Blogs › Buffzone Blog

The Mailbag

Posted November 17, 2007

It's a bye week. CU fans have got nothing to do today but kick back and watch some football with no emotional attachments. Welcome to my world.

There are three Big 12 Conference teams ranked in the top five in the Bowl Championship Series standings and none of them are Colorado. Here's hoping better times lie ahead for the Buffs.

By the way, if you haven't seen CU cornerback Ben Burney's recent interview on Buffzone you should check it out. It made me laugh so hard my side still hurts. See it here Comedy by Ben Burney

Now on to this week's mail.

In terms of rooting, I think you cheer for your team first and then your conference. I want the Big 12 to be the perenially toughest in the country. Every week the Buffs should play and beat an undefeated, ranked Big 12 conference foe. What are your thoughts? Except for Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Texas, I generally like most of the Big 12 teams and pull for them. With the Buffs out of the national championship picture, should CU fans be pulling for Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma? Or, should we not wish THAT MUCH success for those programs because we do compete with all of them for recruits? Just thought this might make for an interesting discussion.

Thanks, Kent

Kent,

You're a trader. ...Just kidding.

Those are high standards. "Every week the Buffs should play and beat an undefeated, ranked Big 12 conference foe." Seriously? That's an absurd expectation. How could that even happen?

Personally, I have no problem with you rooting for other teams in the conference. Of course, I don't care who you root for. I do think there is something to the notion that the rest or the conference doing well does help your team in the grand scheme of things. So that's not a bad idea in my mind. I don't think it's sacrilege the way some people do.

You should root for two Big 12 teams to get into BCS games because that will provide a significant dose of extra money the CU athletic department can use. Thanks for the question.

Hey Kyle,

Here's some stuff for the mailbag.

I just got done watching the replay of the Iowa State game, and I still think we got hosed on the final 2 plays. No way the ball wasn't ready for play on that first kick!

Anyway, what's your thoughts on how we beat Nebraska?

I say we have to have a steady dose of Hugh. And I mean a steady dose! While watching the replay of ISU, other than his fumble, and a slip on the turf once, he looked great. Was really running w/purpose. He also did great on kickoff returns. Always out past the 25 or 30.

On the defensive side of things, I say we must play flawless. And I'd bet the farm that Neb. throws every trick play in the book at us. Similar to last year. So we've really got to be conscious of that.

My last thought, is that Eberhart needs to go out before the game starts, and miss his last practice kick, so that he doesn't miss his first one in the game, as it has seemed that he's done all year.

Sorry, I just came up with 2 more last thoughts. DiLallo needs to right his ship! Man the short punts are starting to hurt as well. And finally, I can't figure out why Tyler Cope is kicking off. I find it really hard to believe that he can out kick Eberhart in that area also!

Kyle, what are your thoughts on these subjects?

Thanks and Go Buffs!

Dave Casotti

Dave,

Always good to hear from someone with such deep ties to the program. I think the Buffs beat Nebraska by running the football with Hugh as you said and by not turning the ball over and by not giving up big plays on defense. That's a winning formula.

I think Kevin Eberhart does seem to have a habit of missing his first kick. That has been sort of a weird trend this season. Maybe your suggestion will work. I have to say I disagree about Tyler Cope. That kid has done a reasonably good job this season and he also has made more tackles on kickoff coverage than any other CU kicker in the modern era. I like him there.

Thanks for the questions.

Kyle,

Many, many thanks for the blog and mailbag. It keeps us ex-pats at least somewhat in the loop. My question...

The biggest change since Barnett's departure I've noticed is the team's composure and attitude when dealing with adversity. In Coach Barnett's last few years, I felt that no score was ever safe, and if the tide turned at some point, the Buffs would collapse. Comebacks were out of the question. Under Coach Hawkins, it seemed this attitude was put to rest. Comebacks against CSU and OU earlier this year and strong play after a mid-game surge by Baylor stand out. Then came Missouri and Iowa State. It seemed like 2005 all over again. You've spoken with the coaches and players -- have they reverted back to the no-comeback, quit-while-you're-behind attitude, or are these isolated incidents?

Thanks, sir.

David

Hey David, Thanks for reading.

I have to say I think you're not giving the Buffs credit for the how they rallied at the end of the Iowa State game. They scored a touchdown to cut the lead to three and then kicked two field goals to tie, but both were disallowed. My point is, that hardly qualifies as folding up the tents. The Missouri game was just a butt kicking, pure and simple.

I think there has been some level of change in mind set around the program under Hawkins. I would agree that I believe the Buffs seem more capable of rallying these days than they did under Barnett. I think Hawkins has done a good job in instilling a never-say-die attitude. We'll see how things play out over the long haul when the team is made up of nothing but Hawkins' recruits.

(This is where I take a brief timeout to point out that you folks can ask some loooooooooong questions).

Kyle,

Thanks for keeping us updated on the recruiting situation with the Buffs. You are a good writer and keep a pretty even keel, even if you pick against the Buffs all too often using that damn "logic" thing. As far as the mailbag goes, I have a bit of a rant/question about Helfrich, the offensive coordinator.

What is going on with our young offensive coordinator? He seems to be really struggling in adapting the playbook to Cody's strengths, and often fails to make effective adjustments at halftime. The comment he made about the Mizzou game really worried me, where he basically stated that it was all an execution problem, and that he would have done nothing different going into the game. That seems like someone who does not take criticism well and leads to a really predictable offense. I mean, how many direct snaps do we have to see? Take Cody out of the game completely with that formation. 1 pass for 9 yards to Cody in the whole season out of that formation is NOT effective. That is just an example, but I hope you see where I am going with this. What is your take on Helfrich?

Skye

Thanks for the rant, er, question.

I think Helfrich is still finding his way as a play caller to some extent, but I like his style overall. I'd like to see him throw just a little more often on first down. I also have to say that I don't really get the whole thing where they take guys like Josh Smith off the field. He's the most dynamic guy they've got and should be in there as often as possible.

I think you might be being a little tough on Helfrich. I've also questioned why they use that direct snap so much, but maybe it comes into play against the Huskers. I think Helfrich did a great job sticking with the run and not panicking when the Buffs got down big to Oklahoma. I think you have to keep in mind that there are a bunch of young guys playing together in this offense.

If it makes you feel better, try to keep your mind on what this will all look like two years from now with a few more playmakers in there to take the whole thing to another level.

Hi Kyle!

Are the Buffs seriously in on any 4 or 5 star linemen (OT/DT)? Thanx! Jim

See people. This is how you ask a question. Concise.

I'm joking of course. Feel free to ramble on if you must. Anyway, Jim, CU coaches are pursuing some highly though of linemen. Two of their big targets on the offensive line are four-star prospects. They are Max Tuioti-Mariner, a 6-foot-4, 300-pound bruiser from Corona, Calif. and Dalton Freeman, a 6-6, 270-pounder from South Carolina.

On the defensive side, they're looking at A number of kids, including Willie Mobley from Eden Prairie, Minn., and Marquise Hamm from New Brunswick, NJ. Hamm is a two-star and Mobley is a four-star. They're also considering a couple of defensive linemen from the junior college ranks.

Thanks for asking. I know there is great deal of interest in recruiting.

...

And I thought I would end with a quote from Dan Hawkins from 2006. It might be a year old but it's timely and it will probably be dug up each year during Nebraska week. Remember when he said this during homecoming weekend last fall? "The worst days as a Buff are better than the best days as a Husker."

Ouch.