something that happens when you play a small quarterback. I thought, for the plays that were called for Cody, he had some great throws. Is he the answer at quarterback? Absolutely not. But he did have 249 yards today and made some big throws to move the chains or make a big play. He is just too limited athletically and that is where the Buffs get tipped passes for interceptions, bad sacks and a limited playbook.
• Freshman safety Patrick Mahnke. I thought he played superb for a freshman. He made a couple of big plays, wasn't afraid to put his nose in there and definitely made more of an impact that anyone would have predicted.
• WR/KR Josh Smith. Their is a love/hate relationship that goes on with him but today, he played well. He had a few nice grabs and averaged close to 30 yards a kickoff return. We all would have liked a better return after the 57 yard field goal but whether it is coaching or blocking, Josh had no where to go. Our readers who commented during the game realized that Josh Smith is much better on the edge and of course, the coaches don't recognize it.
• Finally, I know it was a loss and it was a bad one. Coaching, poor line play on both sides of the ball or whatever you are mad about but again, the Buffs were up one, 1:51 left and Nebraska needed a miracle and they got it. the 2008 season wasn't our year and it will leave a horribly bad taste in our mouths but the Buffs were literally 2 yards and a hit cross bar away from sneaking out of Nebraska with a huge upset and a bowl game. I am not a consolation guy but Nebraska got an early Christmas present. Hopefully they lose 92 - 0 in their little Gator Bowl that they are all excited about.
  

Enough with the positives, on to the negatives:

• The Buffs still only had 291 yards on offense and the main reason was the inability to sustain drives like Nebraska did. Nebraska's running back Roy Helu was a "5 yards per carry" machine. The Buffs don't have that type of consistency. They have a 68 yard touchdown plan or they have a run on first, incomplete on second and find themselves with third and very long all the time. 
• There needs to be an immediate fix to the special teams! A big change. Between the 35 yard punts, short kickoffs, no imagination to get Josh Smith a wall on a return and turnovers, its time. Then throw in the 81 points over the year that the special teams has cost the Buffs and the large number of missed field goals, the results have been unsatisfactory. Hawkins needs to make the tough decision right now.
  
• The play calling if anything was, once again, confusing. Yes, I know all of you who think I am negative, "the Buffs are injured," but running quarterback draws with Cody Hawkins and having zero outside running game?Helfrich needs to be better. I can't believe the ABC announcer said he liked the QB draw play call late in the game. The play calling late in the game was not of a coach that was trying to win the game but probably of a coach who called a play and closed his eyes until the play was over. Nebraska runs the offense we are trying run. Did you see how many times they rolled out Ganz and got the ball out of his hands quick to the tight end? The Nebraska offense wasn't explosive, it was consistent and they had a game plan. Yes, the pass call late in the fourth quarter by Nebraska that ended up being a sack by Mahnke was absolutely horrible but other than that, they pounded the running game and flat out wore the Buffs down.
  
• I can't tell right now if I should be mad at this right now but the defense wore down. I don't blame the defensive line players necessarily but it highlights a glaring weakness that doesn't look like it will be getting better next year: The Buffs have no depth on the defensive line. Is there nobody that we can substitute and get the interior guys a break? The defensive line was unbelievably ineffective in the second half. The Buffs offense didn't help the defense by any stretch but my #1 concern going into next year is the defensive line. Mark it down. Regardless of whether you want to play a 3 - 4, tell me the three guys who will be able to do anything better than what we have now minus Hypolite, Lucas and Nicholas. BIG TROUBLE SPOT!
  
• 42 yards rushing for the Buffs. I know "the injuries." Have I reached my quota for that as an excuse yet?
• CU was still up 14 - 0 and lost that lead rather quickly. Good teams finish.
• The officials missed the interference on Darrell Scott down the sideline that was a horrible miss call that would have put us in business. Next play, interception. Thanks for the replay pro-Husker ABC telecast.

I know, frustrating loss Buffs' fans. Here is to brighter days in the future! More to come on this loss later. We have about 5 + months to discuss this one.

I hate Nebraska. It is the most comical case of superiority complex that I have ever come across. That's all. Go BUFFS!

I love it. It is big George's responsibility to make Slauson own up today:

Dan Hawkins isn't into posting bulletin-board material or having his Colorado Buffaloes react to it.

But somehow the smack still filters through his team, and Hawkins concedes, "It's hard for them to always ignore it - just because of the world we live in."

Take the line from Nebraska right guard Matt Slauson, a Colorado Springs (Air Force Prep) product who this week told reporters the Buffs "just seem irrelevant to me."

Hawkins was right: It was difficult for George Hypolite to ignore. But then, not much ever sneaks past Hypolite.

"If we're irrelevant, we're irrelevant - if that's what we are, that's what we are," the CU senior defensive tackle said Wednesday. "That's his personal business. We'll have plenty of time to talk on Friday. I'm sure we'll get very acquainted.

"I'm sure there are plenty of people in Nebraska who think the same thing. The reality of the matter is, on Friday, we have a date. We'll be there, he'll be there. We'll see who's irrelevant. At the end of the game, maybe he's right, maybe we're right.

"That's football for you. But my momma always told me when I was a little kid, 'Be careful what you wish for. Sometimes you sign checks your (butt) can't cash.' We'll find out."

CU Football: What Went Wrong? Title says it all. Kensler of the Denver Post does a pretty good job capturing most of the things that have went wrong this year. Once again, though, the media fails to mention coaching as a problem as well.

Hopefully in about 10 hours we are saying CU Football: Still Alive!

Ringo of the Daily Camera says what we have been saying about this rivalry/game:

They made it through most of those days without getting into a war of words with a team that doesn’t care to acknowledge the rivalry but sure talks like it’s playing in one.

Good quote by Hypolite about today's game and Colorado football. Hopefully he dominates in his last regular season collegiate game.

“At the end of the day we always want to play well because that’s what we do at the University of Colorado,” Hypolite said. “Wind, rain, sleet, snow, shine, good weather, bad weather, 10,000 fans, 70,000 fans, black uniforms on, white uniforms on.

“No matter what we play a good brand of football until the clock screams triple zeros.”

Neil Woelk on the game today:

But in enemy territory, CU is 0-4. A win today would not only be CU's first road win of the year, it would also be Dan Hawkins' first "signature" road win of his tenure in Boulder.

When you only have two wins on the road in your three year tenure, every victory away from Boulder will be considered a "signature."

A pretty good breakdown of the Buffs by HuskerExtra.com. It is always fun to see what others, especially Nebraska, think about the team.

B.G. Brooks of the Rocky Mountain News previews today's game. I think Hypolite hits the nail on the coffin with this one:

"We've got to force turnovers, give our offense easy opportunities on their side of the field," he said. "If we give them opportunities, they'll score some points and make the game easier for all of us."

The defense must win this game for the Buffs.

Nebraska QB Joe Ganz wants to do what the Buffs did to him last year:

"It's an absolute redemption game for me, for the seniors, for everyone who was a part of it last year," Ganz told the Lincoln Journal-Star. "That's one thing on our mind ... to see how they'll like it, sitting at home, watching everyone else play, like we did last year. That's one thing on our mind. ... We have to come out and play our best football because we want to do everything we can to keep them out of a bowl like we did last year."

Bo Pelini wants Joe Ganz to shut up:

"I wish Joe would just worry about Joe," he said.

I think coach Pelini should have used this line on Nebraska OL Matt Slauson who went off yesterday and gives the Buffs plenty of bulletin board material.

As a somewhat native of Colorado, I have an extreme distaste for them," Slauson said Tuesday. "I wouldn't mind keeping them out of a bowl just like they did to us last year and just like they did to us in '04."

 "I have an extreme distaste for them. They recruit guys there for one reason, and that's to beat Nebraska. If you take that away from them, they have nothing."

"They're in the Big 12 and when you think Big 12 schools you think Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska," Slauson said. "(The Buffs) seem irrelevant. Boy, that's bulletin-board material."

Thanks bud. Yep, those Nebraska Cornhuskers are full of class.

It looks like Buffs starting senior safety Ryan Walters will not play (very doubtful) Friday after suffering a knee and ankle injury on the first play of the Oklahoma State game. That means two freshmen will be patrolling the safety positions: Anthony Perkins and Patrick Mahnke. The good thing for the Buffs is that Perkins has seen a lot of playing time and Mahnke played the whole game last week for Walters.

Neil Woelk of the Daily Camera says don't worry CU fans, the Buffs know the Nebraska game is important. But he also says this game is not as important as it once was as the Buffs used the game as a measuring stick and frankly, the Huskers aren't that good:

But in all honesty, beating Nebraska these days doesn't carry the same status that it did even six or seven years ago. It is in no way, shape or form a measuring stick of playing against the best.

Rather, the last few years it's become a way for Colorado to salvage a season -- and that's not what CU should be pursuing as an "end all."

The Huskers may indeed be an upper-tier team again someday. This year, though, they have just one victory -- against Kansas -- that would be considered a "quality" win. Otherwise, they're a team also trying to catch the big boys in the Big 12.

Nebraska wide receiver coach Ted Gilmore met with University of Wyoming officials yesterday to interview for their head coaching vacancy.

Tim Griffin of ESPN highlights all of the rivalry games this week in the Big 12.

The Buffs men's basketball team beat the Lafayette Leopards last night in Boulder 73 - 59 after, once again, running away with it in the second half. The Buffs are sure lucky to have sophomore G Cory Higgins on the team right now. Higgins had 24 points last night as he led all scorers. Three other CU players were in double digits last night: freshman Nate Tomlinson (10), freshman Austin Dufault (11) and junior Dwight Thorne (14). The Buffs shot another strong percentage last night (52.1%) while their opponent only connected on 35.1%. The Buffs did a good job of guarding the Lafayette three-point shooters as the Leopards only made 5 of 21 attempts. Still, Colorado was out-rebounded by a 35 - 30 margin which continues to be the Buffs Achilles heel. The Buffs also turned the ball over 19 times which is something Bzdelik wants his team to improve on.

The next game for the Buffs is on the road against Stanford.

The 2008 Big 12 All-Academic Teams were announced yesterday. Five Buffs made the first team and one made the second team:

First Team (3.20+ GPA)

Name, School Class Major Hometown
Jake Behrens, Colorado So. Accounting Omaha, Neb.
George Hypolite, Colorado Sr. Ethnic Studies & Women's Studies Los Angeles, Calif.
Travis Sandersfeld, Colorado Fr. Business Limon, Colo.
Devin Shanahan, Colorado Jr. Economics Highlands Ranch, Colo.
Nate Solder, Colorado So. Biology Buena Vista, Colo.

Second Team (3.00 to 3.19 GPA)

Name, School Class Major Hometown
Patrick Devenny, Colorado Jr. Marketing Roseville, Calif.

Graham Harrell has a 4.0 GPA. I didn't know that. Other notables who made the first team include Sam Bradford, DeMarco Murray, Todd Reesing, Chase Daniel, Joe Ganz and Colt McCoy.

Those of you looking for something to do Friday night after the Buffs game should head up to Keystone for a free show by awesome local band Devotchka.  Should be a good time.   Next week is Girl Talk and if you haven't seen him before you need not miss it. - Woodrow

Devotchka - The Last Beat of My Heart

Huskers quarterback Joe Ganz looks to be fine for this Friday's game. He had an MRI on his shoulder last week. Here is what Pelini said on the subject:

"Joe is fine," Pelini said. "He's 100 percent. There are no issues with him. He could have practiced last week. We just chose to give him a day or two (off)."

The concern now is that Ganz has been hot lately and the Buffs may be without their two senior safeties, Daniel Dykes and Ryan Walters. Dykes will definitely be out and Walters hasn't practiced since he was hurt on the first play of the Oklahoma State game. The Buffs will have to be agressive to get pressure on Ganz

Do you ever notice that the best parts of these Denver Post and Rocky Mountain articles are in the bottom "Other" section. Some good news in there today:

Injured offensive linemen Ryan Miller and Max Tuioti-Mariner appear to be on track to get an extra year of eligibility. Hawkins said no official word has been given, but "we don't expect any issues there."

HUGE. If the Buffs can find a center, the line should be set for a long time.

Freshman quarterback Tyler Hansen has a role in this week's game plan, Hawkins said.

The more dynamic, the better on offense.

In an event that will make Woodrow happy, Dan Hawkins voted OU above of Texas:

Colorado lost 38-14 in its Big 12 opener against the Longhorn, and hasn't played Oklahoma. But Buffs coach Dan Hawkins acknowledged he had the Sooners ranked higher.

"I think I put Oklahoma No. 1," Hawkins said. "When you get into the circle of I beat you and you beat (another team) and (the other team) beat me, it's kind of who's hottest in the moment, particularly when you have a team like Oklahoma, that did what they did Saturday."

George Hypolite still wants to win this "rivalry" game even though Nebraska "is to good for CU" for them to consider it a "rivalry":

"Everybody's hair is up a little bit, and I think everybody is taking this seriously, as it needs to be, not only because it's Nebraska week, but most importantly because it's a football game we need to win," Hypolite said. "Plain and simple. It's a football game we need to win for our season, for our team, for everybody."

Jimmy Smith, the DB who picked off Joe Ganz pass last year as the Buffs went on to win and put 65 up on the Huskers, also embraces the "rivalry"

"You can't go near Dal Ward with red on," he said. "I have a pair of red shoes and they cuss me out every time I wear them. I have a red car and they cuss me out every time they see me in it. It's a big-time rivalry for us. I'm looking at it as a rivalry, but I'm also looking at it as I want to go to a bowl game. And that's more important to me right now."

The Buffs cross country team finished 12th at NCAA's yesterday. It was the first time since 1992, the University of Colorado men's cross country team failed to finish in the top 10 at the NCAA Championships.

I was looking through my library, trying to find a song that fit well with this week's game when I stumbled upon this gem.  Really, why on earth does anyone live in Nebraska? - Woodrow

 Death Cab for Cutie - Why'd You Want to Live Here

Oh Mr. George Hypolite. Don't you know that the Colorado State Rams are in the Mountain West Conference?

“Every week, we have to redial,” CU defensive tackle George Hypolite said. “I guess you could say that the least productive offense we played was CSU, and they’ve been playing everybody in the WAC tough. They almost beat TCU and BYU. To say that is kind of crazy.

“Every week, we’ve dealt with a powerful offense, and Okie State is no different.”

At least Hypolite has the game plan against OSU right:

“The key is stopping the run. If we can control the line of scrimmage and put some pressure on the quarterback, hopefully we can force some turnovers and we’ll put our offense in good situations.”

A couple guys for the Sporting News blog spent the day with Cody Hawkins this week as the Buffs prep for Oklahoma State. Once again, you find more people impressed with Cody's maturity. This is a great read.

The Boulder Daily Camera thinks a lot like we do: this Oklahoma State team is a very similar to Missouri. And that scares them as well. One could only wish OU vs. OSU was next week, not two weeks away.

Neil Woelk of the Daily Camera goes all Dan Hawkins on us and says that injuries are the main reason to restate to goals for this Buff team:

One way to calculate the impact is this: to date, CU has lost a total of 97 "player games" to injury, with 86 of those by players who figured in either the two-deep or prominently on special teams.

Woelk now thinks the goal should be a complete game. Complete like the special teams not blowing games? Complete like not throwing interceptions in the end zone? Complete like scoring more than 14 points? I like the idea of being complete!

Today, there should be about 4 - 5 recruits in attendance based on reports from the men's basketball game tonight. The Ralphie Report only knows about two: Colorado prep 2* DB Parker Orms from Wheat Ridge and 3* DE Kevin Green. As we know about more, we will let you know.

Damn!

OL Coach Grimes said guards Blake Behrens and Devin Head have had limited practice time this week because "they're so banged up. . . . They've really played through a lot."

Damn, this weather was supposed to come tomorrow at 6pm. Buffs can't catch a break. Forecast for tomorrow is a high of 52, low of 37. Not exactly what we were hoping for! Maybe this weather will stick around.

The Buffs need a Boone Pickens...badly. This article describes some of the amenities that Pickens is updating for the Oklahoma State Football Athletic program: hydro-pools, rehab pools, $60,000 suites, a 20,000 square feet  weight room and $850,000 of equipment, a 200-person theater with leather seats will host Friday night movies for the team during the season, and two smaller theater rooms will be used as offensive and defensive meeting rooms.

Oklahoma State has a lot of respect for the CU defense.

Tonight, Jeff Bzdelik and the Colorado Buffaloes will give everyone a look at the young but supposedly talented team. This year will be a struggle with the youth on the Buffs team but there is optimism around the program, the first time in a long time.

For the last time this Saturday, 15 seniors will play in Folsom Field. This group of Buffs have had a roller coaster of a ride that will only end bittersweet if they win one of the last two games. These guys went through the 70 - 3 loss to Texas, the Gary Barnett Scandal, the loss to Montana State, a coaching change, the upset wins over Texas Tech and Oklahoma, and the injury riddle senior season. Hopefully the Buffs can win one and send them out the right way. Here are the 15 seniors who will be playing there last game:

College football ratings have increased this year with the major reason being the success of the Big 12:

College football television ratings are on the rise, and the Big 12 is a big reason."Saturday Night Football" on ABC is running 33 percent ahead of last year’s ratings pace, and if you’ve tuned in lately, all you’ve seen in that slot is a Big 12 game.

Defensive lineman Latu Heimuli enjoyed his visit to Colorado. No timetable has been set for his decision as he is trying to decide his 5th and final visit. It is going to be a great recruiting class on the defensive line if the Buffs can get one or two of Latu Heimuli, Colton Nash, Nick Kasa, Edward Nuckols and DeAndre Coleman.

Texas A&M is a bunch of huggers? The Aggies change of fortune has caused them to stop dissing each other and start loving each other:

"During the Texas Tech week, you could really see a big change in the locker room," Hunter said. "There were a lot of guys going around hugging everybody. There was a lot of excitement."

Texas A&M is going through just as big of a youth movement as CU. Why can't the Buffs' offense work? Oh right, it all starts at the quarterback position. Get this stat:

Freshmen and sophomores have made up 74 percent of A&M's total offense.

How about this figure: Texas A&M has 25 commitments already. 25! That is a ton of players. The Buffs on the other hand have 5. Boy it is nice to be located in Texas. Rumor is the Buffs are looking to sign 18 recruits this year.

Once again, offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich stresses that change is coming. The change has been detailed as "simplifying" things. I hope "simplifying" means scoring. I like that the coaches are admitting that they need change. That is always a good sign. It just came about 4 games too late:

"Certainly, Tyler gives us a dimension that Cody doesn't have, and vice-versa," offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich said. "Tyler had some freshman moments there the other night, as did everybody. We had some seniors who had some freshman moments, so that was not a unique deal to him."

The El Paso Times has put out a nice capsule of the game Saturday. A lot of things will have to give in this game again. The Buffs are defeated on the road this year while Texas A&M is 1 - 4 at Kyle Field. Texas A&M has the 12th ranked scoring defense in the Big 12 while the Buffs have the 12th ranked scoring offense in the Big 12. Isn't it depressing that this is the third week in a row that the Buffs are playing a horrible defense and CU can't do anything with it? You would think if the Mark Helfrich led offense had a pulse, they could be a top half offense in the Big 12. Frustrating for sure.

It's a sad day when you need two punters to kick because of where the ball is on the field. I have really never heard of this before. How about the Buffs put the guy back there that can kick the ball the highest and farthest? Again, getting too cute for our own good. I can see it now: A punt formation with Suazo, DScott and DiLallo lined up 15 yards behind center. Who is going to kick the ball now opponent? We got you good!

The Buffs alternated punters Matt DiLallo and Tom Suazo against Missouri, with the left-footed DiLallo punting when the Buffs were on the right hash mark and the right-footed Suazo punting when CU was on the left.

continue reading these bodacious Buff Bites after the jump...do it!

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