It's Official - Colorado to Name Jon Embree as Head Coach Monday

According to the Sports Information Departement, former Buff Jon Embree will be officially named the next head football coach at the University of Colorado Monday. Embree is the 24th coach in the history of the University and will be called on to lead the Buffs into the Pac-10 next year. It was annouced yesterday that Jon Embree will be joined by Eric Bieniemy as offensive coordinator. Both will be given five year contracts.

We do not know yet if the rest of the staff will be announced tomorrow or if those agreements are still being worked out.

The University of Colorado will hold a press conference to announce the hiring of Jon Embree as its 24th full-time head football coach on Monday, December 6.  Due to limited seating, the media conference is by invitation only and members of the University community and general public can view the announcement live at 10 a.m. at www.CUBuffs.com. 

Below is a schedule of events open to the public:

10 a.m. - Press Conference, live on BuffsTV on CUBuffs.com 
  2 p.m. - Reception at Blake Street Tavern in Denver
              (Ralphie V, CU's live buffalo mascot, will be in attendance)
  6 p.m. - Reception at Omni Interlocken Resort in Broomfield

In case you missed it, John Henderson had a nice peice on Embree (usually has nothing nice to say about anything Colorado) and his journey to Colorado as a player and back to Colorado as a coach. Here is my favorite quote:

It will be nice to have coaches that want to be Buffs and care about the program. Both Embree and Bieniemy have many things to prove, starting quickly with filling this recruiting class as the University moves into the Pac 10 but it is an exciting time.

Tom Kensler of the Denver Post interviewed Embree back in June after the news of CU going to the Pac 10. Another great read, I like his comment about Colorado's move to the Pac 10 will help recruiting California:

HOW THE MOVE TO THE PAC-12 WILL BENEFIT COLORADO IN RECRUITING – “When I was recruiting Southern California for CU, sometimes we’d lose guys because they wanted to play in the Pac-10. He knew even if he went to Oregon or Oregon State, he was going to play back at home at least one time in a season. And if he went to Arizona State, it was just a 45-minute flight to L.A. or a four-hour drive. The guy’s family was going to get an opportunity to see him. Now that Colorado is going to the Pac-12, that will help Colorado’s position in recruiting the state of California. Colorado can tell a kid, ‘Hey, you’re coming back home.’ And also, there will be a better chance of seeing Colorado games on TV on the West Coast.”

And on how Colorado will fare in the Pac 10:

HOW COLORADO CAN FARE AGAINST PAC-12 TEAMS – “When I was at UCLA, I thought Colorado’s style, which when I was there was to play physical and punch you in the mouth, would give CU a chance every year in the Pac-10. When people think of the Pac-10 they think quarterbacks. But if you look at it, the teams in the Pac-10 that run the ball are the ones that are successful.”

And in case you want to hear some Embree audio, here is a clip of him discussing the Washington Redskins & working with their tight ends.