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.

I just read two more interesting stories that I believe will spark some more good discussion as we count down the hours until the last weekend before Christmas.

Dr. Saturday has chosen the Buffs for his first postmortem of the season.  Matt (formerly on SBNation on the Saturday Morning Quarterback blog) knows a ton about college football and is one my favorite writers on the subject.  Writing in depth about the many D1 college football teams across the country has got to be hard work as it requires a more than general knowledge about many many squads.  That being said there are a few items in his assessment of the Buffs 08 season and his 09 outlook that I don't agree with and wanted to address.

First off, the spot on.   I think this statement, as bleak as it may be, sums our our season in the best way possible.

More telling is the evidence against bad teams: CU held on to beat Kansas State by one point, lost at Texas A&M and had to rally from 11 points down in the fourth quarter to put away Iowa State in the final two minutes. It was among the conference's 2-6 Brigade that Colorado found its true peers.

We, as Buffalo fans, would be much better served to remember our struggles against Kansas State, Iowa State and Texas A&M than we would to find too much hope in the West Virginia and Nebraska games...

Matt also made a great chart illustrating the offensive struggles.  While this might be skewed a bit because there were very few offenses in the Big 12 this season that one could consider "average", the numbers still glaringly show how far, far behind we were with the ball from the rest of the conference:

via Dr. Saturday

Now on to the 2009 outlook, which I feel is just about rock bottom of what we should logically expect next year.

Dan Hawkins is so pumped about 2009, he may have already locked up the title for crazy offseason expectations when he stood up during the team banquet this week and predicted "10 wins and no excuses." Somebody check the punch at the hotel, please. Hawk has 13 wins in three years. By all appearances, Cody Hawkins remains the starting quarterback. AD Dave Plati ought to have a CD made with "no excuses" playing on a continual loop to play when he hands Hawkins a pink slip next Thanksgiving.

This team was a good ways from mediocre, though. The building blocks are Stewart and Scott in the backfield, but the offensive line has shown no ability to become the kind of road-grading unit necessary to make Cody Hawkins a competent quarterback. Nobody's going to expect much better from next year's group than the middling, .500-ish efforts it's produced the last two years, which probably ends the Hawkins era.

1)  How could the offensive line have "shown" any ability to become more than competent when we were never able to see the healthy o-line play together?  If Colorado can find a capable replacement for Daniel Sanders in the middle, I believe that a healthy and more experienced Ryan Miller and Max Tuioti-Mariner can transform this unit into one of top 2 lines in the Big 12 North.  Throw in guys like Bryce Givens, Sione Tau and Mike Iltis and with returning starters Devin Head, Nate Solder, Blake Behrens and Matt Bahr, CU should have great competition on the offensive line to will lead to much improvement. Dan Hawkins still believes Ryan Miller and Nate Solder are NFL caliber tackles and from everything we saw in Big Max, if he stays healthy, he could be considered a big time player. While we can't predict injuries, we have to assume that everyone will stay relatively healthy and if so I believe the running game will be very strong next year.

2) Does Hawkins get fired if the Buffs go 6-6 next year?   It would be very close but I don't think so.  However, if we are discussing a .500 season at this time next year I would imagine that all of us would consider the season an utter failure.  The maturation and hopeful health of a very young team combined with the expected downturn of every team in the North outside of the Jayhawks and Cornhuskers (partially if you believe they can replace Ganz and their WR corp overnight) should give us reasonable hope for anywhere from 8 to "Dan Hawkins is a genius" 10 wins in 2009.

What do you think?  I am being too positive as I think about next season?

Colorado Athletic Director Mike Bohn has announced that he will once again hold town hall style meetings to address athletic department issues with fans, alumni and season ticket holders, this year holding as many as seven across the state with plans of streaming all sessions live over the web.  I think that this is a great way to hear the voice of the fan and hopefully get some great ideas on how to continue the improvement of Colorado athletics and facilities.  Irish and I will try and attend at least one of the meetings and I hope that all of you in the area will make plans to attend as well.  Have any of you ever been before?

Buff commit WR Jarrod Darden is still rehabbing from his season ending injury and is not quite 100%. Darden, a 3* 6'5" 210 pounder from Keller, Texas, suffered a fractured fibula and a torn ankle tendon. Due to the injury, I expect Darden to be a red shirt candidate next year to hone his skills and also make the decision of whether to convert him to a tight end or not. Darden has decent speed but not great speed. Darden was the first commitment the Buffs got in the 2009 cycle.

John Henderson of the Rocky Mountain News goes over his gift list for this Christmas. He think Dan Hawkins should ask for this:

Dan Hawkins: A healthy offensive line. If he loves his son, he should find a way to protect him. If Hawkins loves his job, he should find a way to control the line of scrimmage.

If he loves his job, he should...(fill in the blank of things the Buffs need to do better next year).

The subtitle of this men's basketball article by the Daily Camera reads "Bzdelik's Buffs Vow To Not Overlook Struggling Panthers." I don't think that should be a problem because the Buffs could lose to anyone that they play. The Buffs take on Prairie View A&M tonight at the Coors Event Center tonight at 8pm. They follow up with Louisiana-Monroe on Tuesday before they head off to spend a week in Hawaii for the Rainbow Classic.  I can't wait for Big 12 play. Yes, it will be a struggle but getting up for these games against Directional U of A&M Central State is hard. Prairie View A&M. The Panthers are from the SWAC boasting a 3 - 7 record, losing their last three and are 0 - 6 on the road. Some of the those road losses include UCLA, Missouri, Wyoming, Hawaii, Baylor and New Mexico State.

Good news for the Buffs that Casey Crawford will be in the mix tonight as the 6'9" sophomore missed the CSU game due to an ankle injury.

If you are jacked up for the game between the Buffs and Panthers tonight, cubuffs.com puts out a good preview of the game. Here is a little tidbit from that preview:

CU has scored at least 70 points in all four victories and have five players shooting over .550 percent from the field (min. of 16 shots): Tomlinson (.667), Jackson-Wilson (.625), Crawford (.591), Thorne II (.577), Higgins (.568) ... CU is 4-1 when shooting over 50 percent  from the field (50% at Stanford)

The Buffs football team are not the only ones welcoming in a recruit this weekend. The men's basketball team is also hosting another Aussie as Jeff Bzdelik is really making headway in the Outback, something schools like Utah and St. Mary's in the WCC have done successfully with players like Patty Mills. The Buffs will welcome in forward Cody Ellis according to the Denver Post:

One of Australia's top young basketball prospects toured the Colorado campus with his family Thursday and said he is strongly considering CU.

Cody Ellis, a 6-foot-8 forward and the star of Australia's under-19 national team, is a senior at the Australian Institute of Sport in Sydney and expects to sign a national letter of intent during the spring signing period in April.

Starting guard Nate Tomlinson and in-coming commit Shane Harris-Tunks, a 6-11 center, are also from Australia. Harris-Tunks is a teammate of Cody Ellis. Here is some info from an Australia basketball site:

In his first year at the AIS Cody brings an interior game with the ability to stretch defenses to the perimeter. Coming from good basketball pedigree, Cody is a knowledgeable player with great passing skills and making good decisions. He will be working on his explosiveness; sharpness of skills and defending on the perimeter.

Good news, we talked to Diante Jackson last night, recorded it and will try to get it up and transcribed as soon as possible. It was a great interview. He was very smart, well spoken and engaging.

Kyle Ringo of the Boulder Daily Camera notes that Colorado has taken a step back compared to Hawkins first two years at recruiting in-state. I am more of the opinion that, as the Buffs appear to have let some guys get away, but the state of Colorado wasn't a recruiting hot bed this year. It would have been nice to get Kasa but he has Florida ties and Alex Logan seemed like he wanted to leave the state since day one.

Nine of the top 15 players in the state as rated by both Scout.com and Rivals.com have given oral commitments to programs beyond the state lines, and the programs they're committed to are some of the best in the country.

A good article by Ryan Thorburn of the Daily Camera describing the offensive explosion by CU basketball two nights ago against Colorado State. That explosion was led by Cory Higgins, who did something special, especially in the second half. Higgins scored a game high and personal career high 33 points. The amazing part is he scored 28 after intermission!

The Buffs closed the game with a 43-16 run after falling behind by eight points.

A few other observations is that this team is much better when freshman guard Nate Tomlinson is in the game. He is the floor general already and can tell that this team listens to him. A few times you could see him take control and demand on the court.

This team has more than just two players that can contribute but Higgins is the scoring difference maker that is amplified by a healthly Tomlinson. Higgins currently ranks fourth in the Big 12 at 18.4 points per. A few Buff players at media day said that Higgins would be Big 12 Player of the Year. That won't happen with Blake Griffin dominating but he has entered the equation for the #2 spot.

3* S/Ath Terrell Williams and Union H.S. teammate, 3* TE Tracy Moore will be visiting Boulder this weekend. Union High is an Oklahoma High School powerhouse. Terrell Williams has great size, 6'2" 210 lbs while running a 4.58. I see him being either a safety or a linebacker. He has previously said that Ole Miss was his top choice but that CU is making a charge for him after they had an in-home visit. Williams has a ton of offers from SEC and Big 12 schools.

TE Tracy Moore has been on the Buffs radar for a while now and also has great size. The Buffs need a tight end this cycle with the depth dwindling after the 2009 - 2010 season. Moore, 6'4" 230 lbs, has said that Oklahoma State is at the top of his list right now.

The Buffs take on rival CSU tonight in what should be a pivotal game for the Buffs. Already with three losses on the year in an easy non conference schedule, CU needs to get hot and win the next six games. Bzdelik's team is coming off a two game losing streak against Stanford and TCU. The loss against TCU really sent a reality check to Buffs fans that this team has a ways to go to be respectable in the Big 12 and freshman G Nate Tomlinson is already the most important player on this team. The Rams come in with a 3 - 5 record, losing three straight to pretty solid basketball programs: San Francisco, Nevada and Boise State...all of which are better than TCU. CSU is predicted to finish eighth in the nine-team Mountain West Conference, TCU was picked to finish last.The good news: Nate Tomlinson returns from injury and should be about 80%.

This is not good news for the game tonight:

The Buffaloes will likely be without one of their few big men tonight (8 p.m., FSN). Their starting point guard is expected back, but how efficient he'll be is unclear. And then, of course, there are issues with CU's heart and effort, which, according to players and coaches, were missing the last time they took the court.

Forward Casey Crawford wore a boot on his left foot Tuesday, the same foot in which he had a stress fracture last season while he redshirted. Bzdelik said Crawford is "very questionable and extremely doubtful" for tonight.

I would be surprised if we didn't see inspired play tonight from Bzdelik's team. It seems that he was utterly embarrassed at the performance against TCU and hopefully that shows up in the players as well.

Two teams in transition is a good way to describe the situations at Colorado State and Colorado...one must wonder how long the transition will take.

Some other good news is that Jeff Bzdelik is 6-0 against the Rams in his career. Some bad news would be that "CU has not led the opponent in 80 minutes of play (last two games, at Stanford and vs. TCU)."

Here is the Daily Camera's short preview of the game. Again, tonight's game is on FSN Rocky Mountain.

Buff commits OT Jack Harris and RB/SS Parker Orms were named to the Colorado All Star Game in June. Harris and Orms were also named First Team All Conference for their respective leagues. Orms, in a stunning honor I have not seen before, was named both Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year for his conference.

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.

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

So, is it Texas or OU? Who will be ranked ahead of who. Check out the discussion on Burnt Orange Nation as they wonder how can any team go to the Big 12 championship over Texas when UT beat both Missouri and OU? They don't want to hear the strength of schedule argument or the fact that they lost to Tech and now it is a virtual tie. So Buffs fans, who is it?

The Colorado Buffaloes basketball team enjoyed a decent come from behind win yesterday against Harvard after being down 15 points at halftime. The final score was 70 - 57. I think Coach Bzdelik hit it on the head with this quote:

"We get tentative. I don’t know why that is," Bzdelik said after the Buffs outscored their Ivy League opponent 41-23 in the second half. "We need to be desperate and we need to start the games off that way. ... Hopefully they’re starting to figure out how energized you need to be."

Young teams have a tendency to get tentative or erratic. This Buffs team is tentative and sluggish in the early going of this season. The full court press loosened the Buffs up and seemed to stymie the Crimson. Colorado did a good job defending the three last night (boxscore) only allowing Harvard to make 5 shots on 17 tries which was on of the Ralphie Report's "Keys to the Game."

CU returns to action next Tuesday against Lafayette at the Coors Events Center. Through three games, CU is averaging 3,568 fans. An announced crowd of 2,957 witnessed Saturday's game against Harvard, but those numbers were very generous.

In tough news for a senior, starting safety Daniel Dykes will not play again for the Buffs as his undisclosed illness will keep him out of the Nebraska game. Dykes has missed three games because of illness this year. The Dykes loss is even harder to swallow as it looks like, according to the Daily Camera, Ryan Walters is still very questionable for Friday's game. I think we are going to see a lot more of the Mahnke/Perkins combination against the Red.

With a win against Colorado on Friday, Nebraska could lay claim to the Gator Bowl. Hopefully, the Buffs ruin their Thanksgiving weekend and their Gator Bowl desires in one blow. It would be fun.

An interesting article on the Buffs two graduate assistants this year and what they do on and off the field. I want to be one of those guys!

In news unrelated to the Colorado Buffaloes but something everyone should mention regardless of your affiliation is that FSU DB Myron Rolle won the Rhodes Scholarship yesterday before and during the Maryland contest. Myron will have to decided between being a doctor or a NFL player. What an honor for a college football player.

Yes, Oklahoma won a huge game last night on the football field but has anyone seen what OU basketball player, Blake Griffin, is doing for the basketball team? I was a little skeptical of his preseason hype because he looked a little lazy and timid at times last year but I have officially been won over. Last night, Oklahoma's Blake Griffin scored a career-high 35 points and matched career highs with 21 rebounds and five assists. Griffin has recorded 20+ points and 15+ rebounds in all four games this season. Watch out Mr Hansbrough...the Player of the Year award might have some competition.

Colorado State become bowl eligible yesterday with a win over Wyoming. Even more incentive for a Buffs win this Friday. Steve Fairchild has done a good job up there already.