2009 Season Archive

Crisis of Faith

//posted 2.5.2010

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Crisis of Faith

I needed inspiration.

I was driving up the Boulder Turnpike, heading up from DIA to Boulder. The date was November 27, 2009, the day after Thanksgiving, the day of the Colorado/Nebraska 2009 regular season finale. The Buffs were 3-8, a fourth straight losing season already guaranteed. The Colorado football program, mired in its second worst stretch in school history, was a big underdog to the 8-3 Cornhuskers.

And that wasn’t the worst of it …

The Buffs had announced the day before that Dan Hawkins, the only coach in the 120-year history of the program to post four consecutive losing seasons, would be back for a fifth year.

Speculation had been rampant the previous few weeks that Hawkins would be fired after the Nebraska game. A 16-32 overall record, little or no improvement over the course of the season, a school record road losing streak, and alienation of fans, had all seemingly doomed Hawkins to facing a Big 12 opponent for the final time. Instead, the Buff Nation was informed that Colorado would be coached by Dan Hawkins in 2010.

I was driving up the Turnpike, wondering to myself, “What am I doing here?”. I had spent …

Tags: Dan Hawkins, Mike Bohn
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’10 First Look – Special Teams

//posted 1.31.2010

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2010 Special Teams - Returning Players / Recruits

It’s doesn’t take a word play expert to come up with the truth about Colorado special teams’ play in 2009: It was far from special.

From the kicking game, where every field goal attempt was an adventure, to the punt return team, where a fair catch without a fumble was about all that Buff fans could hope for, it was a miserable season for Colorado on special teams.

The numbers bear this out.

Junior kicker Aric Goodman went 10-for-18 (56%) on the season, connecting on just three-of-ten attempts from outside of 40 yards. Bouncing back from a horrid 2008 season, which witnessed a school record setting eight misses in a row, Goodman actually hit on three of his first four attempts in 2009, only to slide back to earlier form late in the season, missing his final four attempts of the year (including one in the 17-10 loss to Iowa State, one in the 31-28 loss to Oklahoma State, and two in the 28-20 loss to Nebraska). By contrast, opponents’ kickers in 2009 hit on 17-of-24 attempts (71%), including six-of-ten from outside of 40 yards.

The punting game, if anything, was worse …

’10 First Look – Secondary

//posted 1.24.2010

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2010 Secondary – Returning Players / Recruits

After the humbling 54-38 loss to Toledo, the Colorado secondary, purported to be strength of the 2009 Colorado defense, was in shambles. Rocket quarterback Aaron Opelt looked like a Heisman contender, completing 60- and 70-yard passes on Toledo’s first two possessions. On the night, Opelt needed to complete only 15 passes to rack up 319 passing yards – over 20 yards per completion. Oh yeah, and there was that one “scramble” on the first play of the fourth quarter. With the Buffs down 37-24, but trying to mount a comeback, the not so fleet of foot Opelt outran the entire Colorado secondary for 61 yards and a game-clinching touchdown.

Toledo turned out to be the nadir of the 2009 season for the Buffs’ defensive backfield. Comparatively, the Colorado secondary improved over the course of the year. In the second half of the 2009 campaign, no team passed for more than 250 yards. When all was said and done, four Colorado defensive backs received some form of post-season honors - cornerbacks Cha’pelle Brown and Jimmy Smith were named second-team All-Big 12 by several services, with safety Benjamin Burney and cornerback Jimmy Smith earning honorable …

’10 First Look – Linebackers

//posted 1.17.2010

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2010 Linebackers – Returning Players / Recruits

Where would the Buffs be without Brian Cabral?

Colorado’s associate head coach and long-time linebackers coach has been a constant in the Dal Ward center for the past twenty seasons. He has seen championships and scandals; embarassing losses and chest-thumping victories. A middle guard turned linebacker in his playing days at Colorado (1974-77), Brian Cabral enjoyed a nine season stay in the NFL, earning a Super Bowl ring with the Chicago Bears in 1985. After a brief stint at Purdue as a graduate assistant, Cabral returned to Boulder as a graduate assistant in 1989. This past season, Cabral celebrated his 300th game as a Buff. His linebacker unit has been like its coach – a constant when other units on the team were suspect.

When he left Boulder for the NFL, Brian Cabral was the Buffs’ all-time leading tackler (297). He is now tied for 16th on the list, and has notably coached eight of the players who have passed him: Matt Russell; Greg Biekert; Jordon Dizon; Ted Johnson; Chad Brown; Michael Jones; Thaddaeus Washington; and Jashon Sykes. Many of Cabral’s players have gone on to NFL careers of their own, though …

’10 First Look – Defensive Line

//posted 1.9.2010

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2010 Defensive Line – Returning Players / Recruits

If there was a unit on the 2009 Colorado football team which actually exceeded expectations, it would have to be the defensive line.

Not because ranking 80th in the nation in rushing defense is a spectacular feat – it’s not. Rather, the Buffs’ defensive line did better than expected because so little was thought of the group last August.

A quick trip back to fall drills reminds us that the Buffs were trying to replace three of four defensive line starters from the 2008 season – defensive tackle George Hypolite, nose tackle Brandon Nicholas, and defensive end Maurice Lucas. All three started every game in 2008, and had been fixtures at their positions for three years. The group had started 88 games in their careers, and had been in for 79% of the defensive snaps in 2008.

To make matters worse, there was little depth – and even less experience – behind these three long-time starters. Junior defensive end Marquez Herrod had the most experience of those players returning, having participated in 258 plays over two seasons (all three seniors mentioned above were in the lineup for over 640 …

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’10 First Look – Offensive Line

//posted 1.3.2010

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2010 Offensive Line – Returning Players / Recruits

The Colorado offensive line – the great enigma from the 2009 season.

The problems in 2007 were forgivable. After all, the offensive line depth was so depleted that the spring game was a spring scrimmage due to a lack of healthy linemen.

The problems in 2008 were readily explained. The Buffs had been infused with a multitude of talented linemen with two strong recruiting classes, mammoth young men with limitless potential. But these players were, alas, still young, and their mistakes led to frustration. Patience was the watchword of the day.

Then came fall practice, 2009. Frustration was replaced by exuberance. Two 1,000-yard rushers were not out of the question. “Running downhill” was the phrase of the month. The Colorado offensive line was so well stocked that talented players – with game experience! – were two deep at each position.

Then the 2009 season began …

Colorado, ranked 88th in the nation in rushing offense in 2008, fell to 113th in 2009. Rushing yards per game fell from 124 to 88. The “sacks allowed” statistic, the worst team stat in 2008, had the Buffs in at 113th in the nation. In 2009, …

’10 First Look – Tight Ends

//posted 1.2.2010

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2010 Tight Ends – Returning Players / Recruits

There were 18 seniors on the Colorado roster in 2009 - four of them were tight ends. As a result, the development of this unit will be one of the most watched during spring drills and into fall camp.

The senior who will be most missed by the Buffs in 2010 is Riar Geer. In his four years in Boulder, Geer amassed 87 receptions for 974 yards and 11 touchdowns. His totals rank him 16th all-time in receptions (4th amongst tight ends), and 22nd in receiving yards (5th amongst tight ends). Considering Geer never played the position until he got to Colorado (in high school Geer played quarterback, defensive line – and even punted). In 2009, Geer was third on the team in catches and yards, with 36 receptions for 402 yards and four touchdowns.

Another senior tight end who was a regular contributor was Patrick Devenny. In 2009, Devenny only had 13 receptions, but he made them count, scoring three times. Against both Texas and Texas A&M, Devenny only had one catch, but in each instance the catch went for a touchdown giving the Buffs the lead (his one …

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The Colorado “Semi-Weekly” (December/January)

//posted 1.1.2010

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January 13th

Buffs lose one from roster, keep another

In a move that has been a rumor on the message boards for about a month has come to fruitition. Running back Demetrius Sumler, who would have been a senior in 2010, will not be back to play for Colorado. Normally, such a move would end a player’s career. However, the NCAA allows a player who has graduated to transfer and not sit out a year. Sumler is in line to graduate in May, allowing him to play elsewhere this fall as a senior/graduate student.

Sumler leaves the Buffs having accumulated 714 career yards (on 199 carries), with 333 receiving yards on 45 catches. His only touchdown in 2009 came on a seven yard carry against Texas A&M. The fact that Sumler’s touchdown run against the Aggies came on his only carry of the game may be telling. Even though the Buffs are not deep at running back, Sumler’s participation slid as the season wore on. In the first three games of this past season, Sumler had 20 carries. The final nine games, Sumler had only 16 total carries.

The loss leaves the Colorado backfield periously thin.

Rodney Stewart will …

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2009 Season Archive

Crisis of Faith

’10 First Look – Special Teams

’10 First Look – Secondary

’10 First Look – Linebackers

’10 First Look – Defensive Line

’10 First Look – Offensive Line

’10 First Look – Tight Ends

The Colorado “Semi-Weekly” (December/January)

2013 Season

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