The good news - 2006 is over. The worst year of the modern era occurred last year and we all watched it with horror and amazement. It was ugly, it was frustrating. But if we can use that as the baseline, there is nowhere to go but up! 2007 will be a year to look for progress. It will not, however, be the year to look for championships. So with "progress" in mind, let's break it down.
Coaching
You know Dan Hawkins is goofy and lovable. You know that he had a mind-boggling winning percentage at Boise State. So he's got my full support and I am rooting for him. But for me, the jury is still out. When I hear him speak and read his quotes he seems to me to be, well, not very smart. Enthusiastic, optimistic, confident, funny - you bet. I like all those qualities but if he's "Einstein on the Sidelines", he hides it well. 2006 was a rebuilding year and he was a bit limited in what he could do in the playbook. 2007 will be a much better season on which to judge his intellectual capacities. Let the goofy genius emerge!
Offense
The offense was terrible last year, yet somehow we were still in almost every game. This year it will be much better. I don't believe that it will be great, but I think it will be significantly more efficient and productive.
At quarterback, we're likely to see the fruit of Dan's loins, Cody Hawkins. Cody seems like a great kid and a good leader. But, let's be honest, he's just a little bitty 'un. I sure hope he's Doug Flutie reincarnate but I think that it's more realistic to think that he's just going to be smart and efficient but not an overly productive little, tiny, eensy weensy fella. And short too.
Speaking of short, Hugh Charles is short. But he is a bad ass short dude. He is fast as hell and has great moves. And he's strong. Still, he's not the kind of guy who can carry 20-30 times a game all year. He'll need help and I'm hopeful that one of the other backs will step up to spell Hugh. It would be great to see Demitrius Sumler turn into a third down monster or something. It would also be great to see a blocking fullback on the field. Fullbacks are still legal in college football, right?
Now let's turn our attention to the receiving corps. At WR, we are in sad shape. Patrick Williams has fallen below expectations each of the last 2 years. The guy totally looks the part until he actually tries to catch the ball and then... doink! We do have 3 evidently talented true freshmen coming in. If one or more of them can be ready to play this fall, it would be a boon. If not, we are in deep, terrifying trouble. The good news is that we have some very talented tight ends (Geer, Devree, Sanders). So look for lots of outlet passes to RBs and TEs.
The O-line is the most critical piece of the puzzle. I'm not gonna lie to you, I am scared to death about this unit. There is not much depth here although there is some talent. But realistically we are going to be starting a true freshman on the line this year and that is never a harbinger of good things.
So in summary, the offense will be much better this year but still pretty shaky. But we will have a cute-as-a button, miniature quarterback. So. Adorable!
Defense
Last year the D kept us in a lot of games even when the O absolutely could not find the end-zone or, often, a first down. Collectively, they should receive the congressional medal of honor or something. This year, I expect them to be just as good or better if the O can control the ball just a bit and score occasionally.
The defensive tackle position is well manned by big, nasty, manly, ugly guys like George Hypolite and Brandon Nicolas. Love those guys. The DE spot should do well with Maurice Lucas and Alonzo Barrett. Solid group all around.
Then there is the usual stellar linebacking corp. This group is anchored by 4 year starter, Jordan Dizon. The other 2 joining him are Michael Sipili and Brad Jones. They are big, they are fast and they are well coached. This group is simply bad ass.
The DBs are also quite talented. Tyrone Wheatley will man one of the corners and he is among the best in the business. At one safety is Ryan Walters who will blow you the hell up, bro.
In summary, the D is quite good and should give opponents plenty of problems.
Special Teams
Sadly, Mason Crosby is gone. Kevin Eberhart takes over the kicking duties and should be solid but simply mortal and un-Crosbylike.
Stephone Robinson was a good return man for a couple of years. Those were good times. But last year he was simply a disaster and was eventually benched. He could regain the job in this his senior year. But other candidates exist as well, so stay tuned on this one.
Matt DiLallo was the punter last year and he was unspectacular. Perhaps someone will inform him that he is a punter for Colorado and suddenly he'll start booming them. Besause that's what we do here - put that rock into the stratosphere, dog.
Summary
So there you have it, Friends. A completely optimistic, realistic, wild-ass projection of your 2007 Colorado Buffaloes. To recap:
* Defense - bad ass
* Special Teams - mystery
* Offense - adorable
* Coaching - goofy
GO BUFFS!
In related news, Alec Baldwin is now the head coach over at Nebraska. He was awesome in that one movie a while back... you know the one with that other guy. But he could never handle the weak side blitz, so I like our chances over the Fuskers.
