The Longmont Times-Call - Football Forecasts Mixed for '09 Buffs
Patrick Ridgell does a nice job compiling some information from the preseason magazines: Sporting News, Athlon, Lindy's and Phil Steele. Here is where they have the Buffs ranked in the Big 12 North:
Lindy’s, Athlon and Sporting News each pick the Buffs to finish fourth in the Big 12 North, which is where they finished last season. Sporting News uses with its pick an ominous downward-pointing arrow, meaning things aren’t looking up for the Buffs. Phil Steele’s College Football Preview picks the Buffs second in their division behind Nebraska, writing the Buffs "are led by a powerful rushing attack" and they make its list of most improved teams.
Most of the verbiage is not on the positive side:
In Athlon’s, there’s this: "They just really seem to be light years behind everyone else in the Big 12 in terms of offense. You really expected (coach) Dan Hawkins to be further along at this point."
Definitely a good read if you want to see what the "experts" are saying.
Hawkins Alone in Predicting 10 wins - Nebraska Football
Continuing on the look at all the preseason magazines, the Husker blog Big Red Network looks around and doesn't see anyone else jumping on the 10 win bandwagon that Dan Hawkins laid out earlier this year.
Usually there’s some variability in the picks being made. But one thing seems to be consistent across all of the predictions – Colorado does not look like a ten-win team to anyone.
College Football Predictions & Preview – Big 12 | ATS Sports Blog
The sports betting sites are cranking out preseason predictions. The ATS Sports Blog takes their shot at it. Surprisingly, they pick the Nebraska Cornhuskers to finish third in the Big 12 North behind the Kansas Jayhawks and Missouri Tigers. The Colorado Buffaloes were picked fourth, something that seems to be the consensus among the preseason releases.
2009 Colorado Football Predictions | NCAA Football Lines
This is now year four for the coaching staff, and it’s time for the offense to start producing better numbers after ranking in the bottom third of the league in each of the past three seasons. The defense could struggle early with a brand new line, so it’s even more important for the offense to be prolific. This team has to win its home games and steal a couple on the road to reach a bowl game in 2009. The NCAA football odds show the Buffaloes listed at +1500 to win the Big 12 Title this season.
The Ralphie Report Live: Interview With Chad Koepke, Head Coach of Colorado Buffaloes' Commit, RB Mister Jones
In case you missed it yesterday, we sat down with Chad Koepke, the head coach of 2010 commit, Mister Jones.
The Quad Countdown: No. 70 Kansas State - The Quad Blog - NYTimes.com
The New York Times continues their countdown to #1 with the Kansas St. Wildcats coming in at #70. Here is what they said about the team from Manhattan, Kansas:
Kansas State fans should be overjoyed about the return of their legendary coach, who proved one fact true during his previous tenure: only one man can win in Manhattan, and it’s Bill Snyder. Unfortunately, due to his predecessor’s ineptness, Snyder will again be forced to spend much of his first season cleaning up a messy roster and, in the process, reversing the foul culture that came to define this program over the prior two seasons. There is no question Snyder can do that in his first season; he’s done it before. But can he get the Wildcats back into the mix in the Big 12 North? It’s not a great group, especially given the fact that Missouri is due to come back to earth in 2009, but I don’t think this team has the weapons to challenge for the division crown. I am concerned about the quarterback position, and thusly the offense as a whole, which will need to be at least above average to play with the high-octane offenses in the conference. I have fewer questions about the defense, partly because of the defensive coordinator tandem of Vic Koenning and Chris Cosh and partly because of the unit’s athleticism. Looking at K-State’s schedule, I predict the team to finish 6-6, 3-5 in the Big 12. Not bowl eligible (see above), but if Snyder gets this team playing his style of football, there is no reason it can’t be a nuisance to the rest of the Big 12 North.
The Longmont Times-Call - Brian Howell
The Longmont Times has a nice piece on former Colorado Buffalo and current Denver Broncos lineman, Matt McChesney.
Knutson Aims For Healthy Return to Buffs - Boulder Daily Camera
Buffs forward, Levi Knutson, finally sounds healthy after going through hip surgeries the past two years.
Buffs will host men's golf invitational in Erie - Colorado Daily
Roy Edwards, coach of the men's golf team, said recently that starting in September 2010, the Buffs will host an invitational at their new home course, Colorado National Golf Club in Erie.
Tournament dates are set for Sept. 27-28, 2010, with practice rounds scheduled for Sept. 26. Two rounds will be played Sept. 27, with the final round scheduled for Sept. 28.
Better Know an Embattled Coach: Hawkins hangs tough, brother - Dr. Saturday...
Matt Hinton adds Hawk to his list of Coaches on the hot seat, but says that it won't take much for that to change...
"Approximate heat of seat: A plate at a Mexican restaurant: Not nearly as hot as you've probably been led to believe. The Buffs’ 2009 schedule is hardly a layup, but if Hawkins can ride it to six wins and another bowl trip, he’ll be in solid shape heading into 2010."