What's new
AllBuffs | Unofficial fan site for the University of Colorado at Boulder Athletics programs

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • Prime Time. Prime Time. Its a new era for Colorado football. Consider signing up for a club membership! For $20/year, you can get access to all the special features at Allbuffs, including club member only forums, dark mode, avatars and best of all no ads ! But seriously, please sign up so that we can pay the bills. No one earns money here, and we can use your $20 to keep this hellhole running. You can sign up for a club membership by navigating to your account in the upper right and clicking on "Account Upgrades". Make it happen!

2021 Offseason Thread

I hear people talking about the recruiting infrastructure... and I don't actually get what's happening there. What's the issue exactly?

Also, Chev got tons of props for being one of the best recruiters in the Pac-12... but since KD took over he's not really doing recruiting anymore?

What's the problem and how do we fix it?
I think your second question answers your first. There are some decent recruiters on this staff. Something changed between 2019 and 2020 for those guys. They didn't just suddenly forget how to recruit.
 
Recruiting ops needs a full revamp, top to bottom. It should start today. If he doesn’t make the needed changes, it will be a real sign of KD’s future. This is the most important thing I will be watching near-term.

it needs a McKinsey type review and overhaul.
KD can make changes to his coaching and recruiting staff structure, but only within the framework of what Rick George and Lance Carl allow. If RG and LC aren't committed to winning championships, the coach can only do so much.
 
Mentioned it last night, but will be very interested to see if Fauria and/or Olsen are ready to make an impact in 2021. We have several playmakers at WR, but no real threat out of the backfield or at TE really hinders the offense.
 
Mentioned it last night, but will be very interested to see if Fauria and/or Olsen are ready to make an impact in 2021. We have several playmakers at WR, but no real threat out of the backfield or at TE really hinders the offense.
Yeah they really need to get the RBs more involved in the passing game outside of screens.

As far as TE goes, hopefully Russell comes back healthy and then as you said, Fauria and Olsen are able to step into big roles. It will also be interesting to see how Pell develops in the position.
 
Chev, Summers, Hagan, Coach Mike, Meat, Wilson and most importantly, Rick George and Lance Carl have all been around successful recruiting operations across multiple staffs in multiple conferences and know what it takes.

From the top down (RG and LC), this is either going to be a program that chooses to put an emphasis on recruiting to compete for Pac 12 championships, or they are going to choose to be content with fighting for 6-6 every season. They are not ignorant to what it takes.
What about the head coach? The guy who has to actually create the plan? The assistants all follow the direction of the HC - Chev seems to have moved on to wanting to be an OC and trying his hardest not to be pigeon holed as just a recruiter. Hagan has been a position coach at CU his entire coaching career and just seems...comfortable.

I agree that Rick George and Carl are not ignorant to what it takes to build a recruiting operation, but they’re also the guys who dismantled one this past offseason and hired a guy who hasn’t recruited since the days before Twitter existed. Who in the program has the vision and will make it happen?
 
I think this team has talent. We really need a QB. Lewis and Shrout will be a good competition. I like Lewis because he can move, but if Shrout can get the ball into our playmakers hands then I am fine with him also. Our young receivers are going to be excellent, if we can get them the ball. Our OL made a nice step forward, and need to continue that trajectory. Our RB will be solid again next year, once we get Fontenot back.
Obviously we need some help at LB, I think it will work itself out, we might see a freshman take the starting roll. Our DBs look promising, and could be a strength next year.
I feel good about this team moving forward. If we remember that we had no spring ball, only a few practices before our fist game, with a new staff, I think what this team did was amazing. 4-2 I will take it. Good season to build on and get these kids ready for next year!

I share your feelings on the upside of this team. Despite the limited season, some players significantly improved and Bro really broke out. Noyer broke out, but we have seen some limitations--time will tell if he is able to overcome the shoulder injury. It was great to see Lewis perform well, so with the TN transfer, I'm not as concerned about the QB position. Gonzales played excellent as a True Frosh. Isaiah Lewis was a pleasant surprise.

CU has several places of need and need to continue to build overall quality depth. I agree that the recruiting infrastructure needs an overhaul, however Scheck makes a good point that CU does have some experienced recruiters on staff, so they just have to perform. I expect some attrition, and hopefully it is good attrition. I hope that CU is active on the Transfer market, at least in properly evaluating and reaching out to players that can be a fit. IMO, on the Transfer market, unless your team is loaded, you need to be in the top 1/2 of your conference, and 40 or better in the P65. If you are Top-30, then I would see a substantial jump within the Pac12.

I'll be interested to watch Oregon's bowl game. My suspicion is that the overall talent of the PAC-12 is well below that of its P65 peers. If that is the case, CU can compete well in conference. IMO, UT was bigger, stronger, and faster at practically every position.

My hope is that the defense can sort of recruit itself somewhat. Again, the coaches and infrastructure have to come through. Despite Texas out-athlete-ing and gashing the defense, it was able to shine for a few series in the 2nd quarter. Despite the gashing, I hope the consensus is that Summer's is building an up and coming quality PAC-12 defense that is fun to play in. Maybe some quality recruits or transfers can look at film and view CU's defense as an opportunity in waiting. Certainly, help at LB is a must and they can never have enough good players in the secondary or on the Dline.
 
KD can make changes to his coaching and recruiting staff structure, but only within the framework of what Rick George and Lance Carl allow. If RG and LC aren't committed to winning championships, the coach can only do so much.
Why is this the case with RG? Why did he undo what Mel built in recruiting ops?
 
If Mangham isn’t in the transfer portal soon I will be surprised.

I'll be interested to see if this happens. If it does not, who knows, a switch to LB could already be in the works and just not announced. I think CU should try and keep Mangham around for depth at either RB or LB; but he has to be happy staying. If Mang leaves, CU has Brou, but behind that Fontenot and Smith are coming off injuries and Clayton is a ? until everyone is sure that he is firmly in the fold. We all know Davis is not the answer.
 
What about the head coach? The guy who has to actually create the plan? The assistants all follow the direction of the HC - Chev seems to have moved on to wanting to be an OC and trying his hardest not to be pigeon holed as just a recruiter. Hagan has been a position coach at CU his entire coaching career and just seems...comfortable.

I agree that Rick George and Carl are not ignorant to what it takes to build a recruiting operation, but they’re also the guys who dismantled one this past offseason and hired a guy who hasn’t recruited since the days before Twitter existed. Who in the program has the vision and will make it happen?
Dorrell can only create a plan that fits within the framework of what Rick George and Lance Carl allow. There is plenty of experience and knowledge of what needs to happen to get recruiting where it needs to be. If Dorrell needs to leverage some of his assistants who have been more heavily involved in today's recruiting environment, then I trust that he will. End of the day, the recruiting operation is only going as far as RG and LC allow it go.
 
Why is this the case with RG? Why did he undo what Mel built in recruiting ops?
Kind of the million $$ question, right? If you believe the rumors, MT was blurring the lines between aggressive recruiting tactics and potential scandals. Then COVID hit and they downsized more. Hopefully, they can find a balance between getting back to aggressive recruiting, without crossing any lines that CU football isn't comfortable crossing.
 
Kind of the million $$ question, right? If you believe the rumors, MT was blurring the lines between aggressive recruiting tactics and potential scandals. Then COVID hit and they downsized more. Hopefully, they can find a balance between getting back to aggressive recruiting, without crossing any lines that CU football isn't comfortable crossing.

I think all of that contributes, also losing Smell and multiple assistants set them back--at least to a point to regroup. Also, as I remember, some of the recruiting infrastructure left on their own, others may have been downsized, others forced out. RG/LC and KD need to make sure the regrouping is successful.
 
Kind of the million $$ question, right? If you believe the rumors, MT was blurring the lines between aggressive recruiting tactics and potential scandals. Then COVID hit and they downsized more. Hopefully, they can find a balance between getting back to aggressive recruiting, without crossing any lines that CU football isn't comfortable crossing.
There’s the rub. If the recruiting operation was dismantled out of fear that they were crossing lines they didn’t feel comfortable crossing, then let’s lay it out for fans - we’re going to try to compete as best we can while maintaining our integrity and trying to do it the “right way”. Don’t tell me our goal is to compete for conference championships if you know as a program we are not willing to blur the lines that would be required to do it.

I tend to think that taking the high ground in recruiting puts us at a significant competitive disadvantage, but I understand if that’s how we want to operate our program - just don’t tell me that our goal is to win championships.
 
There’s the rub. If the recruiting operation was dismantled out of fear that they were crossing lines they didn’t feel comfortable crossing, then let’s lay it out for fans - we’re going to try to compete as best we can while maintaining our integrity and trying to do it the “right way”. Don’t tell me our goal is to compete for conference championships if you know as a program we are not willing to blur the lines that would be required to do it.

I tend to think that taking the high ground in recruiting puts us at a significant competitive disadvantage, but I understand if that’s how we want to operate our program - just don’t tell me that our goal is to win championships.
It'll be interesting to see RG's goals going forward as I feel like they have been scaled back from his previous "playing for championships" quotes he throws out.
 
Yeah they really need to get the RBs more involved in the passing game outside of screens.

As far as TE goes, hopefully Russell comes back healthy and then as you said, Fauria and Olsen are able to step into big roles. It will also be interesting to see how Pell develops in the position.
I hope Pell was just an experiment at TE due to having to play walk-ons and they move him back to LB.
 
There’s the rub. If the recruiting operation was dismantled out of fear that they were crossing lines they didn’t feel comfortable crossing, then let’s lay it out for fans - we’re going to try to compete as best we can while maintaining our integrity and trying to do it the “right way”. Don’t tell me our goal is to compete for conference championships if you know as a program we are not willing to blur the lines that would be required to do it.

I tend to think that taking the high ground in recruiting puts us at a significant competitive disadvantage, but I understand if that’s how we want to operate our program - just don’t tell me that our goal is to win championships.
I thought it was telling that Rick George's comments and tone were drastically different when he announced the Dorrell hire, compared to when he announced Tucker. With Tucker, he mentioned recruiting at a high level as the way back to competing for champinoships over and over and over (and Tucker did the same thing). With Dorrell it was so much more about teaching, developing, leader of men, integrity, etc. Recruiting was a foot note for both RG and KD in their public comments.
 
I thought it was telling that Rick George's comments and tone were drastically different when he announced the Dorrell hire, compared to when he announced Tucker. With Tucker, he mentioned recruiting at a high level as the way back to competing for champinoships over and over and over (and Tucker did the same thing). With Dorrell it was so much more about teaching, developing, leader of men, integrity, etc. Recruiting was a foot note for both RG and KD in their public comments.
RG was also very clear that he wanted someone who was stable for the program and the athletes. He had never said that before and has restated that a few times since then.
 
I thought it was telling that Rick George's comments and tone were drastically different when he announced the Dorrell hire, compared to when he announced Tucker. With Tucker, he mentioned recruiting at a high level as the way back to competing for champinoships over and over and over (and Tucker did the same thing). With Dorrell it was so much more about teaching, developing, leader of men, integrity, etc. Recruiting was a foot note for both RG and KD in their public comments.
It’s almost like they completely forgot why they fired MacIntyre.
 
It’s almost like they completely forgot why they fired MacIntyre.
1609350933282.png

Cringe Reaction GIF
 
It would also appear that our OL has adequate talent and depth to play at a reasonable level throughout an entire year. Not elite, but definitely serviceable. Really no excuses for poor QB play. Plenty of options to throw to and a very good RB to hand the ball to. Play action should work for this offense next year. Teams will be keying on Broussard and daring the QB (whoever that ends up being) to beat them with his arm & legs.
 
I hope Pell was just an experiment at TE due to having to play walk-ons and they move him back to LB.
I hope so too. I found it shocking they moved him to TE... watching his tape on defense is a treat. He's blowing people up, ranging all over... it seemed 100% clear cut that he was a future contributor on defense...
 
I share your feelings on the upside of this team. Despite the limited season, some players significantly improved and Bro really broke out. Noyer broke out, but we have seen some limitations--time will tell if he is able to overcome the shoulder injury. It was great to see Lewis perform well, so with the TN transfer, I'm not as concerned about the QB position. Gonzales played excellent as a True Frosh. Isaiah Lewis was a pleasant surprise.

CU has several places of need and need to continue to build overall quality depth. I agree that the recruiting infrastructure needs an overhaul, however Scheck makes a good point that CU does have some experienced recruiters on staff, so they just have to perform. I expect some attrition, and hopefully it is good attrition. I hope that CU is active on the Transfer market, at least in properly evaluating and reaching out to players that can be a fit. IMO, on the Transfer market, unless your team is loaded, you need to be in the top 1/2 of your conference, and 40 or better in the P65. If you are Top-30, then I would see a substantial jump within the Pac12.

I'll be interested to watch Oregon's bowl game. My suspicion is that the overall talent of the PAC-12 is well below that of its P65 peers. If that is the case, CU can compete well in conference. IMO, UT was bigger, stronger, and faster at practically every position.

My hope is that the defense can sort of recruit itself somewhat. Again, the coaches and infrastructure have to come through. Despite Texas out-athlete-ing and gashing the defense, it was able to shine for a few series in the 2nd quarter. Despite the gashing, I hope the consensus is that Summer's is building an up and coming quality PAC-12 defense that is fun to play in. Maybe some quality recruits or transfers can look at film and view CU's defense as an opportunity in waiting. Certainly, help at LB is a must and they can never have enough good players in the secondary or on the Dline.
I agree with every thing you said. I would like to see that game replayed with our starting front 7. I would think with Sami and Landman and Mustafa we dont give up that kind of yardage on the ground and get more pressure on the QB. Our D looked gassed by the end of that game, lack of rotation took its toll.
 
Lewis is the best QB on campus. He should get all of the reps in spring ball and fall camp with the first team. Drew Carter and Shrout can work with the 2nd or 3rd team offense. Got to work on depth at several positions.
 
Back
Top