Pac-12 Notes – USC Week

October 26th

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UCLA enters CU week on a two-game winning streak after defeating ASU, 42-32 

From ESPN … UCLA coach Chip Kelly has often said that when running back Joshua Kelley plays well, the Bruins have a shot of winning.

The senior running back had a career night Saturday, which is why the Bruins were able to beat a Top 25 team for the second time this season. Kelley scored a career-high four touchdowns and rushed for 164 yards in UCLA’s 42-32 victory over 24th-ranked Arizona State.

Kelley has rushed for over 100 yards in three of the past four games. He is the first Pac-12 player and fourth nationally this season to have four rushing touchdowns in a game.

“We needed a win here for sure. That was extra incentive for us,” said Kelley of the Bruins first home victory. “Us getting back-to-back wins is big for our young core.”

Kelly is also the first Bruin with four ground TDs since Myles Jack against Washington in 2013. He helped fuel a UCLA ground game that had 217 yards, marking the first time since 2014 it has had four straight 200-yard games.

“I think when everyone in the stadium knows you are going to run it and you are still able to do it, that’s a credit to the whole group,” Kelly said.

The Bruins (3-5, 3-2) scored on five of their first six drives, including four consecutive possessions from late in the first quarter to midway in the third to roar out to a 35-7 lead after it was tied at 7.

Continue reading story here

Stanford (which has a bye before playing CU) takes down Arizona, 41-31

From ESPN … The final test for K.J. Costello came in the pregame warmups. If he could show he could hold and throw the football, he was a go.

Being forced to stand on the sidelines for the past three weeks took its toll on the senior quarterback, who returned to Stanford’s starting lineup and led the Cardinal to a 41-31 victory over visiting Arizona on Saturday.

“It doesn’t feel good. It’s awful,” Costello said of being sidelined. “Not playing a few weeks I have to challenge myself in terms of energy.”

An energized Costello threw for 312 yards and three touchdowns after missing three games with a thumb injury. He was 30 of 43 passing with no interceptions. Back-up Davis Mills, out with a calf injury, was unavailable.

“I feel a whole lot different playing than not playing. It’s everything,” Costello said. “When our offense plays the way we know we can, when we’re able to run the ball, you can see the full complexion of the offense and what we want to do.”

Showing no signs of discomfort, Costello rifled passes to 12 different receivers, including a pair of touchdown passes to Simi Fehoko and one to Brycen Tremayne, whose only two career receptions have both gone for touchdowns.

Continue reading story here

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October 25th – GameDay!!

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Predictions: USC in a blowout

From CBS Sports … Colorado joined the Pac-12 all the way back in 2011, and while the program has enjoyed some success at times out west, there it one event that has yet to occur: beating USC. The Buffaloes are 0-8 against the Trojans since they became a member of the conference, and what’s more, they’ve never even earned a victory over USC … period (0-13). Colorado will be looking to rewrite history on Friday night in that regard when it hosts USC in Boulder to help kickoff the Week 9 festivities.

The Buffaloes have come close twice. They lost 27-24 in Boulder during the 2015 season, and the next year at The Coliseum, USC slipped by 21-17. The other 11 meetings haven’t been as exciting as USC has won those games by an average of 23.1 points per game. Here’s hoping Friday night’s game will be a little more competitive than those contests.

… Weird things tend to happen in Friday night Pac-12 games, which makes Colorado an appealing pick here. The problem is Colorado’s defense has been abysmal in 2019. It’s allowing 34.9 points per game and ranked 119th nationally in defensive pass efficiency. That’s problematic against a USC team that’s running an Air Raid offense now. I’m not super confident in the pick, but I don’t see how you can comfortably take any side but USC’s in this spot. Pick: USC (-13.5)

From Athlon Sports … Since joining the Pac-12, Colorado has yet to beat the Trojans. Most of their losses come by an average of 20 points, and they give up an average of 39 points to the Trojans. Only two of their games have been within five points since 2010. Hell, even a 5-7 Trojan team beat them by 11 last year. It’s been tough sledding for Colorado against USC, and this year isn’t likely to end much differently. The Buffs are currently sitting at No. 124 in the nation in total defense. Expect USC to come away with another big victory.

Prediction: USC 48, Colorado 22

From SportsPac-12

What the Trojans Must Do to Win

The Trojans have weathered a parade of injuries, transitioning through three quarterbacks to find poised freshman Kedon Slovis. Now USC has gone through several running backs as well, including Markese Stepp, discovering yet another star in true freshman speedster Kenan Christon. Replacement linebacker Kana’i Mauga has also stepped up, recording a game-high 13 tackles last week against Arizona. USC will need another stellar performance from Mauga and others with safety Talanoa Hufanga and defensive end Drake Jackson out. The good news is the Trojans face a comparably banged-up Buffs team, which can’t begin to match USC’s depth. Given Colorado’s recent struggles, the Trojans mostly just need to not beat themselves. The primary culprits have been penalties and turnovers: USC committed 100 yards worth of infractions against the Wildcats, and rank last in the Conference in turnover margin at -5. With Oregon visiting the Coliseum in two weeks, the Trojans must stay focused on the job at hand in what could be a potential trap game.

What the Buffaloes Must Do to Win

The Buffs have lost so many players to injuries—and the transfer portal—that the distinction between “starter” and “backup” has been rendered meaningless. The player Colorado most expected to count on this season, quarterback Steven Montez, has floundered, throwing six interceptions with only two touchdown passes over the past two weeks. The fifth-year senior needs to shake off the nightmares of the Oregon and WSU games and play loose. His offensive line has been a bright spot, as has the play of running back Alex Fontenot, who has rushed for 568 yards. Colorado’s defense, which has given up 40 points in two straight games, must hold USC under its 30.7 per game average. The inconsistent Buffalo secondary needs to slow USC’s deep receiving group, led by Michael Pittman Jr. That may sound like Mission Impossible, with Colorado’s defense ranking 116th nationally in points allowed at 34.9, but upsets happen. CU’s best hope may be to create turnovers, an area in which the Trojans have proven susceptible.

What Happens on the Field

With both teams hit hard by injuries, USC’s superior depth and talent will tilt the game in Troy’s favor. Slovis will connect with his talented receivers virtually at will, exploiting Colorado’s secondary with long passing strikes. Christon will bust through for a couple of scores or more, and the Trojans will take an early lead, never looking back. Montez will have a better day passing for the Buffs, with wideout Tony Brown due for a big game. But neither their connection nor Fontenot’s continued success will keep pace with an onslaught of USC scores. The Trojans win big, handing Colorado its third-straight blowout loss.

Notes: USC leads the series 13-0, dating back to 1927. USC’s 13-game run is their current longest streak against a Pac-12 foe. At 8,625 career passing yards, Montez trails only Sefo Liufau, the all-time Colorado passing leader, with 9,746. USC held Arizona to 385 total yards after the Cats had been averaging 509.3 per game, ninth-best in the country. Alex Fontenot recorded his second career 100-yard rushing game last week. Christon scored his first career touchdown en route to his first career 100-yard game. CU’s Jack Shutack made his first career start, and is the first player to start as a walk-on since Ryan Moeller at Oregon in 2014. CB Dorian Hewett became the sixth true freshman to start a game for USC.

Straight-Up: USC in a Blowout Win
Against the Spread: USC (-13.5)

USC freshman QB Kedon Slovis “overthinking”

From Sports Illustrated … Kedon Slovis had an off night versus Arizona. It was perhaps his toughest game, in terms of executing the offense. He uncharacteristically missed some easy throws, he was sacked a couple times when he could have scrambled, and he didn’t see the field like he typically does. And yet he still completed 67.8 percent of his passes for 232 yards and two touchdowns without an INT. A great line for most QBs. But for Slovis, it was a game in which he and his coaches say there was a lot to learn from.

“More than anything, I think Kedon was overthinking,” offensive coordinator Graham Harrell said. “That’s something we fought with JT in the spring, not fought with but had to work with him quite a bit, he was overanalyzing everything. That’s what I tell him all the time. That’s what I tell all of them. It’s natural. Anytime you’ve been in the offense, Coach (Mike) Leach used to get on me about the same sort of deal. You try to do too much. You go, I can do this and this and that. Usually what we got called is going to work alright, and if you just see something you can attack, you go attack it.”

Continue reading story here

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October 24th

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CSU indefinitely suspends MWC leading rusher

From the Coloradoan … Leading rusher Marvin Kinsey has been “suspended indefinitely” from Colorado State’s football team, coach Mike Bobo said Tuesday.

Bobo declined to share any additional information about the disciplinary measure.

Kinsey, a senior from Atlanta, was averaging a Mountain West-best 100.4 rushing yards a game for the Rams (2-5, 1-2 MW), which ranks No. 22 nationally among players at the FBS level. He has run for 703 yards and six touchdowns on 121 carries this season and for 1,629 yards and 17 touchdowns in his CSU career.

“He’s a great player; he’s one of the leading rushers in the country,” quarterback Patrick O’Brien said. “It’s going to be hard to replace him, but I think we have guys that can get the job done, and I think we’ve got a good mix of them.”

Continue reading story here

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October 23rd

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HBO Special featuring Washington State’s preparation for CU to air tonight

From 247 Sports … Mike Leach is expected to be the main focus Wednesday when HBO Sports broadcasts its “24/7 College Football: Washington State Cougars” documentary. But WSU recruiting may end up being the star of the show. The one-hour episode will be shown tonight on the pay channel.

HBO cameras spent last week at WSU as it prepared for and then drilled Colorado 41-10 on Saturday.  HBO was also in Pullman filming during fall camp.

HBO’s “24/7” show is designed to give fans a look at what takes place on the other days of the week in addition to Saturdays. Tonight’s episode, based on the other three schools previously chronicled, will present WSU’s game week prep for CU, day by day.

It will undoubtedly provide Washington State a valuable recruiting tool to employ.

After the Arizona State episode on HBO was aired, Arizona Republic writer Bill Goodykoontz said the show may be the “ultimate recruiting tool” for the Sun Devils:

  • “It’s so overwhelmingly positive as to be almost Pollyanna-ish in its portrayal of the student athlete preparing for battle. The production values are impeccable. The athletic facilities are amazing. Liev Schreiber narrates in dramatic fashion, because if you hire Liev Schreiber that’s what you’re paying him for. If this was all you knew of ASU you might think it was Harvard with a team that never lost a game. It may be the ultimate recruiting tool,” the article reads.

Wazzu is the last of four teams HBO is profiling in its first year of an all-access documentary college football series. HBO has previously aired its shows on Florida, Penn State and ASU.

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October 22nd

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USC star running back Markese Stepp out for CU game

From ESPN … Southern California running back Markese Stepp needs surgery and could miss up to five weeks due to an ankle injury suffered last weekend against Arizona.

Trojans coach Clay Helton said Monday that Stepp will need surgery to repair a torn ligament and is out at least three weeks.

Stepp, a redshirt freshman from Indianapolis, has rushed for 307 yards and three touchdowns in six games this season.

The 6-foot, 235-pound Stepp provided a physical presence to complement the spread passing component of the Air Raid offense in the previous three games before he was hurt Saturday in the third quarter of USC’s 41-14 win over the Wildcats.

Stepp’s injury is the latest blow to USC’s depth at running back. Redshirt junior Vavae Malepeai, who leads the team with 406 yards rushing and four touchdowns, remains out after undergoing knee surgery last week. Junior Stephen Carr did not practice Monday after sustaining a hamstring strain against the Wildcats.

Helton did not know if Carr, who has 266 yards rushing and two touchdowns, would be available to play Friday at Colorado.

“I’ve never lost three backs in one week in 25 years before, but, you know what, there’s a first time for everything,” Helton said.

Those injuries leave freshman Kenan Christon in line to start against the Buffaloes. Christon, the 2019 California high school 100-meter champion, had touchdowns runs of 55 and 30 yards against Arizona and finished with 103 yards rushing on eight carries.

Pac-12 coaches’ salaries – Mel Tucker 9th in the Pac-12 (58th overall)

From USA Today

The Pac-12 … (note: Stanford and USC are private universities – buyouts not disclosed):

  • 20. Washington – Chris Petersen: $4,625,000  … Buyout: $21,770,833
  • 21. Stanford – David Shaw: $4,613,707
  • 27. Utah – Kyle Whittingham: $4,002,917 … Buyout: $12,250,000
  • 33. Washington State – Mike Leach: $3,750,000 … Buyout: 4,900,000
  • 38. UCLA – Chip Kelly: $3,500,000 … Buyout: $9,000,000 (pretty steep, for those thinking Kelly is on the hot seat)
  • 43. USC – Clay Helton: $3,218,935
  • 50. California – Justin Wilcox: $2,854,000 … Buyout: 13,608,334
  • 56. Oregon – Mario Cristobal: $2,525,000 … Buyout: $7,035,000
  • 58. Colorado – Mel Tucker: $2,400,00 … Buyout: $9,800,000
  • 59. Arizona State – Herm Edwards: $2,380,000 … Buyout: $6,937,500
  • 68. Arizona – Kevin Sumlin: $2,000,000 … Buyout: $10,000,000
  • 69. Oregon State – Jonathan Smith: $1,900,008 … Buyout: $3,087,513

… and … in case you were wondering … 

  • 72. Colorado State – Mike Bobo: $1,800,000 … Buyout: $5,500,000 (might be tough to come up with, when you are averaging 26,228 – through the first three games of 2019 – in your 41,000 capacity stadium)

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October 21st

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CU safety Aaron Maddox enters transfer portal

… According to twitter reports, senior transfer tight end Darrion Jones has also entered the transfer portal … 

From 247 Sports … Colorado junior safety Aaron Maddox on Monday entered the transfer portal, a source told 247Sports.

Maddox started Colorado’s first three games this season, but he’s only played in one game thus far in Pac-12 play (Oregon) after sustaining a leg injury in Week 3. Maddox did not travel with the Buffaloes on Saturday for their 41-10 loss to Washington State.

The 6-foot-1, 205-pound former JUCO transfer has recorded 22 tackles, a tackle for loss and a pair of forced fumbles this season. Maddox ranks seventh on Colorado in total tackles despite playing significant reps in just three games.

Maddox would be eligible for a redshirt if he didn’t play another game for Colorado this season.

The No. 4 overall safety in the 2018 JUCO class played in all 12 games for the Buffaloes last year, recording 15 tackles and appearing in seven contests on defense. Maddox emerged as a starter this fall despite missing spring football for the second year in a row with an injury.

Maddox injured his leg on the second-to-last play of the third quarter in Colorado’s game against Air Force. Running a Falcon out of bounds, Maddox fell and crashed into a misting machine on the Air Force sideline. The collision caused a severe laceration to Maddox’s lower left leg, an injury that cost him the Buffaloes’ games with Arizona State and Arizona.

Continue reading story here

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October 20th

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Oregon and Utah move up in rankings; Washington drops out

From CBS Sports … It’s amazing how quickly things can change in college football. A turnover or injury can drastically change the course of an entire season. More than a few teams know about that after an eventful Week 8. What should we make of Alabama without quarterback Tua Tagovailoa? What about Wisconsin now that the Badgers were exposed in a stunning upset by Illinois? And is Texas really one of the Big 12’s two best teams?

Weeks like these always lead to overreactions, and that’s OK. We are creatures of the moment. Overreactions are just as much a part of the game as touchdowns. So with Saturday’s action mostly in the books, let’s look at the biggest overreactions from the action and how absurd — or completely warranted — they might be.

USC is, oddly, quietly, the most interesting team: I’m not sure the Trojans’ 41-14 thrashing of Arizona tells us a whole lot about this team that we didn’t already know. And what we know is that, for as frustrating as USC is sometimes, it’s also a fun team to watch when it’s playing at a high level. This remains a supremely athletic team that, at 4-3, still controls its Pac-12 South destiny. Other than a Nov. 2 game vs. Oregon, the Trojans will probably be favored in their remaining games if they rattle off some wins. Does that mean they will win all of those games? Based on this team’s track record, not necessarily, but it creates an interesting possibility, especially with Clay Helton’s job on the line.

Cal quarterback Chase Garbers must have been the Pac-12 MVP: OK, so it’s definitely going to be someone else, but Cal has unquestionably suffered with Garbers out over the past few weeks. Since Garbers sustained an apparent shoulder/collarbone injury, the Bears are 0-3, including a 21-17 loss to Oregon State on Saturday, and have averaged less than 14 points per game. Will Cal win another game this season? Maybe, but this team went from Pac-12 North contender to fringe bowl team with a quickness without Garbers.

Associated Press poll … 

1Alabama7-014861
2LSU7-014622
3Ohio State7-014294
4Clemson7-014083
5Oklahoma7-013435
6Penn State7-012247
7Florida7-111389
8Notre Dame5-110588
9Auburn6-1105411
10Georgia6-1103110
11Oregon6-197912
12Utah6-185213
13Wisconsin6-17676
14Baylor7-073218
15Texas5-262715
16SMU7-058719
17Minnesota7-057720
18Cincinnati6-146821
19Michigan5-244016
20Iowa5-234723
21Appalachian State6-028624
22Boise State6-122514
23Iowa State5-2185NR
24Arizona State5-213417
25Wake Forest6-1118NR

Others receiving votes: Memphis 87, Virginia 29, San Diego State 17, Pittsburgh 17, Washington 15, Navy 9, Texas A&M 6, Missouri 4, UCF 3, USC 3, Louisiana Tech 2, Tulane 1.

Stanford football “an average program at best, and we’re trending toward rock bottom”

From SBNation … I’m an optimist. Don’t be believe me? Before the season began, I was fantasizing about a National Championship. I also said that with the talent we have, 7-5 would be a terrible year. Now I’m starting to believe that the only way we make it to 7-5 is if every team on Stanford’s remaining schedule fails to show up. Yes, Stanford has gone 2-1 in its last three games with an upset over #15 Washington. But I’m feeling even worse about the team now than I did after our loss to Oregon.

The football program is in shambles. Before the season, I worried that a bad season would signal the end of Stanford’s reign over college football. Now I know the reign is over. Stanford football is an average program at best, and we’re trending toward rock bottom.

During the off-season, Shannon Turley was mysteriously fired by Stanford—even after keeping our players healthy and hungry year after year. Without Turley, Stanford is becoming increasingly depleted, without the depth to replace our injured talent. Against UCLA, we had our third-string quarterback and six total offensive linemen available. Some might excuse this as a “down year,” but if we remained consistently healthy for the past decade—and suddenly aren’t now—maybe we should find somebody who can keep the team healthy?

The worst part, though, is the part I never saw coming. I never thought David Shaw would be part of Stanford football’s downfall. I once was worried that Stanford’s downfall would come after Shaw left for the NFL—leaving us to look back on how we lost the best football coach in Stanford history. Never in a million years did I imagine that Shaw would be at the helm as things fell apart.

… Bill Connelly commented in his preseason analysis that ever since Shaw took over from Harbaugh, Stanford “acted like a house settling into its foundation — on average, it sinks slightly each year.” But Stanford football is now sinking faster than we ever could’ve imagined—it’s as though Shaw built his foundation on top of quicksand. And the excuses are running out quickly. Maybe it’s a bad season—maybe we’ve had bad luck with recent recruits—maybe it was just a bad game against UCLA. But all of these excuses ignore the trends that were forming around this coaching staff for quite some time. The Stanford Empire has come to an end. And unless the coaching staff takes a hard look at itself, it’s not coming back.

Read full story here

Arizona State head coach “embarrassed” by 21-3 loss to Utah

From SunDevilSource.com … After No. 17 Arizona State was dominated 21-3 by No. 13 Utah, head coach Herm Edwards expressed his disappointment with his how the Sun Devils played on Saturday night.

Opening statement:

“I was embarrassed with our football team when it came to the fouls. We lost our composure and I don’t believe in doing that kind of stuff. It just mars the football game. I’ve never been involved in a game where a team got 12 fouls. For some reason, we just lost our composure. I don’t know. I can figure that out, why, but I don’t know. That’s not the way we play and I apologized to [Utah] for that. With that being said I think we have to give these guys a lot of credit. They put a lot of pressure on our quarterback. They found ways to get to him and he was under duress most of the day.

(Junior running back) Eno (Benjamin) ran well at times. Defensively we kind of held in there for a while. I think a missed field got some air out of us. It would have helped us get to one score and then they hit a big run on us and that was about it for us. We were pretty much done. It was going to be pretty difficult to come back 18 points to a defense like this on the road so you’ve got to give these guys a lot of credit. I told the football team, ‘We’re going to find a lot about ourselves right now. We got the rest of the season left and we’ve got to find a way to regroup and go down to Los Angeles and play a football team that won this Thursday I believe it was. They won a game and they’ll be ready for us as well so I think second half of the season will tell a lot about us and where we’re at. They hit us in the mouth and they beat us up and credit to them.”

Continue reading story here

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16 Replies to “Pac-12 Notes”

  1. I question the def coaches. We all know there are injuries, but why are the new guys so out of synch on big plays? If you have young talent, simplify the defense so they can perform their jobs. It is one thing to be beat by a better player or great play, another thing to not be in the area where the ball is thrown or two guys covering the same receiver and leaving one wide open.

  2. Didnt Mel just say he wasnt gong to play kids who didnt want to compete?
    That kind of makes Maddox a mystery cause it sounds like he was doing ok while he was healthy.
    Maybe he thinks he is abandoning a sinking ship?
    Was Jones getting any PT?
    Why do you have to catch these guys in a bar and buy them a bunch of free drinks to find out whats really on their mind?

    1. But ep would you really agree with their gripes or take on why they decided to bolt? After hearing their side of the story I sure would like to hear as ole Paul Harvey used to say………:”The rest of the story,” aka the other side. Do you think you could HCMT to talk freely after a few drinks?

      1. I’m sure Mel has his radar on the highest level. I’m not predisposed to either the players or the coach. I have to think there is something else to the Maddox story because the red shirt thing doesnt make much sense to me

  3. Interesting about Maddox. Don’t know the back story so hesitant to comment and impune the kid’s character. I will say from personal experience that a person’s real character comes out during adversity. So far, that’s why I waited on evaluating HCMT so I could see how he reacts . So far, he’s been impressive, Same demeanor as the guy who took the reins back in December . Mike Mac? Complete opposite when things got dicey.

    Go Buffs

      1. VK, is that like when you heat butter and it separates and with out the water it is known as Clarified Butter………as I have some in my cupboard, but bought it at Trader Joe’s.

    1. So here ya go. Class ranking is interesting It is based on several things. One is the number of players signed. No good. Best way to judge is average points per player.

      So
      2015 83.05 12rh in the pac
      2016 83.53 10th in the pac
      2017 85.21 8th in the pac
      2018 84.83 9th in the pac
      2019 84.91 9th in the pac
      2020 84,55 10th in the pac

      See that is where CU Resides. At CU it is all about the coaching staff.

      Write it down so you don’t forget

      1. And one more thing.

        THE CUPBOARD IS BARE
        There is talent.
        There has been no development in 6.5 years and it shows.

        Just how it is

        CU is CU

        Go Buffs.

        Note: I am hoping that Ricks first HFC hire is gonna change all that

        1. Your opinions are once again not really based in fact, they’re rooted in how you “think” the world is, and you’re pretzeling again. You said and say that the cupboard was left bare, but here you say there is talent. What is it?

          And, regardless of how CU’s recruiting classes have compared in the Pac 12, at or near the bottom, the roster was in better shape from 2018-2019 than at any other coaching transition since Rick to Gary. Looking at recruiting in a vacuum you could say that CU is getting killed in recruiting by Alabama – yes, I’m being a little hyperbolic – Yes. Yes we are. We are also getting beaten in the Pac 12 vacuum.

          However, the roster was still in much better shape from 2018-2019 than at any other coaching transition since Rick to Gary. You haven’t even tried to use your “data” to refute that assertion because you cannot on this one. No way to spin that.

          You say there was no development for 6.5yrs, but… let’s take a little sampling.
          2015 recruits:
          Steven Montez – 3-star QB, some say he’ll have a chance to be drafted in the NFL and make a career of it. I’m skeptical, but… we’ll see. Was he recruited w/ NFL in his future? If so, then UTEP, NM State, and CU were the only ones to see that in him.

          Afolabi Laguda 2-star DB – Made the NFL – even if only for a minute

          Isaiah Oliver – 3-star DB – 2nd round pick, leaving early; Only other offer? New Mexico. Yeah, no development there.

          Jordan Carroll – 3-star/2star DL – Made the NFL

          Nick Fisher – 2-star, unrated DB – was a solid D1 DB

          Alex Kinney – unrated Punter – pretty darn good one, too.

          And, that doesn’t touch on the guys that came in w/ the 2013 and 2014 classes, some of whom are still playing, and starting, in the NFL.

          Now I know. It was entirely Leavitt who got those defensive players into the NFL. Yeah. Ok.

          Let’s look at some 2016 recruits then – where Leavitt never coached them:

          Colby Pursell – 2-star OL – My bet? Dude gets a shot at the NFL, and if not, he’s still a very solid D1 lineman. Sure could use him about now, yeah?

          Juwann Winfree – 4-star/3star WR; NFL? I think so. Of course, all Chev.

          Drew Lewis – 2-star LB out of JC (higher out of hs) – not quite NFL talent, but solid D1 player.

          Darrion Rakestraw – 2-star DB – may have supplanted Maddox, but only you know the inside story on that… His future is TBD, but seems a solid D1 DB. Of course, that only happened under this staff, yeah?

          Kabion Ento – 2star WR – having a cup of coffee in the NFL now. Yeah, must be all Chev.

          That’s just a sampling bub.

          If you look objectively, the last staff actually did a decent job of finding, recruiting and developing talent, relative to the three or four groups before them. Was it enough to get the team and program back to national relevance? Nope. Was it at least moving the needle a little off of zero? Yeah.

          I too hope Mel changes the trajectory significantly further, moving the needle back into the consistently winning side of the meter. Despite this year’s woes, I like what he is trying to do for CU, and how he appears to be going about it. It definitely starts with recruiting, and moves into developing. Regardless of whether they want to run spread, hybrid, air raid, NFL type offense, and 4/3, 3/4, 3-3-5 or other type of defense, you have to have the players who can win their matchups, and you have to put them in positions to do so.

          Here’s to hoping they can put together a solid game of complementary football and beat USC – or at least not get embarrassed completely.

          Go Buffs.

          1. Some said Montez could play in the nfl. Yup in the summer maybe. But not now. Can a good qb coach fix em? He hasn’t had one yet so maybe there is a chance eh?

            Yup I said talent. About 5-10 talented guys out of 110. make it 20.

            Perhaps not even the “Bear necessities”

            Looking for the bare necessities
            The simple bare necessities
            Forget about your worries and your strife
            I mean the bare necessities
            That’s why a bear can rest at ease

            So you list 10 out of 150 recruits. A couple of good ones there. But the ones who made if a coffee or a minute. Kinda indicate where CU is don’t ya know.

            Anyway your love for Mickey and that other guy burns deep. Bless you

            Up the Buffalo Beat USC

          2. Here’s your best comment, bub ” Kinda indicate where CU is don’t ya know.” That is EXACTLY my point. And, what’s scarier is that the 2018-2019 roster was still the best roster turned over to a new staff in about 20 years. That’s the sad reality of where CU is, indeed.

            Here’s to hoping Mel and Co’s recruiting efforts ramp up significantly.

            And dang, if that transfer portal ain’t a new crazy wrinkle for coaches to work to smooth out. Hopefully they can use it to their advantage at CU. Losing Maddox isn’t great. But, what can you do? Not a lot. Other than go find someone to replace him. Too bad they can’t just start this Friday, right?

            Go Buffs. Beat USC. Or, at least don’t get embarrassed.

          3. Juwann Winfree is with the Denver Broncos. Don’t believe he’s seen the field but with Emanuel Sanders now in SFO maybe he gets an opportunity?

      2. I see where Stu cut off replies but you had to post in a thread unrelated to our conversation. No problem, I will take the bait for the last time. If you bothered to look, the numbers I posted does include average points per player in its algorithm to take out the number of players signed per class bias. Nice try.

        Here is another weighted average composite ranking for the last 5 years across all the rating services through 2018 that has an even more intricate algorithm. Again, it takes out the number of players signed bias. If you look at CU’s numbers, it is basically in line with what you posted.
        But let’s take a look at Washington State, the team that goes to bowls and drilled CU the last three years. It’s also the team that gave up a gazillion points to UCLA and fired their d-coordinator mid-season and the mighty HCMT Buffs scored all of 10 points against:

        Washington State:
        General Recruiting Statistics
        Average Offer: 3.37 stars, 0.882 composite rating (12th in conference)
        Average Commit: 3.05 stars, 0.85 composite rating (11th in conference)
        Average # of Offers: 163.4 (4th in conference)
        Recruiting Style: Offers- Spray and Pray, Quality- Barrel Scraper

        Colorado:
        General Recruiting Statistics
        Average Offer: 3.46 stars, 0.89 composite rating (8th in conference)
        Average Commit: 3.07 stars, 0.85 composite rating (10th in conference)
        Average # of Offers: 143.6 (10th in conference)
        General Recruiting Statistics:
        Recruiting Style: Offers- Middle of the Road, Quality- Middle of the Road

        Yep, Wazzu has a worse recruiting profile (and talent apparently) than CU. Surprising when you consider all those 4 and 5-star studs must be dying to go to Pullman and freeze their ass off in front of 20,000 fans.

        Here is Washington State’s Record over the last few years:
        2015: 9-4 2018: 11-2
        2016: 8-5 2019: 4-3
        2017: 8-5

        Yep, all those excuses they can make about a bare cabinet and not being able to win. I think this quote form the site sums it up best:
        “But it’s not as if the Cougars are used to getting high profile recruits and Leach just isn’t performing up to expectations. While he’s unlikely to win a Pac-12 title with the air raid, Leach is doing exactly what you should do in a situation where the recruiting deck is stacked against you. Play a particular system and recruit players who fit it that might be overlooked by bigger programs. And it has worked. Washington State is in one of the more successful periods in their history. Unless Mike Leach’s twitter account makes his continued employment untenable (not completely unrealistic) he’ll continue to finish near the bottom of the Pac-12 recruiting metrics but continue to put up bowl eligible seasons.”

        No excuses program = winning programs = HCMT= Washington State
        Excuses + blame game = losing programs = Cornhole fans.

        Just to take a deeper dive into why individual player rankings are not infallible, here is a list of CU players in the NFL:
        Josh Tupou: .8321 Jimmy Smith: .8556 Akhello Witherspoon: .70000
        David Bakhtiari .7889 Ken Crawley: .8919 Tedric Thompson: .8457
        Nate Solder: .8556 Chidobe Awuzie: .8115 Isaiah Oliver: .84441
        Here is five star stud Yuri Wright: .9715

        This is the lane CU has to live in. Recruit and develop players (especially in the trenches). Mac2 did leave some holes. CU needs to reduce the talent gap to the top teams in the conference. But that is not the same as whining about a bare cabinet and making excuses. We should compete with the 6-12 ranked teams in the conference. Like Washington State. And I spared an Air Force comparison.

        I got a lot more, but I won’t even bother. You live in your alternative world whereby facts, reason and analysis don’t reside. So fine. Enjoy the rest of the season. It’s amusing to watch Cornholer fans blame Mike Riley, Bo Pellini and even Bill Callahan for all their problems about not winning and making excuses. Especially about the talent. Just like you. I’ll be at the USC game then out of country for a spell. You can thrill the readers of these pages with more of your acumen.

        I’ll be back to enjoy Tadball in the winter.

        But I will post a few things we can agree on Berlin:
        1. CU has to recruit better.
        2. Glad Mel Tucker is leading the program and not Mike Mac and there are holes to fill
        3. Were sick of CU Football losing.

        GO Buffs:

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