College Football: Colorado Buffaloes Previewby Brock MurphyUniversity of Colorado Head Coach: Dan Hawkins 2005 Record: : 7-6 2006 Schedule and Projected Results 1. Montana State 2. Colorado State 3. Arizona State 4. @ Georgia 5. @ Missouri 6. Baylor 7. Texas Tech 8. @ Oklahoma 9. @ Kansas 10. Kansas State 11. Iowa State 12. @ Nebraska 2005 Review: The Buffs would have had a successful season had it ended with their 41-12 thrashing of Missouri on November 5, 2006. At that point, CU was 7-2 with reason to be optimistic about the rest of the season. Then the wheels fell off. A 30-16 road loss to Iowa State began a four-game slide which culminated with a 19-10 loss to Clemson in the Champs Sports Bowl. CU lost those four games by a combined score of 149-32, including a humiliating 70-3 loss to Texas in the Big 12 Championship game. The season-ending implosion cost Gary Barnett his job as head coach. With the exception of its two performances against Texas last season (both losses), Colorado played outstanding rush defense (finishing 11th in the nation with a 100.2 ypg average) and the defense will use that 2005 success to inspire its 2006 performance. For the quickest and easiest depositing methods available, sign-up today at BetUS.com, "for over 14 years they have been the World-Wide Leader in Online Sports, Poker and Casino Gaming!" Always receive great odds, huge bonuses and fast payouts only at BetUS.com! Team MVP: MLB, Thaddeus Washington (5'11" 240). This three-year starter will have to lead the Buffs' stop-unit to early success to buy the offense time to catch up with its new system. Washington is also one of the top leading tacklers in the NCAA returning in 2006, and will be the leader of the Buffs defense.. Player Ready to Shine: Safety Ryan Walters and DE Walter Boye-Doe. Quarterback: Since nobody is sure who will emerge as the starting quarterback this fall, it is difficult to get a feel for the offensive style the Buffs will develop in 2006. With Bernard Jackson (6' 195) under center, the staff would be silly not to include packages to take advantage of Jackson's athletic mobility. Should they choose to use prototypical drop-back Brian White (6'5" 225), the staff would clearly expand its passing packages. After losing a leader and gritty player like Joel Klatt from last year's team, the new quarterback will have to take on a huge leadership role with this team - a mission that cannot realistically be tackled until a new starter is named. One other possibility at quarterback is James Cox, a senior who served as a backup to Klatt the last two seasons and who had to sit out the spring with an injury. Truthfully, though, the lost time combined with a horrible Champs Sports Bowl performance at the end of last season, leaves Cox's chances to start in 2006 very, very slim. The 2008 college football betting odds are now posted! Running Back/Fullbacks: There was a time when Colorado was famous for its power rushing attack (read: the Eric Beinemy/Darian Hagan; Rashan Salaam and Chris Brown, respectively). However, a drop-off in talent and a change in schemes have made the Buffalo Rushing Machine a thing of the past. Tailback Hugh Charles can be explosive but his production fell off at the end of 2005. Still, Hawkins is a mastermind at using his players to the best of their ability and he will certainly try to get Charles the ball in space (read: sweeps and screens) to capitalize on his blistering speed and elusive moves. CU also has a few change of pace backs in Mel Holiday (a Nebraska transfer) and Thomas Perez (if he doesn't redshirt) in 2006. The former emerged this spring as the number two guy and his stocky build (5'8" 205) provides a powerful alternative to Charles' quickness. At fullback, Samson Jagoras made a name for himself this spring by simply opening up holes and grinding out plays. Hawkins called Jagoras a "blue-collar guy," and he can help CU renew a very effective ground threat if he can continue to open holes for Charles and Holiday in live action next season. Wide Receivers/Tight Ends: The receivers are solid but not spectacular, though the return of Blake Mackey (6'3" 200) could change that assessment if he can bounce back from an ACL injury suffered before the 2005 season. Before his injury, Mackey offered a great combination of size and elite speed. Emerging this spring at the other wide receiver position was Stephone Robinson, a converted cornerback. Robinson stole the show at the spring game, scoring two touchdowns, and emerged from spring as the number one receiver. Dusty Sprague (6'4" 190) is a solid position receiver who should continue to make numerous catches, including those required "in the clutch" - similar to his role last season. Colorado lost a great deal of talent at tight end with the graduations of Joe Klopfenstein and Quinn Sypnewski (both of whom will try their trade in the NFL), but Western Michigan transfer Tyson DeVree and Paul Creighton are two talented men who are anxious to pick up where their NFL-bound leaders left off. Riar Geer will also get a few touches at tight end as the season moves along. Offensive Line: Even though Hawkins refuses to name starters yet for 2006, one thing is certain: the line will be anchored in the middle by the return of potential all-conference linemen OC, Mark Fenton (6'4" 295) and four-year starter Brian Daniels (6'4" 300) at LG. Fenton has even been listed on some preseason All-American lists and will be counted on to provide protection for the new quarterback. Rounding out the rest of the line will most likely be Daniel Sanders (RG), Edwin Harrison (RT), and Tyler Polumbus (TL) (if healthy). Defensive Line: Ideally, a team would not use the adjectives "young and small" to describe their defensive tackles. Yet, those are the most accurate terms to describe the tackles that CU will rely upon to man the guts of its defensive line this season. The two-deep roster of tackles features one small redshirt-freshman (Taj Kaynor [6'5" 250]) and two undersized sophomores (George Hypolite [6'2" 265] and Brandon Nicholas [6'3" 270]). The Buffs' largest DT candidate is an underachieving fifth-year senior (Marcus Jones [6'4" 295]). Fortunately, the Buffs have a wealth of talent and solid depth at defensive end with four players who could start when the season-opener rolls around, including the spring's biggest star, Walter Boye-Doe. If Boye-Doe can keep up his impressive spring he will likely earn the starting nod next to Abraham Wright. Sophmore Maurice Lucas will also see plenty of time at end after an impressive freshman season last year. Assuming he can return with effect from injury, Alonzo Barrett will be worked into the mix to provide solid depth. While vulnerable in the belly, CU's defensive line should control the perimeter and apply pressure to opposing quarterbacks this fall. Linebackers: Along with the defensive end position the Buffs are pretty loaded at linebacker thanks to the return of Thad Washington and junior Jordan Dizon. Both are three-year starters (Dizon has started since his true freshman season) whom Hawkins will expect to develop into the leaders of this defense. Joining those two is Brad Jones, a first-year starter who looks to replace Brian Iwuh, likely the Buffs' premier defender from last year's team. Jones played well during the spring likely solidifying his starting role. Brock Murphy is an NCAA Football Analyst. He is heard every Thursday at 2:30pm ESt on www.BetUSradio.com. You can reach him at: bgmurphy91@yahoo.com. Click here for a list of college football betting lines! --- by BetUSradio at 1800-sports.com on July 14, 2006
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