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Hawkins: Missouri is national title contender

Posted November 6, 2007

Just got back from Dan Hawkins' media luncheon. The coach was in a talkative mood today, which isn't all that different from any other day. But he had some interesting stuff to say.

He finally decided to speak about bowl games and what it can do for a program to play in one, which means I guess I'll have to write about it now. I had decided to avoid the subject this week, thinking Hawkins would stick to his one-game-at-a-time style.

He also talked glowlingly about Missouri, which, in case you've been on another planet, whipped his team 55-10 last week. At one point Hawkins was asked who he thinks will win the Missouri-Kansas matchup. He avoided the subject, but he basically answered the question later when he said this:

"It's like Plato. I mean, there is dangers in rationalization, but, to me, I think Missouri is the best team we've played. I think they could be, possibly a national-championship-type team. How many years ago did they want to run Gary (Pinkel) out? Get him out. He's not good. He can't get it done. I look at their team now and I go, 'They've got good players. They've got a good scheme and they're in full command of that scheme.' You've got Chase Daniel who has been around for a little while. I mean, they know. Those guys are like the Blue Angels man. They're flying a pretty significant coordinated jet group here."

That's good stuff. Can you imagine Bob Stoops or Bill Callahan or Pinkel, for that matter, coming up with something like that? Got to give Hawkins this much: He's a dream come true for people in my profession. His quotes rock.

Hawkins also was asked whether losing 55-10 can have any effect on recruiting.

"Well, based off our results I'd say, no," he said.

Hawkins had this to say about the reality of college football when you play the sort of teams Colorado plays both in the Big 12 Conference and in the nonconference.

"Ultimately, we got our fannies whipped and that's my fault. The other side of it is we've been playing some pretty good teams. And even if we're here for another five or eight or 10 years, it may not be 55-10, but if we continue to play teams like Missouri, it's going to come down to two or three plays. Because they're darn good. When you play Oklahoma, it's going to come down to two or three plays. When you play Kansas, it's going to come down to two or three plays. When you play Arizona State, it's going to come down to two or three plays. I mean, that's just the reality of it when you play those really good teams. We just have to rise up and get to that level as fast as we can get there."