The game against the Aggies November 1st was a back breaker in more ways than one for the 2008 team and the overall season outcome. This game had it all and sort of summarized the season in 60 minutes. There were injuries, red zone turnovers, missed field goals, a lack of halftime adjustments, busted assignments and in the end, a head scratching loss. The fact that the Buffs pretty much handled A&M three fourths of the game only to blow the third quarter and throw away golden opportunities, was enough to make any fan go crazy. The exclamation point on the loss, though, was that Texas A&M and Iowa State were the two wins CU needed to be bowl eligible and, in terms of wins, not regress from the 2007 campaign. If the Buffs cashed in on that November 1st day, we are previewing a bowl game today and not reliving this frustrating loss!

The game was not on TV so we were living through the voices of Mark Johnson and Larry Zimmer, who do a good job covering the Buffs. To hear them talk about the game in the second half was exactly what every fan was thinking: "what is happening with this team?"

But it wasn't all bad that day. I did say CU dominated all but the third quarter. Their were some positives. Colorado jumped out to a 10 - 3 lead at half and seemingly stopping the Texas A&M offense, holding them to 14 yards rushing and 62 yards passing. CU had a 219 to 76 yard advantage at half, but only 10 points to show for it. The Buff offense went for 392 total yards which was the second most of the season. That should have been expected as A&M ranked 103rd in the nation on defense at the time. The CU defense was good against the rush except for a 54 yard scamper in that dreaded third quarter. Without that run, A&M had 40 yards on 32 carries and George Hypolite, far and away, played his best game of the year, living in the Texas A&M backfield.

This is still a worst of 2008 moment and for good reason. This game got most of us pretty fired up about the play of Colorado this year. The main reason was the fact that CU dropped an egg. Whether it was a lack of halftime adjustments or sloppy play that led to turnovers, the boiling point was reached. One reader commented saying:

I hate this team so much, I think I can officially say that this is the most frustrating buffs team and coaching staff in my lifetime of being a fan

That day we all felt it. The mistakes the Buffs were making seemed to becoming a habit and the ability to make a big play was answered with turnovers. Just talking about it makes me frustrated. Look at all of these negatives from the post game reaction:

Negatives:

• Zero halftime adjustments and a 21 point third quarter doomed the Buffs. How can the Texas A&M coaching staff motivate, adjust and game plan at halftime better than the Buffs coaching staff? Not just a little bit better but 21 points better!
  
• 3 turnovers, especially the Cody Hawkins interception in the endzone and Hansen's late in the game where horrible turnovers. The Buffs only got one turnover which they capitalized for seven points.
  
• The Buffs should have been up 20 - 3 at halftime but with Cody's interception and another Aric Goodman missed field goal made it only a 10 point game. Throw in a dropped touchdown by Josh Smith and that is a Buffs team who doesn't make plays.
  
• On defense, the Buffs let up big play after big play in the third quarter making a rather weak offense look like juggernauts!
  
• I don't know who to blame for the third quarter but a big portion falls on the Coach Hawkins. Sherman out-coached him in the third quarter and it led to 21 unanswered and a loss.
  
• The Buffs were 0 - 6 on third down in the second half. Again, the Buffs aren't making plays.
• Josh Smith. I love him most of the time but today he was not good. A big fumble that lost the Buffs 14 yards and a dropped touchdown is a bad day of work. He made a couple of nice returns but still had his trouble back there.

Special team continues to be a problem with short punts and missed field goals.

Ugly. The worst part may have been the dirty horse collar tackle by Aggie LB Von Miller on Rodney Stewart that ended the freshman's season and cost the Buffs their leading rusher. Somehow Stewart got left off lists like this and if he was able to keep plugging away the last three games of the year he, without a doubt, would have been named Honorable Mention Big 12 and on the All Freshman Team.

It was a bad day!

Best of 2008 List
10) The Victory Against CSU at Mile High
9) The Iowa State Second Half
8) Buff Linebacker Shaun Mohler
7) The 3 - 0 Start

Worst of 2008 List
10) The Off the Field Issues
9) The Defensive Line Scheme/Play
8) Home Crowd Blues
7) Losing to Texas A&M

We have officially waited two whole days to let the season settle before we started breaking it down. Today, we are kicking off our best and worst moments of 2008. Yes, as you can tell from the 10th best moment of 2008, the negatives of 2008 were much easier to come up with than the positives. But there were some positives to 2008, you just have to look much harder.

Next year, if I am acknowledging a victory over CSU as the 10th best moment of 2008, we can expect a huge change in the program. The win over Colorado State next year better be out of the top 20. But in 2008 season, August 31st was still a good day. It was the first game that The Ralphie Report was around for so it was also monumental in that sense. We were immediately validated as yours truly picked the correct final score of the game 38 - 17! The Colorado State game also gave us some false hope. The Buffs scored 38 points, the most of the season. They also had 367 yards, good for third most on the season. Josh Smith showed us a preview of what was to come this year: a prolific 93 yard kick off return and a muffed kick. Seriously, though, Josh Smith averaged 53.3 yards/return that game and 160 yards total. Early in the year, Smith was unstoppable and probably was the difference in the first three games of the year with big returns against CSU and Eastern Washington & the touchdown grab against West Virginia in the 17 - 14 win.

Freshman RB Darrell Scott also got us excited. 11 carries, 54 yards and a touchdown. He gave us a glimpse, like I said in the post game review: "We will always remember the 14 yard run with multiple broke tackles as the day we knew he was going to be special." I don't think anyone is ready to crown Scott after this year but he also had some spectacular runs against Eastern Washington, Texas A&M and Iowa State. Consistency and health will fix a lot of problems for the Buffs next year. 

Even Cody Hawkins looked good in the first game of the year. He had his usual one tipped pass that went for an interception but Hawkins still threw a touchdown on 20 - 29 passing for 214 yards.

The story of the game was the defense. In 2007 and years before, Rams TE Kory Sperry was dominant against the Buffs, scoring three touchdowns in the '07 game. In 2008, the Buffs' defense made sure that Sperry wasn't going to beat them. He was visibly frustrated and ended the game with an unimpressive 2 receptions for 11 yards The Colorado defense also picked off two Billy Farris passes on their way to victory. The most impressive part of the performance was the defense technically didn't allow any long touchdown drives. The only touchdown allowed was after the tipped screen pass/interception that gave the Rams the ball deep inside the Buffs territory. The other was a kickoff return for a touchdown immediately after Josh Smith did his thing. Colorado also got to Farris six times which was their high sack total for the year. 

But, in my post game review titled Love the No Huddle? Not So Much, I pointed out a few things that I wanted to see improved. At that time, I attributed the offensive no huddle issues to the first game of the year and how things would improve as the team got through Eastern Washington. About three months later and 2 - 4 injured offensive players, it looks like the Buffs regressed. In fact, we all would sign up for the offensive performance of week one over week 8 or 10. Here is what I said the Buffs needed to improve on after the Colorado State game:

The Buffs had 367 yards of offense 153 of which were on the ground. So you are asking what is wrong with that? Nothing, but our rushing game consisted of two plays last night, dive right, dive left or Cody fumbled snap. The Buffs fumbled or mishandled snaps 4 times last night that really sputtered the offense. The times when the Buffs were deep in their own territory, they didn't have a power set that allowed them to get tough yards. Maybe they were trying to be vanilla in the first game but we have to get better at a few things.

First off, plain and simple, Cody needs to be able to get under center and let Scott or Sumler or Stewart running student body left with pulling guards to keep the defense honest. It is a must. They have to add that hybrid because sitting back and running the option running game with a non-running option quarterback doesn't open a lot of things up and against a good, strong defensive line. Second, I know it is a no huddle but the Buffs need to slow it down. Remember it is not a true no huddle, it is a contained no huddle with reads and formation changes at the line. A lot of times, Cody snapped the ball before players were ready or set resulting in penalties.  Third and this is probably something that will come over time, but there was not a strong rhythm to the offense. There wasn't that one dominating drive without any penalties or miss snaps that got you feeling great about the offense. There was glimpses though.

A lot of those issues applied against Nebraska.

Still, that hot day August 31st was a good day for Buffs fans. They properly escorted the Rams out of Denver with a loss, the offense showed promise, the defensive scheme was strong, Aric Goodman made all 5 of his extra point attempts & a field goal, we saw a little something from Darrell Scott and Josh Smith & Scotty McKnight looked like a dangerous combination. It was a good way to start the season.

The Worst of 2008 #10 is coming up next...

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.

VS.

Colorado Buffaloes (+18) at Nebraska Cornhuskers
1:30  pm MT, ABC

Nothing is better than football the day after Thanksgiving. It's always a special day to wake up and know that you are in the midst of four straight days of football. CU has a daunting task today when the Buff's take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers (Game time: 1:30 pm MT, ABC Regional). Nebraska is going one direction and the Buffs are going another. The Huskers have already clinched a bowl berth under first year coach and maniac Bo Pelini. They're a very senior laden team starting with quarterback Joe Ganz and an experienced offensive line. Nebraska has won the games they were supposed to from a schedule that set up favorably for a return to a bowl game. The only impressive win this year was against Kansas and it is hard to call that "impressive" anymore as the Jayhawks have clearly regressed from the beginning of the season. Who else has Nebraska beat this year? Western Michigan, San Jose State, New Mexico State, Baylor, Iowa State and Kansas State. The Buffs would have six wins with that schedule. But Nebraska also should have beat Texas Tech. With the teams the Huskers have played, they have shown growth on both sides of the ball being ranked in the top half in both total offense and total defense in the Big 12. The offense has been the breadwinner of the team. The unit is currently ranked 9th in the nation and have put up 30+ points nine times this year. CU has only reached that mark twice against Colorado State and Eastern Washington. The first two games of the year!

Now for our beloved Buffs. Clearly, this year has been a struggle. You name it, the Buffs have probably been through it this season. Today, though, CU has a chance to make it all better...mostly. Can the Buffs win? Sure. This is a rivalry game and the stakes are high. Crazy things have happened in the past when these two teams play. Who would have thought the Buffs would put up 65 last year? This year must be different from 62 - 36 or 65 - 51. The Buffs aren't scoring 60+ points today. It would be nice but unless the defense and special teams produce 3 touchdowns, it won't happen. So how do the Buffs win today? Let's find out:

Play Like You Have Nothing To Lose, Target Ganz

Because you have nothing to lose! The Buffs are 18 point underdogs. Nebraska is hot, Colorado is cold. Nebraska is experienced, Colorado is inexperienced. Nebraska is at home, Colorado is on the road. The Buffs are a long shot and have nothing to lose. So play that way. CU must come out with fire. The Buffs need to make an extreme effort to hit Ganz as many times as they possibly can. That means limit the three man rush and zone defense. Frustrating and rattling this offense will be the key. Physicality and excitement...be the aggressor. Blitz every play if need be, stop the run...defense is the key today! This will have to be everyone's best game by far.

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Losses against the #11 team, #4 team, #19 team, #15 team and a #16 team in Kansas at the time should buy you an excuse. Let's face it. The Buffs deserve some benefit of the doubt with the schedule and the injuries and the youth. Yeah, I got the company line down Coach Hawkins. Like we joked in the game thread, the Buffs are #1 in "learning about life lessons," having "fun," making Hawkins "proud" and dealing with "adversity." Those teams the Buffs lost to rank much lower, definitely out of the top 25 in "learning life lessons." We got that on all of them, especially the Big 12 South! All I know is I hope the Buffs aren't ranked #1 in "having fun" next year. It's a lonely spot, no one seems to challenge us for it. "Having fun" is watching Oklahoma vs Texas Tech or Texas vs Texas Tech. It is officially becoming hard to watch Buffs games. Hard. I watched Cherry Creek H.S. upset Grandview H.S. (no allegiances, in fact I dislike Creek) and I had "fun" watching that game. They made plays, didn't catch punts inside the 10 yard line, their WR's didn't drop five or six passes and overall, they played a style of football that was "entertaining." At least the CU players are "having fun." I wish I could say that for the fans.

Yes, the Buffs covered last night, only lost by 13 and gave the impression that they were in the game. CU had chances to close the gap inside the 10 point mark but it felt more like OSU was just toying with the Buffs and less CU getting in control? I mean RB Kendall Hunter got hurt, TE Brandon Pettigrew was in and out of the game, the Pokes did CU a favor by not throwing to one of the best WR in the nation in Dez Bryant and gave the Buffs a gimme interception inside the red zone. As soon as the Buffs get down by more than 10 points versus anyone with a pulse (that negates Iowa State), the Buffs have not shown the ability to come back.

Frustration sets in when "having fun" needs to shift to making plays. Last night their were a couple of times when one unit would do something and give the Buffs some momentum and the other unit wouldn't capitalize. For example:

• The Buffs' offense is stopped on their first drive, OSU drives down the field easily but the CU defense steps up and holds Oklahoma State to three points. Momentum Buffs. The offense begins to drive past midfield, then the Buffs run a fake reverse to Patrick Williams, attempted hand off to Sumler that was fumbled by Hawkins which lost 12 yards and boom, end of drive. Momentum lost.

read about more missed opportunites after the jump...

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Like I said in The Ralphie Report's first review of the Oklahoma State at Colorado Buffaloes contest Saturday night on ABC (click here for ABC coverage map, game time 6:00pm MT), the Buffs magic number is one and the game with the Pokes should probably be considered their best chance to become bowl eligible. How scary is that? CU is a 17 point underdog and that is their best chance? Considering the Buffs lack of success on the road over the past three years (2 - 15), it has to be. That is a tough prospect to swallow. One more win would do wonders for this program but it is hard to find enough rocks to turn over for how the Buffs pull one out tomorrow. Just looking at a comparison of like teams the Buffs and Cowboys have played this year should give you a clue as to why Colorado is big underdogs this week:

L, 14 - 38	Texas	L, 24 - 28
L, 17 - 24	Texas A&M	W, 56 - 28
W, 28 - 24	Iowa State	W, 59 - 17
L, 0 - 58	Missouri	W, 28 - 23

But if their is any reason to not rule out the Buffs is the fact that Dan Hawkins always seems to get his team to win one game that they shouldn't. See Texas Tech in 2006 and Texas Tech & Oklahoma last year. In all of those games, the Buffs were double digit underdogs. CU has yet to have that big time double digit upset this year. Is Saturday night the game? Here is what they need to do to beat the Pokes:

Protect Hawkins

We saw last week that given the time, Hawkins played out of his mind. Last week aws the first week that you could say the QB consistently had time to throw the ball. The reasons: Hansen and the Buffs was a run first team that wore down the front four in the first half, Iowa State had a bad defensive line and the CU offensive line stepped up in key spots in the second half. This OSU defensive line is the worst in the Big 12 in getting to the quarterback. If the offensive line plays well and gives Hawkins a chance to throw against the 10th ranked pass defense in the Big 12, the Buffs can stick around.

see the rest of the "Keys to the Game" and the prediction after the jump...

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It looks like Cody Hawkins will get the start against Oklahoma State after his great second half performance. Let's temper our excitement, though, Iowa State has a horrible defense and Oklahoma State will be a different animal.

Kyle Ringo of the Boulder Daily Camera describes how he feels about giving a coach like Ron Prince less than three years to build a program:

The guy got less than three years to build a winner in a conference as brutal as the Big 12. It is absurd, plain and simple.

What do you do when you are bored? Make ridiculous projections/claims like this:

here is also a scenario in which Colorado would win out and create a four-way tie at 4-4. The key outcomes for that to happen would be the Buffaloes over Oklahoma State and Nebraska, Kansas over Texas and Missouri and Iowa State over the Tigers.

Iowa State head coach Gene Chizik makes it known that he is glad he took the Iowa State job and left Texas. Okay coach, we believe you.

Another CU Buffs look-a-like thread posted on orangepower.com, an OSU site.  The Daniel Sanders pic comparison is really good this week.

We haven't had many victorious Monday's since the 3 - 0 start to begin the year so we need to make the most of it.

The Ralphie Report is optimistically awaiting the decision of WR Diante Jackson which should be tonight. With Jackson and Darden possibly coming in, the Buffs might get some much needed play makers.

Hawkins assessment of the CU kicking game: "There's no question that it's squirrelly at best." Squirrelly? How about the opponent's best friend?

This weekend's game between Oklahoma State and Colorado has been dubbed "The Rant Bowl." I'm a Man, I'm 40 vs. Go Play Intramurals, Brother. What is the over under on how many times ABC will air those tirades? I got three.

Kyle Ringo put out his first look of Oklahoma State. There is always one eye popping stat in his outlook. When you think of Oklahoma State, you probably see WR Dez Bryant and QB Zach Robinson. But its the running game that will kill you:

264.8 -- The number of rushing yards the Cowboys average per game this season. They are easily the best rushing team in the Big 12 and rank sixth nationally in rushing.

Todd McShay of ESPN gives Oklahoma State's defense a "stock's down grade" for their seemingly limited adjustments against Texas Tech. That's some tough criticism against a prolific offense. How did CU beat Tech the last two years. Texas Tech's last loss? Colorado.

Oklahoma State is trying to regroup after the blowout loss to Texas Tech. Is this a team that will fizzle or will it be a contender against Oklahoma in the last week of the season? We will see first hand Saturday night. As the Rocky Mountain News states, Texas Tech did a great job of limiting WR Dez Bryant and RB Kendall Hunter from having big games, something the Buffs must do if they haveany chance.

Looks like more than just The Ralphie Report were impressed with the play of CB Jimmy Smith.

Iowa State called the loss to Colorado "a debacle." You know why both CU and Iowa State have had their struggles this year:

And, of course, the Folsom Field turf was awash in 18- and 19-year-olds as the clubs started a combined 21 underclassmen, including 12 who donned cardinal and gold.

What's new? The Buffs Basketball team is picked last in the Big 12. This time by Athlon. It is promising that CU is getting some good talent through recruiting but when you only have two upperclassmen on the team, it is going to be a struggle.

The CU women's soccer team lost a tough game to Missouri in the Big 12 championship, 1 - 0. The Buffs will find out tonight if they still qualify for the NCAA tournament.

As you can imagine, being in the stands today at Folsom Field was quite a roller coaster. In the first half, I couldn't fathom what I was seeing; the Buffs had hit rock bottom, with 8 minutes left and Iowa State up two scores, I felt the Buffs were done, with less than 10 seconds, I thought the comeback and offensive explosion was all for not. At halftime I wanted to walk over to the student section and tell the recruits who were watching "sorry for wasting their time." But I should have known better. This was reminiscent of Eastern Washington. The Buffs were supposed to win and got down early. A few quick strikes in the fourth quarter, a late defensive stand and the Buffs come out victorious. Unbelievable. I saw some things today I thought I would never see. Most of it on special teams but an Iowa State option on the one yard line. That put a smile on my face. Either way you look at it, this Buffs team is not for the faint of hearts. I am going to stay as positive as possible in this post because all wins, especially for this Buffs team, should be celebrated and Penn State lost today. Hey, at least CU isn't Tennessee! Yeah, that SEC is really tough with those bruiser programs like Tennessee, Auburn and Georgia. Don't burn me SEC fan!

I will lead off with the negative and something I will definitely touch on again later in the week. I hate calling out coaches and players but the special teams play is not acceptable and immediate action needs to occur. Yes, a coach can't control missed field goals directly or roughing the punter but you when poor play becomes a habit, it is on the coach. How many points have the Buffs left on the field this year in missed opportunities in the special teams game? It has to be in the 50's probably the 60's or 70's. Look at the laundry list today that should have cost the Buffs the game today:

-2 missed chip shot field goals in the first half
-1 blocked extra point that was a looming problem when looking at the scoreboard for most of the game
-2 consecutive roughing the punter penalties
-1 kickoff out of bounds in the fourth quarter
-2 kickoff returns to the 35 yard line +, especially the one on Iowa State's last drive that gave them a short field.

That is some sort of laundry list that has become a habit of this Buffs team. I don't know what the problem is but I have reached my breaking point as I am sure most CU fans have. High school kids do a better job than this. Special team's is about preparation and execution. Youth, injuries...all of the Hawkins excuses doesn't mean anything on special teams. It's knowing your assignment and executing. Special teams is a "want to" part of the game and the Buffs are embarrassingly bad here. Blow up the unit, recruit a kicker, freaking get Ron Prince here, let him coach the offense and special teams. That guy makes special teams a priority at least. I'm done with it. How do you let bad teams hang around? Mess up special teams. The Buffs aren't good enough not to be discipline on special teams. I'll try to be more positive from here on out.

Offensive and defensive reviews after the jump....

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I am a fan of yours Josh Smith but you have no room to talk, catch the ball, don't make stupid decisions in the return game. You make that touchdown grab, you have all the right to complain. You dropped and their is the answer for why you aren't on the field:

"As you can see, that's what we did last year and I could never score doing that last year," Smith said. "It's like we're doing it while I'm playing this year. I'm still in those same effects in that it's harder to get going sitting on the sidelines watching.

"I just can't watch. I don't like it."

I think Darrell Scott gets it though:

"I would have to say I would need carries to warm up and build," Scott said. "But it's not about me. We have so many injuries to our offensive line this year it's ridiculous. I just think we need to finish strong and try to make it to a bowl game. Win that and just regroup."

It's pretty amazing that Iowa State v. Colorado got picked up by a TV station considering Nebraska v. Kansas did not:

Other Big 12 TV slots for Saturday are: Kansas State at Missouri, 5pm FSN, Baylor at Texas, 10 a.m., FSN; Iowa State at Colorado, 11:30 p.m., Versus; Oklahoma at Texas A&M, 1:30 p.m., ABC; Oklahoma State at Texas Tech, 6 p.m., ABC.

Again, we will see rotating quarterbacks against Iowa State. Which begs the question, what do the coaches see in Cody Hawkins that Tyler Hansen doesn't already have? I have pretty much had my last straw after that goal line situation where the Buffs run and end around and throw a pass from the two yard line that resulted in a interception. Hansen needs to be the quarterback and someone else needs to take over play calling. But BVaz said Hansen played horrible as well. I still think Hansen gives us a better chance to win with his greater athletic ability.

How do you know the season isn't going your way at all? Your kickoff guy gets a concussion:

Place-kicker Jameson Davis said he will probably be held out of several practices this week as he recovers from a concussion suffered in Saturday's game, but he expects to play against Iowa State. Davis made the first field goal of his college career at Texas A&M and will continue to compete with Aric Goodman for the job.

How do you know that the season isn't going your way part two: Darrell Scott's 42 yard run was CU's longest play from scrimmage this year.

Welcome to the Darrell Scott era. Again the Buffs play the worst defense in the Big 12. The last four games the Buffs have played bad defenses: Kansas State (ranked 12th at the time), Missouri (ranked 11th at the time), Texas A&M (ranked 12th at the time) and upcoming Iowa State (ranked 12th at the time). The Buffs have averaged 11 points over that stretch. Those teams are giving up an average of 31.1 points/game this year. This team is most definitely rivaling the 2006 Buffs for worst CU offense ever.

First look at Iowa State by Kyle Ringo from the Daily Camera. How about this stat:

1,101 -- The number of days as of today since Iowa State last won a road game. The Cyclones have lost 15 consecutive times on the road dating back to Oct. 29, 2005 at Texas A&M.

Weekly watch of the Coaches Hot Seat dot com site has Dan Hawkins as #6 on the list of coaches who are sitting on the hottest seat, up a couple of spots since last week. Consider Fulmer should be gone soon, Hawkins will be in the 5 hole soon enough. Lose to Iowa State, can't you see it getting really hot in here?

Sorry there were no new Daily Jams last week, I was traveling all week and wasn't able to upload anything.  This week all is back to normal.  I know I just posted a Department of Eagles song a couple of days ago but I really love this remix that I found and had to share.

Department of Eagles - 1997 (Doctor Rosen Rosen Remix)