You all need to relax.

[Shldr2Shldr]

Buffs had a bad game. It happens. It happens to everyone. 2 Turnovers and a punt return for a TD in the span of 10min sunk us.

We were also without our 2 best defenders.

The sky is not falling. The buffs are not imploding. Young teams have bad games.

I was pissed saturday because we should have won. I was pissed after CSU, ASU, Cal, and OSU for the same reason. There are so many things going against the buffs that everyone seems to ignore. 1) We are the 3rd youngest team in FBS, and the 1st youngest in NCAA. Over half of the recruiting class that would now be juniors is gone and then there are the ones that just aren't contributing anyway. We simply do not have the physically maturity to match up with most teams. 2) We were arguably the worst team in NCAAFB in 2012. Being mad about 15 points losses to bowl teams is an improvement over what we were in 2012. 3) The glory days that the majority of you were around for are gone. They do not matter to the kids we recruit. They do not matter to the media. They only matter to fans of the program. That history was so long ago, and we have been so bad for so long, this staff is building a program from scratch, they are not rebuilding.

HCMM and his staff need to be held accountable after the season. He needs to make changes on his staff, but wholesale changes, an entire new staff, or swapping out starting QB's just to swap out starting QB's will do more damage than good. If we are ever going to get out of this hole, we cannot continually start from scratch.

Prepare yourselves for a disappointing finish. For 0 conference wins. We are competing in a conference where the worst teams can still score 40+. A conference where the best teams can compete and blow each other out. A conference that is continually improving from top to bottom. We are not in a good situation for building a program, but HCMM is taking steps towards that goal. We will get there. I know that buff fans have been patient for a long time. There finally appears to be a plan in place though and we need to be patient with this coach and let the process happen. Will he take us back to conference titles? I doubt it. However I think he will get us back to at least bowl games and winning seasons if we let him.

 

[absinthe]

I fully agree with you people also need to stop saying **** like "look we lost this game by 52 last year PROGRESS" this wasn't the same UW team, they turned over a coach they've been playing poorly lost their starting RB from last year to the league and also have a Soph QB. This was a very disappointing loss in a game that was there for the taking, it is ok for people to say that as well.

 

[Bufffan68]

We are competing in a conference where the worst teams can still score 40+. A conference where the best teams can compete and blow each other out. A conference that is continually improving from top to bottom.

Not only did Mac inherit the worst BCS program in 2012, substandard facilities and an utter lack of talent. He also finds himself in a conference that is arguably, from top to bottom, the best in CFB. Considering all the strikes against him and RG, we are making great strides. I wish the kids would stop making stupid mistakes...when that happens we win.

 

[Shldr2Shldr]

I fully agree with you people also need to stop saying **** like "look we lost this game by 52 last year PROGRESS" this wasn't the same UW team, they turned over a coach they've been playing poorly lost their starting RB from last year to the league and also have a Soph QB. This was a very disappointing loss in a game that was there for the taking, it is ok for people to say that as well.

It is disappointing. It is fine to be upset. I was upset saturday and sunday because of the loss. But its not like we lost to Montana State and its not like we got blown out. We made mistakes and a veteran team made us pay for them. But acting like the sky is falling and that we need to start over with a new coaching staff is absurd.

 

[goalline]

I agree with the OP. The effect of these disappointing losses is that I have delayed bowl hopes until 2016.

 

[Quattro]

I agree with the OP. The effect of these disappointing losses is that I have delayed bowl hopes until 2016.

Not sure I understand your conclusion. The close losses should make you more hopeful for 2015 seeing as how we've lost 5 games by 40 combined points and we return almost all of the contributors off of this year's team

 

[Shldr2Shldr]

I agree with the OP. The effect of these disappointing losses is that I have delayed bowl hopes until 2016.

I haven't. I expect 7-6 next year. We SHOULD start 4-0 next year. We then have OSU WSU on the schedule. Both will be breaking in new QB's. Our 7th is tougher to find but the Arizona game at home is probably the best shot. The home slate next year is brutal though. Oregon, USC, Arizona, Stanford.

Those worried about ticket sales, should relax as well. Potentially 4 top 25 teams coming to Boulder, and what could very well be a couple top 10 teams. Those kind of games make having season tickets worth while. People will come to see those teams play.

 

[goalline]

Not sure I understand your conclusion. The close losses should make you more hopeful for 2015 seeing as how we've lost 5 games by 40 combined points and we return almost all of the contributors off of this year's team

That goes both ways. I think those same players will do better, but will still make some of the same mistakes. I thought we'd start out 4-0, or 3-1 this season. Even if we manage that next year, we still need 3-4 more wins. I only expect 2 additional unless other teams drop back. I don't see WU, Cal, or OSU all taking big steps back. I hope you are right though.

 

[Shldr2Shldr]

That goes both ways. I think those same players will do better, but will still make some of the same mistakes. I thought we'd start out 4-0, or 3-1 this season. Even if we manage that next year, we still need 3-4 more wins. I only expect 2 additional unless other teams drop back. I don't see WU, Cal, or OSU all taking big steps back. I hope you are right though.

Luckily we don't play Cal or UW next year.

OSU will definitely take a step back without Mannion.
WSU will take a step back without Halliday

 

[Quattro]

That goes both ways. I think those same players will do better, but will still make some of the same mistakes. I thought we'd start out 4-0, or 3-1 this season. Even if we manage that next year, we still need 3-4 more wins. I only expect 2 additional unless other teams drop back. I don't see WU, Cal, or OSU all taking big steps back. I hope you are right though.

I doubt OSU has another Mannion in the wings ready to go. Mannion won that game for them against us. Cal will be better but they also won't play defense leaving the other team in the game more than not. UW needs to find a QB.

 

[patebuff]

Guys, calm down. Drunk Panda will be here soon to set us all straight!

 

[Dark Bohner]

Meh. I just hear excuses. Sure those things are true, but it doesn't change the fact that this team can't finish. They have held leads in the second half 5 times and lost four of them. The team can play ball, so not sure about not being able to match up physically. They just need to learn how to stop making stupid mistakes.

 

[Quattro]

Meh. I just hear excuses. Sure those things are true, but it doesn't change the fact that this team can't finish. They have held leads in the second half 5 times and lost four of them. The team can play ball, so not sure about not being able to match up physically. They just need to learn how to stop making stupid mistakes.

Says the person who pretty much refuses to acknowledge improvement

 

[AeroBuff99]

Lose Big --> Lose Close --> Win Close --> Win Big

That is the progression we are working through. In 2012 we were left of Lose Big, 2013 we progressed to Lose Big with an occasional Lose Close. We are firmly in the Lose Close stage this year. We should keep progressing and hit the Win Close stage next year, which means hopefully a 7-6 record and a bowl trip. By 2016 I hope we are firmly in the upper end of the Win Close giving a record of 8-4. By 2017 I hope we are firmly seated as a legitimate contender, but that might be a challenge with breaking in a new starter at QB, assuming Sefo starts and survives injury free the next two years.

 

[Deleted member 807]

Meh. I just hear excuses. Sure those things are true, but it doesn't change the fact that this team can't finish. They have held leads in the second half 5 times and lost four of them. The team can play ball, so not sure about not being able to match up physically. They just need to learn how to stop making stupid mistakes.

This is a key point.
The team doesn't lack physical talent so much as it lacks the ability to play at a high level for a full 60 minutes.

The team had enough physical talent to make UW look bad on both sides of the ball for the first 26 minutes. The team had enough talent to take Cal and OSU to 2OT.

But the team is prone to panic and looses consistency at one point or another.

The talent this team could use is mental toughness to play like they do during their best quarter for the entire game. It's not necessarily a depth issue, as the team comes out cold in the opening quarter (USC) or after the half (CSU, Washington, UCLA, UMass, Cal). The players just haven't come out strong at the beginning of both halfs yet.

 

[Mr. Babar]

Surprised any of us still give a dang... proud of Buff nation for hanging with the team - we all do need to relax, getting bent out of shape in a major way ain't helping.

HCMM or bust... we can't go another direction for at least another year or two, and if we haven't started to turn the corner by then we are a full decade into the crapper. May be too late to turn it around.

 

[Deleted member 807]

Surprised any of us still give a dang... proud of Buff nation for hanging with the team - we all do need to relax, getting bent out of shape in a major way ain't helping.

HCMM or bust... we can't go another direction for at least another year or two, and if we haven't started to turn the corner by then we are a full decade into the crapper. May be too late to turn it around.

We've tried relaxing during the Hawkins Era.
We've tried getting amped up during the Embree Era.

You get further being feisty. Sunshine pumping and rubber stamping just breeds complacency. Complacency breeds years of mediocracy.

 

[Colorado Track Fan]

Surprised any of us still give a dang... proud of Buff nation for hanging with the team - we all do need to relax, getting bent out of shape in a major way ain't helping.

HCMM or bust... we can't go another direction for at least another year or two, and if we haven't started to turn the corner by then we are a full decade into the crapper. May be too late to turn it around.

I agree. HCMM or bust. Stick with him for seven or eight years minimum. No matter what.

 

[Shldr2Shldr]

We've tried relaxing during the Hawkins Era.
We've tried getting amped up during the Embree Era.

You get further being feisty. Sunshine pumping and rubber stamping just breeds complacency. Complacency breeds years of mediocracy.

No one has said that coach gets a free pass. No one has said that the losing is ok. It is however understandable. Trying to swap out the coaching staff or the starting QB just because we aren't winning right now is irresponsible.

We need a new ST coordinator. We probably need a new DC. We need some recruiting prowess on staff. We need players to mature. Quickly. We also need to be patient and give HCMM time. This was not an overnight job. This was not going to be an instant turn around. It was going to be a grind. It was going to be a progression. Guess what, we are progressing. We are improving. Is it as fast as you or I or slider or tini or duff or buffed would like? No. Is it going as smooth as we would like? No. It is happening though. In basically every statistical category it is happening. Freaking out because another team took advantage of our mistakes just gets everyones blood pressure up, which can't be healthy for a lot of you. UW is a solid team. A solid team we should have beaten. I don't think there is anyone on this board that isn't disappointed by this weekend's events. But the knee jerk reactions are what got CU into this mess in the first place.

 

[slider]

These "knee jerk reactions" have a lot more to do with the last two seasons/two recruiting classes. Not just the UDub game

 

[Deleted member 807]

No one has said that coach gets a free pass. No one has said that the losing is ok. It is however understandable.

The art of criticizing the coach without also demanding "fire the coach" is a lost art.

It is possible to like Mac while being disappointed.

It is possible to support a year 3 or 4 without demanding someone's head, while still being firm about expectations.

These points sometime gets lost.

 

[Shldr2Shldr]

These "knee jerk reactions" have a lot more to do with the last two seasons/two recruiting classes. Not just the UDub game

You have been advocating he should be let go as soon as he was hired.

The art of criticizing the coach without also demanding "fire the coach" is a lost art.

It is possible to like Mac while being disappointed.

It is possible to support a year 3 or 4 without demanding someone's head, while still being firm about expectations.

These points sometime gets lost.

agreed

 

[Idot Buff]

Don't care about the loss against UW. Don't care if Sefo starts or gets replaced. Don't care if we win another game this year.

I do care about digging out of the mega anus that Hawkins and Embree placed us in. Without a massive improvement in recruiting, we are doomed.

 

[Mr. Babar]

When will the 'next year predictions' threads start? I am tired of talking about this season already... [joking, kind of]

 

[Mr. Babar]

I agree. HCMM or bust. Stick with him for seven or eight years minimum. No matter what.

 

[DrunkPanda]

I agree with OP. Losing is way more fun than winning. Personally, I hope we never win another game again

 

[Colorado Track Fan]

View attachment 15213

Absolutely. I think CU would be better off over a seven year period to keep the system stable vs. restart again and all of the backwards steps that go along with making a coaching change. I also think the coach will learn and get better with experience at the same school running the same system and building relationships with Colorado high school coaches. There are only a very few coaches who have shown the ability to step in and kick ass anywhere they go. HCMM has a track record of being competent enough to stick it out and see what happens.

 

[White_Rabbit]

Mac can get 7 or 8 years if he makes bowl games. Otherwise what's the point?

 

[14er]

"If you don't expect too much from me you might not be let down." - Gin Blossoms

 

[Colorado Track Fan]

Mac can get 7 or 8 years if he makes bowl games. Otherwise what's the point?

The point is that you're not making them anyway and there is a lot of value in keeping some stability after what has happened at CU in the past decade or so.