What is Next?
filed in Opinion on Nov.26, 2005
Many questions surround the Colorado Buffalo football program today. Unlike years past, the questions today are football related. They center on offensive stategy, coaching philosophy, motivation, recruiting, and level of competition. Both Mark Collins at Buffalo Sports News and Neil Woelk at the Boulder Daily Camera start to explore some of these issues today. This is only the tip of the iceberg. Responsible fans must take a deep look at this situation to determine what needs to be done to bring about change. Mike Bohn will make the decisions, but he will listen to rational thought.
- Should Gary Barnett be let go?
- Should Shawn Watson and several other coaches be asked to leave in order to install a new offensive strategy?
- What can we do to ensure that we recruit at a higher level?
These are the questions that we must evaluate today. Please respect this discussion; bashing will not be tolerated.
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November 26th, 2005 on 4:19 pm
oe of the core issues is discipline, ESPECIALLY in the penalty arena. I think the Buffs ended up being the most penalized team in the Big 12 this season? (Correct me if I’m wrong) Where do you start with the discipline? Coaching? Players? Both?
November 26th, 2005 on 5:11 pm
I, for one, am sick of Barnett saying he’s taking responsibility for things and never correcting them. Also, he all too often says things like: “I have no idea why we weren’t ready to play today”. Okay maybe it should be a coaches job to understand his team better than that. I understand every team will have days where everything will go wrong and there’s nothing that can be done, but those days happen to frequently around here.
Our defense played well when they were fresh and when we put pressure on the qb. I’d keep Hankowitz and his staff and give them a couple of years to recruit more talent.
On offense, we need something to change. Our play calling is predictible at best. We misuse, or in some cases never use, our more talented players, Bernard Jackson, Lawerence Vickers come to mind here. Watching Klatt get pressured and sacked over and over again on Friday made me think what a more athletic quarterback could do. Vickers is an inspirational player. A guy with a ton of heart and usually provides a spark. He was nowhere to be seen on Friday.
The penalty issue has gotten out of hand. Personally I feel this is a coaching issue. As a coach you must teach discipline, obviously this is not an easy thing, but it seems our players are not getting it at all.
November 26th, 2005 on 7:37 pm
I think this game has to be a wake-up call to Mike Bohn. We can stop pretending that all the hints of proud CU football (the Nebraska blowout, the division titles, the play in the Big 12 before this November) mean anything. The program is not ruined. CU can still count on a bowl game almost every year. But I’m not happy with that and I have to think Bohn isn’t either. So it’s time to make some changes: I want Barnett fired because I don’t believe he can win a national championship in Boulder. That’s what matters to me and most Buff fans. I want to be playing in the BCS games every year. However, I bet Bohn won’t can Barnett after 4 division titles in 5 years, no matter how worthless those titles are. So he’s got to fire Watson and the whole offensive staff. The play-calling has been terrible for years and only slightly obscured by the strength of our offensive line, tight ends and Chris Brown. Against good opponents we’ve seen those strengths (like Klopfenstein on Friday) taken away from us and suddenly Watson is exposed as the terrible coach that he is. Watson must be fired. It’s as simple as that. I think recruiting starts with winning and a great team atmosphere and attitude. Before this Friday I believed that we had those things–and I’m still proud of the players–but CU has to start winning. NOW
November 26th, 2005 on 9:10 pm
listen up
there is only one factor in evaluating a football program’s sucess- swagger. that being said, i dont know if there is anyone in America who actually thinks the Buffs will beat Texas, including Gary (assuming he hasnt lost his mind). That is what Bohn should think about when he makes his decision- why does CU know they will get ruined in the “championship” game? Because EVERYONE knows it. The Buffs simply dont have the swagger to be a national power, and they never will under Barnett. I offer anyone to disagree with that premise- I’m all ears….
November 27th, 2005 on 12:17 am
It is almost comical to hear everyone call for Shawn Watson’s head every week we show ineptitude on offense, and even more laughable to propose that our new AD might actually start swinging his ax by offing the Offensive Coordinator.
The simple truth, whether it be Watson, or even two much worse coordinators (Cable and Dorrell) is that the coordinator is only as good as the players who are putting the plan into action. Karl Dorrell was one of the worst playcallers ever at CU, but he had Detmer, Carruth, Savoy, Stiggers, Javon Green, Chiaverini. Tom Cable had Moschetti, Javon, Hollowell, Cortlen Johnson, Minardi, Stiggers, and Daniel Graham. Watson has had Moschetti,Pesavento,Hackett, McCoy, Bloom, Calhoun, Brown, and Purify. What has kept this offense from prospering has been a lack of superior athletes. We have two great TE’s, and they are the bright spot…..when we can’t get them the ball, we lose. Our receivers don’t stretch the defense, and do not have breakaway speed….and we have a smallish tailback that is ooozing with talent that we don’t use properly. We spens one game lining up Hugh Charles at WR, give him the quick throw, and watch him tear up the defense for 12 yds. a catch, and then never use him in that capacity again. We ran Brian Calhoun out of town because no one realized that a short RB needs to run a toss sweep because he needs to see the lanes develop, and now we are once again trying to run a small back straight up the middle…..and it wouldn’t hurt to let him carry the ball in the second half….something they haven’t done since maybe CSU.
Bottom line is that we are painfully understaffed…..and here is the really bad news. We are currently ranked #60 in recruiting, and #9 of 12 teams in our conference. This weekend was our biggest recruiting weekend, and even on this weekend, we could only manage to bring in 2 3 star players…one had us #3 on his list, and the other had us #7….the rest of the kids were 2 star or lower…..a far cry from the NU weekend when Ochs and Houston were on the sidelines. As well, while Oklahoma State has spent over $100 million on new facilities, and Texas Tech has spent almost $200 million, we are having a hard time raising money for a bubble to put over a practice field……forget raising the $ needed for a proper indoor facility….it will never happen.
So here we are…..as Neuheisel called us, one of the “have not’s” of college football….who likely blew the $2 million payout of the Holiday Bowl, and will now collect $750k for a lesser game….losing 20 seniors….bringing in a less than stellar recruiting class…..facing next year with a very inexperienced QB…..with a possible lame duck coach…..and quite possibly a second double digit loss in 2 weeks on national television….our problems are SO much bigger than Shawn Watson.
November 27th, 2005 on 12:34 pm
The clear mood in the stands during the last 5 minutes of the game from the alumni was pure embarrassment.
I’m all for a clean slate… coaches, players, Chip mascot. Oh, and one more thing… BRING BACK THE OLD LOGO.
This should never happen again.
November 27th, 2005 on 4:02 pm
I agree about letting Shawn Watson go. His play calling is tired and predictable. And why is it so hard to get guys involved in the offense (e.g. Bernard Jackson)? Can’t we just, oh I don’t know, put him on the field and pitch or throw him the ball?
As for Barnett, my support for him continues to wane. The comment about swagger was dead on. He needs to EXPECT TO WIN and accept nothing less. Hold the players who make mistakes accountable. Get rid of the coaches whose units don’t get it done. Lead by example. What was that motto he advertised when he came back to Boulder? RTD? Obviously that hasn’t happened. Even two weeks ago, when we were 7-2, ranked 18th, and on the verge of at least entering the national dialogue again, all we managed to do was slide back into anonymity. The only thing that can offset the embarassment of what we did against Nebraska in front of a national audience is a miracle upset of Texas!!!
In some respects I think Klatt’s departure will be a good thing too.
November 27th, 2005 on 5:59 pm
How about a mandatory sportsmanship class for all incoming students before they get football tickets? Maybe the university could teach how to represent CU with a little more dignity and class for the sake of the community and the university and the future of the program.
November 27th, 2005 on 8:18 pm
How cna an institution such as this have gone this far south? My take is that NO ONE in the place is held accountable for their actions, starting from the top down. It has been continiously demonstrated that if a person at CU gets into any trouble, nothing will happen to them. There is no accountability here – we allow things to slide, and now we are reaping what we have sown. WHile at the game this weekend, i had to escort my visitign parents out of the stadium mid fourth quarter, all the while trying to explain what was happenning. A new attitude needs to be introduced – one of accountability, starting at the top, and trickling all of the way down
November 28th, 2005 on 11:19 am
oh my. i too am for an entire coaching shift at ole’ CU. How many years will we have to endure the humiliation of playing in games that matter? we sure handle our business against opponents like new mexico state, but when it comes to sacking up for “the big one” we step all over ourselves. be it finishing a season strong or picking up one upset on the national stage, this team can not pull through and look remotely like a football team. the last game CU won that had any meaning was their first big XII appearance v Texas earlier this century, and then we go on to have “the piano man” push our poop in. we can only hope the days of yore return for another upset v Texas this week. go CU, but don’t hold your breath unless death seems fun this week.
November 28th, 2005 on 5:34 pm
I definitely agree that there is work to do with coaching and levels of player talent. But before that happens, it has to be the athletic department that creates more strict rules and regulations for players…we can trace the downfall starting with the accusations and horrible, alleged acts that led to the executive part of the school blaming each other and anyone else that stood around. Once this is completed and we have coaches that actually uphold these rules (etc), the students will fall into place with them. There must be an example before large crowds follow (it’s a mob mentality and must start with the team to correct it).
November 28th, 2005 on 10:13 pm
I will offer that coach Barnett has done the best job he can, but that he cannot really take the program to a consistently higher level. He was a media darling after taking Northwestern to the Rose Bowl, but the long term has shown that he is not a championship caliber coach. I think that he has more often than not gotten good performance out of most of his players, but that his recruiting and program consistency/accountablity continue to be suspect. He has been good for CU, but CU needs better to go to the next level.
November 30th, 2005 on 2:06 pm
Barnett should’ve taken care of business on the recruiting end when KSU and NU were down. He had his window, his foot was on our throats, and he let up. Now it’s coming back to bite him. Gary will consistantly get you to a bowl, but he’s not the coach that will win you national titles.
December 5th, 2005 on 9:13 am
Mike Bohn, Please fire Barnett. Here’s some COMPELLING REASONS (if you’re having trouble with the decision)…
1. Programs that are, or aspire to be, national powers RESPOND PROMPTLY when events such as the past two week’s humiliation occur. They send a clear message that what happened is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Barnett should be gone within the next couple of days! If I produced results at work as embarrassing as the Texas defeat I am pretty darn certain my boss would fire me without a second thought.
2. This year’s RECRUITTING class is sub-par already, so now is the time to make the change anyway. If we wait another year or two then we’ll just get two more weak classes and have a longer road back.
3. Barnett is a DIVISIVE figure. Even if he were succeed in getting the program back to
national prominence, there are still those who will never approve of him after the last few years. For every supporter there is someone who despises him; a coach can DO BETTER THAN A 50% APPROVAL RATING. How many USC fans support Carroll do you suppose?
4. Barnett STILL HASN’T FIGURED OUT that Shawn Watson is useless.
5. RTD FAILED. He promised something and did not deliver. He did not do what we are paying him to do – he didn’t do his job!
6. Only with change can we finally MOVE BEYOND THE SCANDAL ACCUSATIONS.
7. Potential REPLACEMENT COACHES:
Pat Hill from Fresno
Gary Kubiak from the Broncos
Brian Cabral from the Buffs
Dan Hawkins from Boise State
Gary Patterson from TCU
Someone on USC’s staff?
Please Mike Bohn – this is your chance to PROVE YOUR METTLE and we’re all hoping you make the right decision!