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Posted August 18, 2007

Let's get started with something I loathe, an anonymous question.

Come on people! Have a little courage. Put your name on it. We're not going to come to your houses with torches and pitchforks.

Anyway...

Q. Does our recruiting staff make ANY effort to attract prospects from areas east of Michigan? Hawaii is further, more limited and less accessible than recruit rich areas in New Jersey, PA.and Ohio. My feeling is that there are many talented East Coasters that would love the combo of Boulder & the Big 12. Rutgers has tapped into a GOLDMINE-the Big East, New Brunswick and a horrendous past not withstanding. Their homegrown recruiting has rocketed them from absolute doormats into the preseason TOP 20 overnight. Ditto West Virginia and Virginia Tech. The Buffs don't crack the top 100. What's up? Get with it. Go East coaches, go east! Thanks, R.F.

Thanks for the question R.F.

Ringo: Yes, the coaches do go east. All you need to do is look at this year's recruiting class. Two of its members are from Pennsylvania, two are from Tennessee, one is from Georgia and one is from Florida.

The bottom line with the success at Rutgers isn't about where the players are coming from. It's that the school finally hired a coach who could recruit that level of talent and then coach it up once players arrived. Who really cares where you get the players? Just get them.

Next we have a double dipper. Two questions from one guy.

Q. What is your assessment of the quarterback situation (including Ballenger)?

Ringo: My assessment is that it's a much better situation than last year. The team should go into the season with two guys who are capable of leading the team to points. Ballenger has all the physical tools to be successful eventually, but he's still a project. He's a couple years from being ready to play.

I expect Cody Hawkins to be the starter and Nick Nelson to be the backup.

Q. There seems to be a lot of gnashing of the teeth for Buff fans when it comes to recruiting. Many schools seem to already have their full allotment of verbals. CU has only a few. I know coaches can't openly discuss this. Do you have any feel for how the Buffs are doing recruiting-wise?

Thanks, Charlie

Ringo: Actually coaches can talk about general recruiting topics such as this. They just can't talk about specific recruits. Some of them choose to hide from these kinds of questions and blame it on the rules. Anyway...

I've said this before. The Buffs were 2-10 last season. 2-10! If you think they should have 20 commitments at this point, put down the bong and slowly back away. They were 2-10! I think they're doing about how I would expect them to be doing with a 2-10 season in their pocket. Actually, probably a little better than expected.

They already have a commitment from one of the best in-state prospects in Columbine High School defensive lineman Curtis Cunningham, and they have a commitment from a wide receiver in California, Corey Surrency, who some rate with five stars. That means they already have as many five-star players as the 2007 class.

Thanks for the question.

Here is another one from a poor soul whose mother forgot to name him or her.

It's a long one.

Q. We all know that optimism is at its peak at this time of year, here and everywhere else. We read about the potential of this newcomer or that, about the experience gained over last year, the guys who have healed up from injuries and are going to have an impact, the coaches making some changes here and there, and so on, and so on. I have articles dating

back a number of years that always tell the same old story. I'd like to say I'm not going to be fooled this year, but at the same time, I want to believe that there could be a legitimate reason for some optimism (either way I'm a Buff fan, I keep returning after losing seasons - with a fair amount of enthusiasm -

and can handle a little bad news and a few L's). The bottom line is some straight talk would be appreciated. So for those of us who can't make it to

all the practices, or might have a difficult time judging a team by what they do during those practices anyway, here's the question: In all honesty, without the sugarcoating, having been at all the practices and done all the homework you do this year and in years past, how do you really feel about CU this year?

Thanks

Ringo: They're going to suck. ...Just kidding.

I think they're going to be better than last year, maybe good enough for a bowl game. But there will still be some growing pains and some frustrating moments. I honestly think they are capable of winning seven or eight games and being a surprise team in the Big 12. I also think they could win as few as four or five times. I'm excited about this season, not because I care about the team. I don't have an emotional investment. But I do want to see which team the Buffs become.

Thanks for the question.

Q. I don't know how closely you follow CU fooball's national coverage, but CBS Sportsline's Dennis Dodd had this to say about the Buffs:

"Colorado: Early word out of camp is that CU might not have bottomed out yet."

OK first off, If 2-10 isn't bottoming out, hand me the tequila bottle now. But every report I've read has said this team is light years ahead of where they were last year. How is it that Dodd is getting information to the contrary? Is this just another case of a lazy national writer not doing his due diligence, or should us Buff fans brace ourselves for another brutal year?

Ringo: How did you know about the tequila bottle?

Seriously though, I'm not going to guess at where Dennis got his information, though I do have a few suspects in mind, and I'm not going to call him lazy because I know he is not.

But I will say he's wrong and misinformed about the Buffs.

This team is not going to be worse than it was a year ago. The offense is better, the defense should be better. And really, how could it be any worse at stopping the pass? The team chemistry is better. There are playmakers at wide receiver, better quarterbacking and more depth across the board.

The biggest problem is the lack of experience. You're going to see a ton of freshmen playing. That's going to cause problems. But the Buffs will be better than 2-10.

OK, past my bed time. catch up with you all after the scrum.