I had been doing a weekly chat throughout the football season to discuss the ups and downs of the football program with CU fans. With the football season in the rearview, I’m needed to help cover other sports and happenings for the paper and it’s harder for my bosses to dedicate one day every week to making sure we do the chat.
I mention all this because I enjoy the interaction with CU fans and I’m hoping to continue it during the offseason through a weekly (maybe more often) mailbag and periodic chats. Send me your questions (ringok@dailycamera.com), and I’ll answer them to the best of my ability. Please include your first name and hometown.
Here is the first installment.
Hi Kyle,
Have you heard any rumblings on how Mike Bohn might be trying to set up the schedule for next year? Do you think he learned from the mistakes of last year’s irregular schedule and will keep a normal Saturday schedule or will he go for the Sunday/Thursday/Friday night pay days
again?
Michael
Thanks for the question. It’s a good one.
I would anticipate not having quite as many non-traditional games so to speak, but I believe the CU athletic department remains in a position where it needs to maximize its television appearances to help its bottom line. I would expect CU and CSU will try to play on national television once again, which might mean moving the game to Sunday for the third straight year. The Big 12 Conference as a whole is scheduling on Thursdays so it’s possible the Buffs could end up in at least one of those games.
It’s really all about money. Until CU is less reliant on the television money, it will continue to be in a position where it has to take it where it can get it. Thanks
Kyle
How can a coach with a 16-33 career record at CU, who is also coming off a massively disappointing 3 win season, afford to not make any significant coaching staff moves? I understand Ambrose is moving into the WR role and I love that Ryan Walters is coming back… But why should we have any faith at all that the offense and special teams will improve?
-Jason, Westminster
Jason,
Another good question. First, let me remind you that coach Ambrose will be coaching the secondary now that Greg Brown left for Arizona. Dan Hawkins said he will probably hired either a wide receivers coach or a quarterbacks coach and Eric Kiesau will coach whichever one of those positions remains after the hire. Hawkins is not planning to coach a position.
Now to your question. I don’t believe you should have any faith the offense will improve at this point. It hasn’t improved much in four years, except for a one-year bump from 2006-2007. I think it’s reasonable to believe a coaching change or two should have been made, but here is the thing about that. Recruits and CU fans aren’t the only people who see that Dan Hawkins is on the hot seat and is a lame duck unless his program makes major improvement against a tougher schedule.
Other coaches see it, too. Coaches are like everyone else when it comes to finding a job. They want to see potential and security wherever they go. Anyone who joins the CU staff knows it could be for just one season. Some coaches won’t even consider it for that reason alone.
Here we are in early February less than a month from spring ball and they haven’t filled the one position they have had open for two months. Filling two or three or four positions with quality coaches is probably unrealistic under these circumstances.
But even if the circumstances were different, I don’t believe Hawkins would part ways with any of his assistants. He believes in his guys and he’s going to sink or swim with them.
Hi Kyle,
Thanks for everything you do to keep CU fans informed. How do you see the quarterback situation shaping up going into spring ball? Is it Tyler Hansen’s job or will it be “a competition” as we’ve been led to believe in the past? Do you think there is any chance that Cody Hawkins regains the starting job or that one of the younger players overtakes both Hansen and Hawkins? Thanks
Jon, Boulder
These coaches are never going to come out and bestow the job on anyone ahead of time, and I don’t think they should. I want to see Nick Hirschman and Josh Moten compete with Hansen and Hawkins. I want to see if Clark Evans has improved. If one of those young guys should be the starter, so be it. Having said that, Hansen was clearly the best option at the end of the season and he should be the favorite to be the starter again next year. I still think having Cody Hawkins as your backup is a pretty good insurance policy.
Having said all that, I’m not going to be surprised by anything in this situation this year. It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if Dan Hawkins names his son the starter again in 2010, regardless of how fans will feel about it. I truly believe that coach Hawkins believes his son has all the tools and has just been lacking some of the supporting cast.
My money is on Tyler Hansen.
Thanks for the questions.
