Articles « CU At the Game - A CU Football blog by Stuart Whitehair

Pac-12 Notes

//posted 2.4.2012

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February 4th

Pac-12 Network numbers keep getting better and better

While the Pac-12 facility arms race continues to heat up – with Colorado still urging fans to “stay tuned”, the chances of any Pac-12 team crying poverty any time soon continue to diminish.

We already knew that the $3 billion, 12-year contract the Pac-12 signed with ESPN and Fox would bring Colorado more than double what it was used to in television revenues. As a member of the Big 12, Colorado brought home $8-$10 million per year. Over the term of the ESPN/Fox contract, the average take will be around $21 million per year (starting out between $15-$18 million next year, and escalating from there).

What we didn’t know was how the Pac-12 Networks would work out financially.

Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott and his team took a risk, at least compared to the model which was out there, the Big Ten Network. The BTN members took less revenue (51%) in exchange for Fox taking care of the setup costs and distribution issues.

The Pac-12 Network is wholly owned by the league, with the conference also taking on all of the costs associated with the start up and administration. Now, Scott and…

Spring Forward

//posted 2.3.2012

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Spring Forward

Editor’s Note: Spring practices begin on March 10th. The Buffs will go for two weeks before taking off a week for Spring break. The team will then return for two more weeks of practices, culminating with the Spring Game on April 14th. Here is a breakdown of each position battle as we await the opening of spring practice …

Running backs

Spring Roster: Josh Ford (Jr.); Malcolm Creer (So.); D.D. Goodson (So.); Tony Jones (So.); Nick Plimpton (FB)(R-Fr.); Clay Norgard (FB)(Fr.)

Incoming this Fall: Donta Abron; Terrence Crowder; Devien Payne; Christian Powell (FB)

What’s at Stake: In 2011, Rodney Stewart became the first player in Colorado history to lead the team in rushing in all of his four years at CU.

Let’s try that one again … Before Rodney Stewart, no one who ever wore black-and-gold had ever led the team in rushing for consecutive years. Granted, before freshmen became eligilble in the early 1970′s, such a feat would not have been possible, but Stewart did break a tie he had held with the likes of Bobby Anderson, Charlie Davis, Lamont Warren, Herchell Troutman and Hugh Charles – all who led the team in rushing three years ……

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Colorado Daily – February

//posted 2.2.2012

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Colorado Daily – February

February 2nd

Recruiting Luncheon notes

For those of us looking for a major announcement concerning facilities (see story, below) at the recruiting luncheon, Thursday was a disappointment.

While Colorado athletic director Mike Bohn did announce that the $7 million video boards had been approved by the Board of Regents, and did officially announce that Colorado would be adding women’s lacrosse for the 2014 season, here’s what Bohn had to say about additional facilities …

“Stay tuned”.

That’s it. Bohn did take the time to sell helmets worn for the USC game – at $5,000 apiece – to raise money to replace the turf inside the practice bubble, but there were no announcements concerning other facility improvements.

Jeremy Bloom

After CU head basketball coach Tad Boyle thanked Jon Embree for helping to restore “Buff Pride”, the featured speaker, Jeremy Bloom was introduced.

Bloom spoke about being a Buff, as well as being an Olympic skier. Highlights of Bloom’s last run in the Winter Olympics in Torino were shown, with Bloom, a pre-race favorite, finishing out of the medals.

Bloom talked about how he dealt with disappointments – that he would give himself 48 hours to dwell on…

CU Recruiting Class of 2012

//posted 2.1.2012

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Colorado Recruiting Class of 2012

Colorado head coach Jon Embree talks about the Class of 2012:

DONTA ABRON – RB

Just the facts … Committed December 12th … Abron is a running back prospect from Upland, California. Abron is 5’9″, 180-pounds. Abron is the teammate of fellow CU commits Marques Mosley, a defensive back who committed December 20th, and fullback Christian Powell, who committed January 31st. Rivals bio Scout bio ESPN bio

What others say about Abron … Abron is considered to be a two-star prospect by both Scout and Rivals. Abron is listed as the No. 113 running back in the nation by Scout. Despite the relatively low opinion held by the recruiting services of Abron, he was the Offensive Player of the Year for the All-Inland Division team by SouthernCaliforniaPreps.com. For a 12-1 Highlanders team, Abron had 252 carries for 1,754 yards and – wait for it – 33 touchdowns. Abron had eight 100-yard games, with six of those going for over 175 yards. Abron was 26th in the nation in rushing, and 14th in the nation in scoring.

Abron has other offers from … only a handful of schools, none of them…

Tags: Alex Kelley, Clay Norgard
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Q&A with Clay Norgard

//posted 2.1.2012

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Recruiting Q&A – What it’s like to be a CU recruit

Editor’s Note: Thanks to the internet, many of us fans in the Buff Nation can tell you the number of stars a particular prospect has been given by the recruiting services, or the top five schools a certain high school senior is considering. What most of us don’t know is what it feels like to be a Division 1 recruit, or be the parent of a recruit. Below is the third in a series of interviews on CU recruiting. Up this week: Colorado 2012 recruit Clay Norgard, who has already enrolled at CU, and will be eligible to participate in spring practices.

Clay Norgard

Introduce us to Clay Norgard. Both Rivals and Scout have you listed as a three-star prospect, with Rivals showing you to be their No. 4 fullback in the nation, while Scout still has you listed at defensive end (No. 103). I understand that you played any number of positions at Mountain Vista, mostly on defense, moving from middle linebacker to outside linebacker to defensive end to defensive tackle. Is this correct?

I also played Nose Guard and Offensive Guard last season. Stats were not reported completely by my…

Tags: Clay Norgard, Erik Norgard, Lance Carl
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The Ticker

//posted 2.1.2012

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The Ticker

Jon Embree Press Conference Notes

- The 28 recruits are the most signed in any one Class at Colorado since 1978 … nine defensive lineman represent the most ever in one recruiting Class … by the same token, 2012 was the first time that no player was signed who was designated as a linebacker.

- Of the 28 players, 23 played in at least one other sport at the varsity level; 16 participated in track and field, ten played basketball (“we have some good basketball players in this class”, Embree joked at his press conference), two played baseball; one played soccer; and one wrestled.

- A total of 20 of the 28 signees won a championship of some kind in high school, with 49 combined titles. Six won a total of eight outright state championships.

- In all, ten players were from California, seven were from Texas. With this Class, Colorado signed as many players from Washington D.C. (the “D.C. Three”) as it did from the state of Colorado. “When I got here, we wanted to re-establish Colorado in three areas. We accomplished that in two areas (California and Texas) … I didn’t do a good…

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