Their are a few things that Buff fans need to worry about this offseason and one of the major ones is how 16 injured players will heal. Kyle Ringo of the Daily Camera talks about the difficult task head athletic trainer Miguel Rueda has this year in getting players rehabbed, healthy and, most important, ready for on field action by spring drills. Hawkins has "tentatively" moved back spring drills to later in the year, allowing extra time for the walking wounded to get healed. Some big time players will be asked to come back from serious injuries like OT Ryan Miller, OG Max Tuioti-Mariner, LB Jon Major, RB Rodney Stewart and OL Bryce Givens. Here is the breakdown of the injured players according to the article:

Nine players underwent season-ending surgeries during the 2008 campaign and five more have gone under the knife in the past month. Two more players are scheduled to undergo surgery in the next two weeks, giving the program an ugly total of 16 players forced into the operating room this season.

Rueda expects all of the players to be able to participate in spring drills but you never know the level of that participation until it rolls around.

This is the part of the article that got me already pumped up for next year:

Rueda said one of the players he has been most impressed with in rehab is running back Rodney Stewart, who suffered a fractured leg on Nov. 1 at Texas A&M. Rueda said Stewart approaches his recovery like a man who can't stand the fact he is injured and wants nothing more than to get back to running between the tackles again.

I love this kid. You have to be impressed with everything he has done. Hopefully Darrell Scott is feeding off the determination to come back in spring ball with the physical and mental side in full tune. If the Buffs can find any sort of passing game to keep teams honest, I can't wait to see the running attack next year, especially when you throw in Ray Polk as a wild card. 

The Buffs basketball team lost last night 62 - 60 to Buffalo in the Rainbow Classic. Colorado has a definite formula for winning games and the same issues when they lose. Most defeats usually have a rebounding stat like this:

CU was out-rebounded 16-7 in the first half and allowed Buffalo to grab four offensive boards. Thanks to the extra possessions the Bulls took 10 more shots than the Buffs in the first 20 minutes and shot 56.7 percent (17-for-30) from the floor with 18 points on offensive rebounds and turnovers.

CU will take on Vermont today at 4:30 pm MT missing the chance at playing Colorado State again in the championship game.

Mack Brown, Texas Head Coach, gives an initial reaction to the New York Times story heard around the world that detailed DT Jamarkus McFarland's recruitment. The article pretty much threw Texas in the dirt with the prevalence of sex, drugs and alcohol:

"One-sided stories usually don't make it when sources aren't checked on the other side," Brown said. "The story has absolutely no credibility with me because the writer did the same thing exactly last year and it's obvious he has an agenda, in my mind, against Texas."

The "other story" Brown is referring to is the Darrell Scott story from last year which wasn't nearly as bad as the most recent one.

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The game was dubbed the "basement battle": two teams with losing records struggling to find an identity.  The Buffs had seven rather highly touted recruits in town: 3*/4* LB Michael Clay, 4* DT Latu Heimuli, 3* OT/DE Nik Abele, 4* DE Nick Kasa, 4* Bradley McDougald, DB Deji Olatoye and 4* WR Diante Jackson. Saying it was a big recruiting weekend would be an understatement. Most of these guys would be major gets on the national scene. CU had just come off a bad loss against Texas A&M at Kyle Field for what should have been win number five in the all important race to six. The Iowa State game was supposed to be the clinching game for a bowl bid. That got me and a ton of Buff fans worried about the motivation this team would have for Iowa State with seemingly two losses remaining on the schedule (Oklahoma State and Nebraska). Many were wondering what would come that Monday morning if Colorado actually lost to Iowa State, all but guaranteeing a four-win season. The difference between five and four isn't huge at first glance but losing to Iowa State and A&M back to back and only winning one conference game in the down Big 12 North would have been devastating. You thought recruiting was hard now, think about if we lost to Iowa State? Surely WR Diante Jackson wouldn't be considering us now, Olatoye may not have committed, McDougald wouldn't be a high interest guy and you always have to wonder about a guy like Abele who is getting big interest from a lot of programs right now.

for more on the 9th best moment of 2008, see after the jump...

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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...

Bye weeks are no fun. Yes, it is nice for the Buffs to have two weeks to prepare for Nebraska but I wish they would play this weekend. Something about either knowing that the Buffs are in a Bowl game or if we can start getting ready to talk about the 2009 campaign gets me excited. There is going to be a lot to talk about his offseason especially with the recruiting season ramping up. Mostly I think I speak for all of us, that we just want to turn the page on the regular season and conferene play and move on, whatever direction it may be. Don't get me wrong, though, I still want to beat down Nebraska!

A pretty good article by Neil Woelk of the Daily Camera claiming that RB Darrell Scott told a fellow writer that he will be back in Boulder next year. There has been rumors going around on a few message boards that had Smith and Scott leaving but was absolutely bogus. Darrell Scott's day will come, I am sure of it. Here is what Scott said in Ringo's article:

"I don't know what those people are talking about," Scott said. "Whatever they're talking about, it's bull. If I wasn't going to be here, I wouldn't have decided to come to Colorado. It's as simple as that. I'm here.

"That's what people do. They talk. They haven't had one snap of football and they talk, but what can I do? Just play and ignore all the criticism."

According to the Longmont Times, Tyler Hansen says he doesn't regret having agreed to remove his redshirt although he only "appeared in four games, two starts, and on 174 snaps." It was a necessary move at the time and would have been considered a success if the Buffs didn't blow the Texas A&M game. We are going to look back on that Texas A&M game and have a ton of regret about that one. How nice would it be if the Buffs were going for win #7 next week? A little less pressure.

Sounds like Nebraksa's starting QB Joey Ganz will be fine according to his daddy. His shoulder MRI on revealed bruising. His dad will be giving him massages twice a day and a deep tissue rub down once a day to work out the tightness. His mom will prepare soup and hot pads when needed.

Whenever a Buff beats a Ram, it is always worth a mention. The CU women's basketball team destroyed the lady Rams 93 - 63 last night.

Buffs recruit and probably new #1 priority after Nick Kasa jetted to Florida, 4* DT Edward Nuckols from California, will be visiting Arizona this weekend. In the end, I think Nuckols will be a Buff which would be huge after losing senior DTs Hypolite and Nicholas this year.

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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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)

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Alright, tell us what you think about this weekend's game. It's a biggie for the Buffs chances at "showing progress" and getting to a bowl game. Have to think the Buffs pull it off this weekend, Iowa State should be a win and the Buffs can play loose against Nebraska. So what is your prediction for:

1) How many carries Darrell Scott will get this game?

2) Pick your quarterback right now: Tyler Hansen, Cody Hawkins, Matt Ballenger, Jordan Wynn or Clark Evans?

3) Texas A&M offensive production: Over or under their average over the last four games (440y/g)?

4) Colorado Buffaloes offensive production: Over or under their average over the past five games (265y/g - that is horrible, pee wee teams average that on a 50 yards field)?

5) What does the claim "simplify the CU offense" mean to you?

6) Buffs offense: Over or Under 14 points?

7) What is your Halloween costume this year? If you aren't celebrating Halloween this year in costume, what was your best costume ever?

8) Who will win this weekend: Texas Longhorns or Texas Tech Red Raiders?

9) Who will win this weekend: Colorado Buffaloes or Texas A&M Aggies?

This writer from the Wall Street Journal (red flag for a sports source), has doubts about the Big 12 being a true contender for the national championship:

Based on recent statistical history, this season's national champion will not come from the Big 12. The last five Bowl Championship Series title-game winners all ranked among the country's top 10 in total defense.

 I love how he thinks that weak non-conference schedules have not tested the Big 12. Look at Texas's schedule so far: OU, Kansas, Oklahoma State, Missouri...does it get any harder than that? By the way, I think TCU gives USC a run for its money. Guy smells like a PAC 10 homer. Talk about non conference schedules, the PAC 10 got dominated by the Mountain West.

Kyle Ringo of the Daily Camera takes a "first look" at Texas A&M. I especially like the stat that says Texas A&M has been giving up 3 sacks a game.

Aggies quarterback Jerrod Johnson has rapidly improved every week this season. Last week, Johnson threw four touchdowns and 381 yards in route to the Aggies first conference win this year over Iowa State.This title from the Denver Post says it all: "Just What the Buffs Need: Another Hot FOE at Quarterback." Sounds like two teams headed in different directions.

Once again, Dan Hawkins has said that both Cody and Tyler Hansen will rotate at quarterback. Two weeks was fine to rotate but it is time to hand over the reins to one or the other. It's like the Darrell Scott argument for this year: getting a rhythm. This offense needs continuity and players to get a rhythm. Put Hansen in there and let him play a full game. He has earned that right, his completion percentage was pretty impressive last week. Stick with Rodney Stewart or give Darrell Scott a chance to run for a whole game. The Buffs have too weak of an offensive scheme to get this cute. Start Hansen, start Stewart, start JFly and leave them in there the entire game. Or start Hawkins...never mind.

People keep saying the Big 12 North title is up for grabs. No it isn't. Mizzou will not lose another game and Nebraska will get smoked against OU this weekend. Kansas will lose to both Texas and Mizzou. This argument of Nebraska winning the Big 12 North is ludicrous.

A reporter final asked Dan Hawkins a tough question:

When asked why the offense on Saturday used few plays out of the I-formation, which freshmen running backs Rodney Stewart and Darrell Scott say they prefer, the coach said, "A lot of that has to do with plays you can run versus teams you're going against."

Well coach, what plays are we running that have been working from the spread? The Buffs are averaging 300 yards a game on offensive. And the last two opponents the Buffs have played have been ranked in the 100's in total defense. Coach, its not working.

From the Campus Press, AD Mike Bohn stands behind Dan Hawkins.

In honor of the "who knows what the heck will happen" game this weekend, Woodrow and I will be putting our stamp of approval or disapproval on certain subjects ranging from the game this weekend to random topics that we probably shouldn't touch but will anyway. I must thank the guys from PTI as we snag their game of "Buy or Sell." We invite you to participate if you have an opinion.

more opinions after the jump...

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