Random Thoughts – Vol. V

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Random Thoughts – Volume V – December 30, 2018

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Buff Trivia Questions of the Week … Which Buffs hold CU bowl records in the following categories …

Most career passing yards:

• Koy Detmer
• Joel Klatt
• Mike Moschetti
• Kordell Stewart

Most career rushing yards:

• Bobby Anderson
• Eric Bieniemy
• Cortlen Johnson
• Rashaan Salaam

Most career receiving yards:

• Rae Carruth
• Darrin Chiaverini
• James Kidd
• Michael Westbrook

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New Year’s Wishes … Buffs destined to win the Pac-12 in 2019? 

It’s only happened once in over 120 years of Colorado football.

There has only been one decade in school history in which Colorado has not one at least one conference championship in football.

The rundown of CU’s 26 conference titles:

• 1890’s – four titles (all in the Colorado Football Association)
• 1900’s – five titles (four with Colorado Football Association; one with Colorado Faculty Athletic Conference)
• 1910’s – two titles (both with Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference)
• 1920’s – two titles (both with Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference)
• 1930’s – four titles (three with Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference; one with Mountain States Conference)
• 1940’s – three titles (all three with Mountain States Conference)
• 1950’s – no titles … Unfortunately for CU (and the rest of the nation), Oklahoma under Bud Wilkinson went 60-1-1 in Big 7/8 play that decade, with the Buffs inflicting one of the blemishes, a 21-21 tie in 1952;
• 1960’s – one title – 1961 Big Eight champions
• 1970’s – one title – 1976 Big Eight champions
• 1980’s – one title – 1989 Big Eight champions
• 1990’s – two titles – 1990 and 1991 Big Eight champions
• 2000’s – one title – 2001 Big 12 champions

So … if the Buffs are going to maintain a streak which is now five decades long, they will have to win the 2019 Pac-12 title.

As head coach Mel Tucker has said, “Why not us? Why not CU?” …

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New Year’s Wishes … CU Coaching Staff … Three spots left to be filled

Colorado head coach Mel Tucker was in Atlanta Saturday for the Peach Bowl game between Florida and Michigan. With recruiting in a “dead period”, it certainly makes sense for Tucker and his family to be spending some time back home in Georgia.

It also makes sense for Tucker to making – and maintaining – relationships in the coaching community.

After all, Tucker still has three coaching positions to fill.

Seven members of the coaching staff are known.

On offense … Offensive coordinator (and quarterbacks), Jay Johnson; wide receivers (and recruiting coordinator), Darrin Chiaverini; running backs, Darian Hagan; offensive line, Chris Kapilovic; 

On defense … Defensive coordinator (and safeties) Tyson Summers; inside linebackers (and special teams) Ross Els; defensive line, Jimmy Brumbaugh

Positions on the field which are not yet covered are cornerbacks, outside linebackers and tight ends (insert joke about having an active tight ends coach here).

Mel Tucker kept three coaches from the Mike MacIntyre staff in Chiaverini, Hagan, and Els. The four new hires, including both coordinators, are from the east coast.

On paper, at least, the seven hires are true to his insistence that Colorado will not only recruit in California and Texas – CU’s main out-of-state pipelines over the years – but will recruit nationally.

“We plan to keep those pipelines and actually enhance those pipelines and make them even stronger,” Tucker said. “The west coast, California, Texas, Louisiana are critical. A program such as this has to recruit nationally and let’s not forget our own state. There are tremendous players here and we have to make sure we keep them home and we’ll do everything we can do to do that”.

In the early Signing period, Colorado signed 17 new players.

For the first time since 2007, Colorado failed to sign a single player from the state of Texas.

Colorado signed four players from the state of California. The last year CU signed fewer than four players in a year? Try 2001.

While the next three hires will ultimately be judged by CU’s production on the field, recruiting is the life blood of successful football.

Here’s hoping that the next three hires will have some experience recruiting west of the Mississippi.

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New Year’s wishes … CU recruiting … what’s out there

Speaking of recruiting …

According to CU’s press release on Signing Day, Colorado has 67 scholarship players on the roster. Adding the 17 players signed on December 20th, that makes 84 scholarship Buffs.

With an 85 scholarship limit, that would seemingly put the new coaching staff in a bind when it comes to signing additional players in February.

Well, yes and no.

While there will not be double-digit signing in February, but an addition of 6-8 players would not be out of the question.

Some of the players the Buffs will be after the holiday dead period ends January 10th:

— Tarik Luckett, WR/Ath, — Rivals bio … 247 Sports bio … A three-star prospect who has been a CU commit since September. Luckett opted not to sign in December, expressing a desire to meet the new coaching staff before finalizing his commitment;

— La’Vontae Shenault, WR — Rivals bio … 247 Sports bio … A four-star prospect according to Rivals (three-stars at 247 Sports), Laviska Shenault’s younger brother was a Texas Tech commit from June to December. Shenault has offers from over a dozen Power Five schools;

— Kyle Ford, WR — Rivals bio … 247 Sports bio … A five-star prospect, Ford took an official visit to Colorado in June, and has been a big target for Colorado for this entire recruiting season. With offers from schools like USC, Washington and Oregon, CU is a long-shot for Ford’s services;

— Tuasivi Nomura, DB — Rivals bio … 247 Sports bio … A three-star prospect according to both Rivals and 247 Sports, Nomura, who took an official visit to Colorado in December, would be a huge get for the Buffs in a position of need. USC, however, is considered to be the favorite for Nomura’s services;

— Jamal Hill, DB — Rivals bio … 247 Sports bio … A three-star prospect according to both Rivals and 247 Sports. A safety from Morrow, Georgia, Hill has almost three dozen offers from around the country, including Alabama, Oregon, Nebraska and Michigan. If Mel Tucker & Co. are truly going to go “national” in recruiting, this would be a good place to start showing it;

— Cam’Ron Johnson, OL — Rivals bio … 247 Sports bio … A three-star prospect at both Rivals and 247 Sports, Johnson was a CU commit from July until November, when Mike MacIntyre was fired. Johnson did not sign with any team on December 20th, and remains in play for Colorado.

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New Year’s Wishes … CU men’s basketball … hopes and prayers

The past two seasons, the CU men’s basketball team has gone 11-5 and 9-5 in non-conference play, only to post losing records in Pac-12 play.

The Buffs went 9-3 in non-conference play to open the 2018-19 season.

Anyone believe that a winning Pac-12 record is in the offing as the calendar turns to January?

One thing going for the Buffs is the fact that the Pac-12 in basketball – like it has been in football – is down. With the non-conference schedule all but finished, the Pac-12 has been lackluster, at best, against the rest of the country. There have been numerous stories about how the Pac-12 may only be a one-bid league this March (stories predicting a one-bid Pac-12 can be found here and here).

This being the case, there is hope for a good – but certainly not great – Buff squad to make some noise in the Pac-12.

Unfortunately, for seemingly the eighth consecutive season since Colorado joined the Pac-12, the Buffs start conference play on the road. And, to make matters worse, the Buffs open Pac-12 play against the Arizona schools (at Arizona, Thurs., Jan. 3rd, 7:00 p.m., MT, FS1; at Arizona State, Sat., Jan. 5th, 4:00 p.m., MT, Pac-12 Networks).

Colorado has two all-time wins against Arizona in Tucson … with both wins coming in 1960.

Colorado has one all-time win against Arizona State in Tempe, with that win coming in CU’s first season in the Pac-12. The Sun Devils haven’t always been that good, yet always found ways to beat the Buffs … and now the Sun Devils are the conference’s only ranked team.

A slow start to CU’s Pac-12 conference season?

Not unusual … and not unexpected.

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New Year’s Wishes … CU women’s basketball

Colorado women’s basketball teams have had no issues with non-conference play under third-year head coach JR Payne. The Buffs are 10-1 so far this season, which sounds great.

Until you realize that the Buffs were also 10-1 in Payne’s first season, then 9-2 last year.

Once Pac-12 play began, however, the Buffs were not able to sustain any sense of momentum, finishing 5-13 in conference play both seasons.

This year, can better things be expected from the Buffs? After all, in the current women’s AP Top 25, there are five Pac-12 teams … and that doesn’t even include CU’s first Pac-12 opponent, undefeated (11-0) Utah (Sunday, 1:00 p.m., MT, Pac-12 Networks).

“We’re coming in playing good basketball,” Payne told the Daily Camera. “I would hate to have a 10-1 record and come in limping into conference play and not feel really good about how we’re playing.”

CU, which has won four in a row, is slotted at No. 44 in the women’s basketball RPI rankings, which Payne said, “tells you that we’ve played really good teams in our preseason.”

Fingers crossed …

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Buff Trivia Questions of the Week … Answers

CU career bowl records

Passing:    (single game record: Koy Detmer, 396 yards v. Washington, ’96 Holiday Bowl)

Kordell Stewart ……… 3 games … 36-of- 76 … 546 yards … 3 touchdowns … 3 interceptions
Koy Detmer……………. 2 games … 26-of-46 … 392 yards … 3 touchdowns … 0 interceptions
Mike Moschetti………. 2 games … 26-of-48 … 380 yards … 5 touchdowns … 1 interception
Joel Klatt……………….. 1 game ….  24-of-33 … 333 yards …  2 touchdowns … 0 interceptions

Rushing:    (single game record: Bobby Anderson, 254 yards v. Alabama, ’69 Liberty Bowl)

Bobby Anderson………. 2 games … 52 carries for 362 yards … 5 touchdowns
Eric Bieniemy ………….  3 games … 70 carries for 296 yards … 3 touchdowns
Cortlen Johnson……….  3 games … 26 carries for 230 yards … 2 touchdowns
Kordell Stewart ……….. 3 games … 23 carries for 222 yards … 1 touchdown
Rashaan Salaam ………. 2 games … 50 carries for 218 yards … 6 touchdowns

Receiving:      (single game record: Rae Carruth, 162 yards v. Washington, ’96 Holiday Bowl)

Michael Westbrook…… 4 games … 14 receptions for 283 yards … 1 touchdown
Rae Carruth …………….. 4 games … 10 receptions for 193 yards … 2 touchdowns
Darrin Chiaverini ……..  3 games … 10 receptions for 190 yards … 2 touchdowns
James Kidd ……………… 4 games … 5 receptions for 173 yards … 0 touchdowns

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