Let's Get Excited

Or not:

Week after week this fall, CU looked flat. There's also an
anecdote from the season opener against Colorado State. After
pregame warmups, the Buffaloes were fired up, bouncing off
the walls inside the dressing room. In came Hawkins, who
proceeded to make everyone calm down because this was "just
another game," and the team's deflated mood carried on
throughout that 23-17 loss to CSU.

For the Haters

How dare you ask me about objectives!


I love the part where he refers to the program he inherited after the 2005 season (in which Colorado went to the Big 12 championship) as a program that was "burned to the ground". Love how this guy can't take responsibility for his terrible performance. "We just have to cinch it up a little!"

Pathetic

Game today was even harder to watch than normal, since for the first time all season I didn't have the hope that Hawkins was going to be fired after the game. It was a nice touch to score 6 points on the last play of the game -- you really showed the haters Hawk! On the bright side, at least the Buffs aren't going to get blown out in the big 12 championship 2005 style. That "honor" goes to the Huskers. If they can't put away a team as undisciplined and poorly coached as Colorado, they're going to get put away pretty quickly by a team that's actually good.

Unbelievable

I hate to ruin your Thanksgiving, but it's not me that's ruining it -- it's the Colorado AD.

ESPN:

Colorado has announced that Dan Hawkins will continue to coach the Buffaloes and return for his fifth season next year.

This is one of the most cowardly decisions I've ever witnessed. If Mike Bohn was interested in anything besides his own career, he wouldn't be saying this.

Hawkins Never Ceases to Amaze

It's hard to win the turnover battle 4-1 and lose a game, but Hawkins just managed to do exactly that. Can someone explain to me why you have your kicker kick a 49 yard field goal, but 15 minutes later facing a shorter field goal you decide to go for it? Coaching has killed this team all season and it killed the team again tonight.

Halftime

You might think the game is going pretty well, but I just wanted to point out that Oklahoma state still hasn't completed a pass. Go Buffs!

Another Thursday, Another Loss

Hard to believe that the last time Colorado played at Oklahoma State the Buffs won 34-0. The sad part is that the last time the Buff went to Oklahoma State was 2005 -- Barnett's last season. It honestly amazes me how little time it took Hawkins to completely run the football program into the ground. The line for the game tonight is Oklahoma State by 17, but if the score was 34-0 before Hawkins' obligatory garbage time touchdown, I wouldn't be surprised at all. The only consolation for Buffs fans about the game tonight is that the second-to-last humiliation on national TV this season will hopefully be Hawkins' second-to-last game as Colorado's head coach. Best of luck to the team tonight, but if you think the Buffs have a chance at winning this game, you're wrong.

CU Loses Again

Is it wrong that I'm glad CU lost? Is it wrong that I think the worst thing that could happen for Colorado football is to beat Nebraska in 2 weeks? Tell me I'm wrong, but I think I'm right.

500 Signatures

If you haven't signed the petition yet, please do. Thanks to everyone that has signed already. It looks like the AD is finally starting to get the message. (A link to the petition is on the right)

Six Points

That was the difference between Colorado and Alabama on December 30th 2007. Today, Colorado is on the verge of its 4th straight losing season. Alabama is 9-0 and one of the favorites to win the national championship. But at least we've got Hawk Love.

One Step Closer to 2-10, or Not

Down 21-10 at halftime I was honestly expecting another loss. I guess this is why A&M was only a 3 point favorite despite being 5-3 and going against a 2-6 team. If Hawkins can piece together a few more wins, he's looking at another extension.

The Weak and Timid

Klatt isn't happy with Hawkins either:

Former Colorado quarterback Joel Klatt has criticized athletic department leadership and coach Dan Hawkins recently for painting over a sign on the wall in the auditorium in the Dal Ward Center that was meaningful to players during Klatt`s time in the program and to previous Buffs.

The sign read "The pride and tradition of the Colorado Buffaloes will not be entrusted to the timid or the weak."

It first appeared in the CU team room during former coach Bill McCartney`s tenure and was in front of players in the program virtually every day throughout much of the past two decades according to Klatt, who is the co-host of a sports talk radio program in Denver weekday afternoons on 1510 AM.

"It was one of the those signs that you sat in the team room and you realized that for years and years before you, Buffaloes sat in the same seats you were in and they looked at that sign and they worked hard and you knew that they understood what you were going through," Klatt said.

The timid and weak Hawkins must have been offeneded by the sign. Or maybe he just thought there wasn't any point in having blatant lies written on the wall of the locker room, since Mike Bohn has clearly entrusted the pride and tradition of CU football (what's left of it) to him.

Hawkins Responds

No Comment! NO COMMENT!

The Beginning of the End

Darrell Scott is leaving CU:

Sophomore tailback Darrell Scott, the biggest recruiting prize in coach Dan Hawkins' four-year tenure at Colorado, is leaving the program after 1 1/2 season filled with injuries and frustration.

Who didn't see this coming? Scotty Knight apparently.

"He never said anything," receiver Scotty McKnight said. "If he did, I would have tried to keep him here ... Maybe he felt this is the best thing for him and that's the way it goes."

Sad to see Darrell go, but I can't blame him at all. Hopefully this and the other quality recruits that are bound to follow suit will force Bohn to fire Hawkins. Oh wait, CU doesn't have any other quality recruits.

Unfortunately, Darrell Scott's decision to transfer won't just ruin Dan Hawkins chances of getting any decent recruits, it will tarnish CU's reputation even after Hawkins gets fired. It will be a long long time before CU even has a season with a winning record.

On the bright side, can't wait to see how Hawkins tries to spin this one. "We have so much talent on this team, there just wasn't room for someone like Darrell. I'm glad he'll have the chance to start on a less talented team like UCLA."

Breaking Down the First Half

Announcer: "Why are the Buffs only rushing 4?" (said at 5 minute intervals)
Translation: "Why does Dan Hawkins still have a job?"

Mizzou Coach before halftime: "This game is far from over"
Translation: "We're not afraid to run up the score"

Hawkins: "We just have to make a few adjustments at halftime, this is a game of inches"
Translation: "I really have no idea how to improve this team, so I'm just going to go in the locker room and talk about playing harder"

(Ok, I just made the last one up.)

Hawkins Exceeding Expectations

I excepted CU to lose, but down 33-0 with 4 minutes left in the 2nd? Hawkins must surprise himself sometimes with how poor his recruiting and coaching is. I mean, it took 3 touchdowns before the Buffs realized that playing 3 CBs against 5 WRs doesn't work when the QB isn't under any pressure.

Its the Big 12 (North)!!!

CU is bad, there's no doubt about that. But sadly, if the Buffs had (somehow) managed to bear Kansas State last week, they would probably be the favorite to win the North. An amazing turn of events considering the 1-4 start to the season. Not that anyone that remotely pays attention to CU football thought the team has any chance of winning last weekend (except maybe Dan Hawkins depending on whether you think he pays any attention to the football program or not). The sad part is that playing in a Big 12 North division that has been one of the worst in recent memory, Hawkins is preparing to match the embarrassing 2-10 record of his first season.

I feel sorry for Vegas this week, they had to choose a line in a game featuring a 4-3 team with and 0-3 record in the Big 12 and a 2-5 team with a 1-2 record in the Big 12. Not an easy task by any means, but I can't say I disagree with Missouri being the 3 point favorite, still it's pathetic to be giving points at home when the other team hasn't won a single game in the Big 12. And the even more pathetic part is that the sucker bet is on the Buffs to cover. Vegas knows how bad of a coach Hawkins is, but people are going to look at the match-up on paper and pick Colorado. Who knows -- maybe Hawkins will actually let Tyler Hansen play the entire game, but it's obvious from the line that Vegas expects Cody to play.

4th and Goal

At the 2 yard line.
4th and Goal.
Cody playing QB.
My confidence on a scale of 1 to 10: -7

Captain Garbage Time

We're down 14 in the fourth quarter. Let's send in Cody! He can totally pick apart defenses when they are playing prevent! FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT GO CU!

Lesson Learned

I'm glad that even though Dan Hawkins wasn't able to figure out which quarterback to start at the beginning of the season, he was able to figure it out after starting 1-4. Cody won 1 game against Wyoming and two of his four losses were against teams that aren't even remotely good. But with Tyler starting, the Buffs are 1-0 and beat a ranked opponent. Looks like the switch is really paying off so far. I for once feel confident in Hawkins' ability to make common sense decisions. There's no way he would put Cody back in and let him put up stats like 2/5 / 20 yards / 1 int. Totally inconceivable.

(CU 6/KSU 20)

You Came, You Saw, You Signed

Thanks to everyone that has signed the petition to fire Hawkins. I'm excited to say we've reached 300 signatures, but many more are still needed to make something happen. I encourage you to tell you friends about the petition and get them to sign it. Keep up the good work!

A Win is a Win

Not sure how we won. Not sure if we should have won. But we did.

Hawkins is the Problem

Wow, totally different looking team tonight. Maybe Dan Hawkins' coaching wasn't the biggest problem afterall. Problem was his overconfidence in Cody. Any doubt CU would be 3-2 if this team was on the field in week 1?

Consolation

Another week, another loss. If there's something Buffs fans can take away from the game this weekend, it's that it won't be broadcast on national TV. In sports, there's really only one thing worse than an embarrassing loss -- an embarrassing loss on national television and having all your buddies tell you how sorry they feel for you the next day. This week's 9.5 point line says a lot more about Vegas' confidence that Hawkins will do anything he can to score touchdowns in garbage time than in the Buffs being in any way good. In fact, Hawkins' propensity to score more points in garbage time than in the part of the game that actually counts is perhaps his most deplorable characteristic. Does any self respecting coach or for that matter any coach that has the intention to win a game engage in these types of shenanigans?

Last night I was playing a game of Madden. Down 28-0 with 2 minutes left in the third quarter, the guys I was playing decides to kick a field goal. 28-3. I wouldn't have thought it was possible to have so little confidence in one's skill and ability to win, if not for watching Dan Hawkins made the same types of decisions every weekend. This whole scenario got me thinking -- what would Dan Hawkins do if he played Madden? Would he inexplicably attempt a fake punt on 4th and 20, then later punt on 4th and inches? Down 21-0 with :30 seconds left in the game, does he drive down the field to kick a field goal, then hold a press conference about how the end of the game showed that the team was improving -- "We're right on the brink!". In franchise mode, does he trade away his first and second round picks for a running back, then leave him on the bench for the rest of the season? Does he start one quarterback for the first 5 games of the season, then decide to burn Tyler Hansen's redshirt so that he can play in a time share with the starting QB? (My bad, that last one probably hit a little too close to home.)

I'm not excited at all about the game tonight. If you think I should be, why?

Hawkins: Tyler Hansen Will Start, or Will He?

From the Daily Camera:

"If you have two guys ready, you can kind of go with the hot-hand theory more, you know?"

No Dan, we don't know. If Buff fans learned anything from watching Jim Tracy turn around the Rockies this season, it's that consistency and continuity are essential to winning. Of course, Hawkins wouldn't understand either of those concepts. Most of his press conferences consist of grand proclamations about how he plans to completely reinvent the offense and defense before the following weekend. Has a coach ever had a winning record with this type of philosophy?

As disappointed as I was about Hawkins burning Hansen's redshirt, I at least thought that Hawkins had the sense to start Hansen for the rest of the season. But, I guess even that modicum of trust was a mistake.

Here's my advice to Hawkins. You've showed CU fans that nothing you do on or off the field will so much as make Mike Bohn think about firing you. CU fans already think you have no strategy and no idea what you're doing. So why not take it to the next level? Send out a formation with 9 receivers, a center, and a QB. Attempt a field goal from your own 20 yard line. Inexplicably leave the field during the middle of a quarter. Put Vaseline in your hair and look like you want to cry the entire game, but never actually do it (my bad, you're already doing that). Hold a press conference in which you state that you will be starting both Tyler and Cody -- the "2 QB set". Punt the ball on 1st down. The possibilities are endless.

If know you're going to lose, better to lose big.

Vintage Hawkins

Giving up big plays.
Missed opportunities.
Burning Hansen's redshirt.
Questionable playcalling.
Waaaay too many penalties.
Big loss.

I think Murphy's Law should be renamed "Hawkins' Law" - Anything that can be fucked up will be fucked up. If you made a mental list before the game tonight of things that could have happened in a "worst case scenario", is there anything that didn't get checked? You probably had to add things to the list as the game went along.

Did anyone feel even remotely confident when the Buffs were up 7-3? 14-3? 14-10 at halftime? I called my friend at halftime and told him I was waiting for Texas to score 4 unanswered touchdowns in the 3rd. Thats the kind of confidence I have with Hawkins at the helm. And he didn't disappoint tonight.

I almost feel bad having this website. Hawkins has delivered such a terrible performance through 5 games that its embarrassing that its necessary to tell people this guy has to go. It's even more embarrassing that Mike Bohn and the Athletic Department can't take a clue. During the 4th quarter, I got the feeling that Hawkins was just taunting the fans. Look guys, I can blow an 11 point lead, lose by 24, blow Hansen's redshirt, and I'm still going to be the coach.

If you still had any faith in Hawkins, it's time to reconsider. Check out the petition on the right.

70-3

Thats how badly Gary Barnett had to lose to Texas in order to lose his job. We can only hope that Hawkins can secure his legacy in Colorado by an even more embarrassing game tonight. I don't think 80-3 or 70-0 are really out of the question. Vegas posted the odds for the game at Texas (-33.5). That means people are expecting this game to be 36-3 and do you have any doubts about Dan Hawkins underachieving?

I'm just hoping that tonight, when the Buffs are down 30 points at halftime, the commentators will have the decency to say that Hawkins is a terrible coach and people want him fired, instead of pretending like he's a genius in the process of building a national championship team. Have some respect.

New Layout

And new colors. Let me know what you think in the comments.

Its Time to Fire Hawkins

Conclusion

13:05 Run. Run. Run. Run. Doesn't look like our defense can stop WV unless they stop themselves.

11:30 Camera shows Devine in the foreground and Dan Hawkins in the background. Does this make anyone feel confident? WV inside the 20.

9:46 Devine can pick up 5 yards before the D even reacts.

9:17 28-17. Thats more like it. WV still has time to cover.

6:34 Simas with the first catch of his career. For a short gain!

6:05 4th and forever. Not looking good for Hawkins. Buffs got a lot of breaks and still never looked like they had a chance to win.

6:04 And a missed 57 yard field goal. Gotta question Dan Hawkins' decision making.

5:36 Devine has a career best 220 yards and a 10 yard per carry average. I can't wait until the Buffs play teams that are actually good.

3:27 Is it even possible for the Buffs to score in that much time? The announcers are happy the Buffs avoided "a national embarrassment". I knew there was a silver lining.

3:03 No mention of Hawkins' job security all night. How is that possible?

2:47 Game over. This time for real.

2:00 How do you let someone run up the middle untouched in the red zone? Embarrassing. Hawkins finally breaking out a sweat.

1:18 I love how Dan Hawkins is always trying to score in garbage time. He's more animated now than when the game was close.

:39 Come on Dan Hawkins! Cover that spread!

:30 "Some people might say this is meaningless, but it's not. Not to this team." Your CU BUFFS!

:03 YEAH, TOUCHDOWN SIMAS!!! WOOOOOOO!!! SPREAD = COVERED! YOU SHOWED 'EM HAWKINS, NEVER PICK AGAINST THE BUFFS!

:03 Onside kick. Really Hawkins? Are you serious??

35-24. Gut-wrenching cover.

Game Diary: Third Quarter

13:05 Buffs give up another big play for a touchdown. 21-10

12:58 Camera on Dan Hawkins, but down 11 he's not sweating yet.

10:02 Buffs go for it on 4th and 7. Scotty makes a great catch for a touchdown. Really great catch. I'm just worried that a lot of things have been going our way and we're still losing. 21-17

4:31 Another pick. Announcers trying not to make fun of Cody -- "He doesn't have the skill set to make that throw"

3:15 I'm starting to think neither of these teams is very good.

1:15 What? Hawkins isn't going for it on 4th and 5. That's the shorter than the two the Buffs already converted.

1:05 Well at least we got a 25 yard punt instead.

21-17 with one quarter left.

Game Diary: Second Quarter

14:55 Another punt. Now Dan Hawkins is asking his receivers whether they got open or not. Great coaching there.

12:35 Announcer describes the hole in the Buffs' D as "massive".

11:41 HAHAHAHA. ANOTHER fumble by West Virginia. Maybe 2 per quarter isn't out of the question afterall.

8:55 Has Rodney Stewart done anything but pick up first downs? He's the only guy on this team that I trust.

8:19 Cody throws a pick. And another FUMBLE! Wow, this is getting ridicules. Is 4 fumbles in the first 22 minutes some sort of record? Right on track for 2 per quarter though.

5:45 Buffs convert on 4th and 10. Maybe Dan Hawkins has been playing some Madden.

3:41 Buff finally make a field goal. Didn't expect us to have the lead at this point. 10-7

3:35 Devine with a big run. Didn't make it to the endzone though, is it time for another Mountaineer fumble?

1:21 Guess not -- 14-10

1:13 Biggest pass of the season? Over 20 yards from Cody to Scotty

:17 Ouch. Hawkins with a pick. No fumble this time.

:14 During the replay, the announcer refers to Sumler as "a speedy running back". Really? Sumler?

14-10 @ the half. Close score now, but WV could still win by 30.

Game Diary: First Quarter

4:00 to kickoff: The lead-in to a commercial break shows 2 kids wrestlings in the grass outside the stadium, the pregame hosts jokes "Maybe, we should just watch them wrestle all night". Sadly, it would probably be more entertaining than watching CU lose.

12:57 Mountaineers D has been watching too much CU game film -- missing tackles left and right.

10:51 Buffs are actually playing decently. The field goal is up and no good. Hopefully CU gets another chance to score tonight.

10:39 WOW. WIDE OPEN receiver. Should have caught it for a touchdown. Buffs got lucky.

10:37 Devine runs right up the middle. Untouched... TOUCHDOWN! Well, at least they didn't score on the first play of the game.

10:08 Speedy runs for a nice 10 yard pick up. Announcer says "Just like Devine".

9:11 Speedy with another run. Announcer compares him to Devine again.

8:36 Speedy breaks it for a touchdown. Could it be that CU lost badly in the first 2 games because this guy was out? Announcer reminds us "Speed kills". Pay attention kids.

5:29 "Cody does not have the strongest arm in all of college football"

5:03 Cody makes a decent deep throw to Simas, but Simas doesn't make much of an effort to catch it. Punt.

4:46 FUMBLE! Cody can't find his helmet. Where is it? Over here, over there? Probably never thought the defense would (could?) get a turnover.

4:03 Another 3-and-out for the Buffs. And by out I mean missed 45 yard field goal. Even the announcers are wondering why Dan Hawkins isn't running the ball more. Stewart is only averaging 15 yards a carry or something. Maybe Hawkins just doesn't want to lower Stewart's YPA stat. "I don't know how we lost, Speedy was averaging 15 yards a carry!"

2:34 Yikes! Lack of speed really obvious on that play. WV QB just ran around like Michael Vick in Madden '05.

:53 Haha. Another VW player just decides to fumble. Maybe with 2 fumbles a quarter, Buffs could actually win.

7-7 at the end of 1st. Closer than expected, stay tuned.

Prepare to Lose

West Virginia (-17) against your CU Buffs. Is anyone picking the Buffs tonight? You're probably thinking this game is going to be over by the end of the first quarter. You might even be thinking to yourself "I know what's going to happen tonight, why even bother watching the game?" Well, I'll tell you why. ITS DIVISION ONE FOOTBALL! ITS THE BIG TWELVE! Oh, my bad, got a little carried away there. I meant to say that the game is nationally broadcast on ESPN and it's a Thursday night -- you don't have anything better to do. And no, playing your CU team on NCAA 2010 where you fired Dan Hawkins is not something better to do. And if you get bored, here's 10 proposition bets to keep you entertained:

1. First time the camera shows Dan Hawkins sweating on the sideline: over/under 5:00 remaining in 1st Quarter
2. Number of carries by Darrell Scott in the game: o/u 4
3. Number of turnovers committed by Buffs: o/u 3
4. Number of 3-and-out series for Buffs: o/u 3
5. Number of kickoff returns for Darrell Scott: o/u 6
6. Half time spread: WV (-14)
7. Number of times the word "fire" is used in reference to Dan Hawkins: o/u 5
8. Number of times a graphic related to Dan Hawkins' coaching record is shown: o/u 1.5
9. Buffs total offense: o/u 250 yds
10. Number of plays given up that are more than 40 yards: o/u 2

Have fun watching! I'll have a running journal updated at the end of each quarter.

Too Great Expectations?

The Daily Camera reports that Dan Hawkins isn't that bad, it's just the program:

The simple truth is that Colorado is not a top-tier football factory -- certainly not at the same level as Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama, Michigan, Ohio State, etc. Rather, Colorado has been an upper-level second-tier program, capable of the occasional appearance in the Top 25 and -- when the stars align -- a legitimate shot at a league championship and a top-10 finish.

Don't worry guys. Colorado has never actually been good, except for a couple of years in the early 90's. Dan Hawkins isn't any worse than average. No need to get mad at Hawkins, it's unlikely the program will ever be much better. That's my summary of the article.

Look, I agree that Colorado hasn't always been a great football school. But look at the last 30 years before Hawkins:

Bill McCartney: 93-55
Rick Neuheisel: 33-14
Gary Barnett: 49-39

That's a 62% winning percentage and that's including McCartney's early losing seasons. That comes out to 7.4 wins in a 12 game season and a bowl invitation. I don't think any Colorado fan expects us to be in the top 10 every year and compete for a national championship. But they expect a team that consistently beats bad teams. A team that at least competes in the Big 12. A team that goes to a bowl game. A team that once in a while has a shot at a BCS bowl or maybe even a national championship. Thats all anyone wants.

The Daily Camera is right though, the damage done to the program by Hawkins will be difficult to repair because Colorado doesn't have the funding and fan base of Texas or Oklahoma. Thats why the sooner Hawkins goes the better. The longer he stays, the longer it will take to return to the level of the McCartney/Neuheisel/Barnett years.

A Sigh of Relief

Let's just say I'm glad the Buffs aren't playing a game this weekend. For the first time all season, and probably the only time this season, I won't be dreading the Buffs game all Saturday. My friends will probably appreciate not receiving all my angry texts during the game -- "What is Dan Hawkins doing?" "Wow Cody actually threw a ball over the line, too bad he overthrew Scotty by 10 yards" "Why does the camera keep showing Hawkins sweating on the sideline? I can't stand looking at him"

I wonder what Hawkins is doing this weekend. Game planning? Maybe he's trying to figure out how to deflect blame after the inevitable loss next Thursday. I've got an idea, take a page outta Lane Kiffin's playbook. Run the clock. Run the ball every play. Don't snap the ball with less than 5 seconds on the play clock. (Oh, my bad you never hike the ball with less than 5 seconds on the play clock) If you only let the Mountaineers have 10 offensive possessions, they can't score more than 70 points. Well, unless Cody throws a pick-6. Score a couple points -- Mike Bohn might like the performance so much he gives you an extension. I'm surprised he didn't already give you one when you SHUTOUT THE COWBOYS!

I'm happy just to watch the Broncos this weekend, at least I know they will win more than one game this season.

200 Signatures and Counting

Keep 'em coming.

The More You Know, The More You Love Hawkins

From ESPN:

[T.C.'s] dream was to play at CU, where Barnett was the head coach and was planning to bring T.C. in. But Barnett was let go after the '05 season, and T.C. spent much of his senior year of 2006 in limbo. CU's new coach, Dan Hawkins, had brought in his own son, Cody, to play quarterback, so T.C. needed to look somewhere else.

"That really bothered me," Barnett says. "If I would've stayed, then T.C. would've come to Colorado. That broke my heart as much as anything. He needed to go play where his dad played. And it couldn't happen."

Glad to see Hawkins passed this guy up for Cody, since Cody is a much better quarterback.

Colorado's Mike Gundy

Looks like I'm not the only one comparing Dan Hawkins to Mike Gundy.

From NCAA Fanhouse:

For a minute, it looked as if Dan Hawkins was going to make like Mike Gundy did two years ago, and declare, "I'm a man. I'm 40."

It was Gundy, Oklahoma State's coach, who directed that at a female sports writer who had been critical of the team's quarterback. He made a point of mentioning the reporter didn't have any children.

What is it about whether sports writers have children and Big 12 football.

There was Hawkins, the embattled Colorado coach, following his team's 24-0 whitewash Saturday over Wyoming, going the children route.

"Unfortunately, in this business (of sports media), there's not a lot of you that have children,'' Hawkins said in his rant. "I don't know why that is. But when you have kids you love them up and you give them unconditional love. And you hang in there.

"And sometimes they flunk science and sometimes they strike out. And sometimes they drop fly balls. And sometimes they miss last-second shots. But when you're a true parent and you're a true teacher and you hang in there, you keep believing in them and you keep working on things and eventually it turns.''

And sometimes the kid overthrows receivers. Hawkins should know about that since his son, Cody Hawkins, just happens to be the quarterback for the woeful Buffaloes.

Week 3: Where's the Hate?

Atown Andy,

You watch the Buffs rock the Cowboys today? Dan Hawkins is the man! Take your website down -- it's a joke. Thanks for the laughs.

- "Real" CU fan

Anyone want to guess how many of these emails I got after the win yesterday?

Zero. That's right, not a single one.

And how many emails of the opposite variety would I have gotten had the Buffs lost? How many more people would have signed the petition?

Last week Texas beat Wyoming 41-10. Yesterday Colorado beat Wyoming 24-0. Texas is ranked #2, but is there a single person that thinks the Buffs should be ranked? Is there a single person that thinks the Buffs are good? Is there a single person that thinks the Buffs will win another game this season? The answers are no, Dan Hawkins, and maybe.

Let's take a look at two other box scores. Last week Toledo beat Colorado 54-38. Yesterday Ohio State beat Toledo 38-0. After watching the Colorado game last weekend, Jay Crawford announced on ESPN's First Take that he was worried about Ohio State losing to Toledo. He was legitimately worried that Toledo was good enough to be a ranked team. Well I have some good news for you, Jay, Toledo isn't good. Isn't good at all. Colorado is just worse, much worse. The Buffs are TERRIBLE.

On the other hand, I'm glad I didn't get any hate mail yesterday. It means Buff fans haven't been so deflated by Dan Hawkins' losing ways that they get excited about going 1-2 against mediocre teams from non-BCS conferences. Thanks guys. So long as Buff fans aren't willing to settle for mediocrityshit, Hawkins' days as head coach are numbered.

Game Day: Wyoming @ Colorado

Great job by the Buffs today. Right on track for 10-2 -- one down, nine to go!

Expect another retro-journal tomorrow.

Watch the Buffs beat Wyoming this Saturday

Go Here and open the video at the top of the article. You will need to allow the pop-up.

Or you could watch the 2009 Buffs play instead, but I'm warning you -- the Buffs probably won't be winning that game.

My favorite part of the video is every time John Hessler takes the snap and then looks OVER his offensive line. Its a pleasant feeling you just don't get watching Cody play.

Getting the Ball Rolling

I'm excited to report that the website has been mentioned by two media outlets this week:

From Yahoo! Sports:

"The obligatory Fire [Coach X] Web site is up and running."

2HellNBack from allbuffs.com reports coverage on Channel 2 news:

"Not only has FireDanHawkins.net been launched, but has made it's way onto the news (Channel 2-The Deuce 7:00 News)."

More coverage, more signatures, then hopefully some results!

You Make Us Proud, Dan

Glad our football program is finally getting some national coverage for all of Dan Hawkins' hard work. Welcome to the Bottom 10!

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?page=bottom10091609

Expect the Expected

Looking forward to the Wyoming game on Saturday!

Together We Will Be Unstoppable

Be sure to check out the links section of the sidebar:

FireHawkins.net
From the website:

Darrell Scott is finally getting the ball . . . via the kickoff return. He now has 13 in 2 games, or on-pace for 78 for the season. Josh Smith set the single season record last year with 50.

This is a dubious record to be setting, as it is a sign of how often your opponent is scoring.

Fire Dan Hawkins Facebook Group
















Thanks to Mark and Evan for their websites.

Reading Between the Lines

Vegas has the Buffs FAVORED by 7 points against Wyoming this weekend. Call me shocked, to say the least. Here's 10 reasons why Wyoming isn't the favorite:

1. Vegas thinks Toledo and Colorado State are really good and Texas isn't
2. Third time's the charm for being the favorite and covering the spread
3. Dan Hawkins told Vegas that Tyler Hansen will be the starting quarterback this weekend
4. "10 wins, no excuses" means 10-2, Colorado already has two losses, so now it's time for the ten wins
5. Teams that lose to their in-state rivals and let the opposing fans rush the field are really good at home
6. Vegas is predicting a breakout of swine flu in Laramie this week
7. ITS THE BIG 12! ITS DIVISION 1 FOOTBALL!!!
8. Gary Barnett is making a surprise comeback, Dan Hawkins will be fired before the game
9. Vegas saw Cody's career high 356 yards and 4 touchdowns in Toledo last Friday and didn't bother to look at the 3 ints or the scoreboard
10. CU beat Wyoming the last time they played (in 1997)

Add your own in the comments.

The Bohn Treatment

Here's an email I received earlier this week:

First of all I need to give you a little background on my CU history. I started going to CU football games since I was 15 and I am now 60. My family has had season football tickets since 1986. I did not renew my tickets this year with a very heavy heart. I want to support those young men on the football team but after much soul searching I felt it best not to renew the tickets. The reason that I decided to do this was because the university administrators will not listen to logic. They will only listen to dollar signs - the only voice I have. I e-mail Mike Bohn last year and laid my heart out in that e-mail. I explained that I am not a huge financial contributor but my family and I travelled to CU for 23 years from Trinidad which is a 500 mile round trip. I explained to him that I felt his decision to renew Mr. Hawkins contract was a bad idea. His only response was "you rock"! What a condescending comment that was especially after telling the man what CU has meant to us. If you don't have enough sensitivity, professionalism, and intelligence to respond decently he has no business being an athletic director of a major university. I hope that the petition works and we can get Hawkins out of there.

Ace
Trinidad, Colorado

Ace can't be alone. Spread the word about the petition -- Hawkins must go!

Better Prepare for the Worst

Petition to Fire Dan Hawkins

To: Mike Bohn

CU football coach Dan Hawkins has embarrassed our proud football tradition on and off the field and caused damage to our program that will take years to rectify. He needs to be fired immediately for the following reasons:

1. Inability to recruit Big 12 caliber players -- the best players on the team are walk-ons.
2. Big losses to mediocre teams in mediocre conferences.
3. 13-26 win/loss record in 4 seasons. No winning seasons.
4. Calling aggressive plays for starting players when there is clearly no chance of winning, thereby disregarding CU players' safety.
5. Players are poorly coached in the games' fundamentals such as tackling, blocking, and catching.
6. Talented players sit on the bench and watch the team lose.

We sincerely ask you to consider replacing Dan Hawkins with a new head coach as soon as possible. By not doing so, you are putting your credibility and career in jeopardy.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

Sign the Petition yourself: http://www.petitiononline.com/danhawk/petition.html

Week 2: Toledo Retro-journal

This was a hard game to watch. Missed tackles, bad passes, no blocking, terrible playcalling, kids getting hurt in garbage time. Only reason to keep watching was the hope that Hawkins would embarrass himself enough to get fired.

1st Quarter
15:00 My Dad asks me "Who's Toledo?" A bad team thats probably better than us.

11:47 Camera pans to Dan Hawkins with his greasy hair and greasy expressionless face. When did Hawkins decide it was cool to cover his hair and face in Vaseline before every game?

10:45 Decent drive ending in a punt. Not surprised at all. Buffs able to keep the ball out of the endzone on the punt, but nobody is able to down it before the 14 yard line. TV commentator calls it "poor field position".

8:39 Buffs give up a 60 yard pass on 3rd and 10. Vintage Dan Hawkins. This is what bad teams do, they can't stop plays on 3rd and long. Watch the Broncos the last 2 years, its the exact same problem.

7:18 Rockets touchdown, no real surprise here. Buffs break up the 2-point conversion play, probably one of the better plays of the game. I make a mental note that this will probably be the only drive of the game where the Rockets don't score 7.

3:10 Toldeo running play, 2 missed tackles. A 2 yard loss turns into a first down. Tackle by Jeff Smart, aka the only person on the defense that should be starting on a Big 12 team.

3:00 Deep pass. Our safety is over the top 5 yards away when the catch is made, which is the closest he gets to the receiver on the play. The receiver just runs diagonally all the way to the endzone. 13-0.

1:43 Announcer talks about Tyler Hansen being redshirted. Hawkins will probably burn the redshirt with 3 weeks left in a meaningless season. Again.

:20 Big run by Darrell Scott. This guy hasn't run for less than 5 yards all game. Why doesn't he get the ball every carry? Why didn't he run more than once last week? Why does Dan Hawkins still have a job?

2nd Quarter

13:31 Buffs field goal. At least we aren't getting shut out.

10:41 Toldeo just picking our defense apart. Why are be playing the 4-3 when they bring out 4 and 5 receivers. I know Jeff Smart is good, but he isn't fast enough to cover a receiver 1-on-1.

8:52 Announcer talks about Dan Hawkins running drills in the parking lot before the game. "This ain't intramurals, brotha!"

8:36 Cody isn't that bad. Yes, he can't run, he can't make accurate passes, and he can't see over the offensive line, but he's tough and he doesn't throw the game away. He could be a Todd Reesing with good o-line, good receivers, good running game, and good defense. Too bad he won't have any of those until Dan Hawkins gets fired.

6:37 3 runs by Darrell Scott, first down.

4:50 Aric Goodman barely misses a field goal. Good effort on the drive, but still down 16-3.

1:43 Great catch by Scotty. This guy would be a great slot receiver.

1:35 Nasty hit on Hawkins. Fumble.

1:02 4th and 7. Good coverage. Toldeo QB scrabbles and jukes our LB, dodges another tackle, first down. Wow, this guy isn't a running QB at all. He was holding the ball in front of him with both hands when he ran. Wow, we suck.

:36 QB draw, multiple missed tackle attempts. Hardly got touched on his way to the endzone. Announcer is surprised (he keeps using the word over and over again) about how much faster and more athletic the Toledo players are. Great job recruiting, Dan.

3rd Quarter

15:00 My friend sends me a text "just woke up, rough game"

12:36 Toldeo receiver just runs past our safety for another touchdown. Hawkins should just take the safeties out of the game and put in more lineman. The safeties aren't having any effect in the passing game, might as well get some more pressure on the quarterback. 30-3

12:27 Return across the 50 by Scott. Again, why isn't this guy more involved?

7:26 Touchdown. Never want to score a touchdown too early against a mediocre MAC team. That would be playing right into their hands. Brilliant, Dan.

6:22 Another big pass by Toldeo. Jeff Smart trying to cover a receiver again.

3:54 Camera pans to Dan Hawkins. He looks sweaty and nervous. Is Dan Hawkins finally showing emotion?

3:46 Fake punt by Colorado. First Down. Announcer says Dan Hawkins is "a good gambler". Hey, at least he's good at something.

3:24 Andre Simmons comes into the game. Isn't this guy our only receiver with decent measurables (6'3"/210)? Didn't this guy play well last week? Why isn't he being used more?

1:43 Nice, touchdown. Way to cut the lead to 20 against a mediocre MAC team. I'm proud of you Dan.

1:35 Fumble. 3 CU players manage to miss the ball before Jimmy Smith falls on it. Travis Sandersfield, a walk-on from Limon, CO with the big hit to knock the ball loose. Ever notice how the best players on this team are walk-ons (ie. Jeff Smart, Scotty McKnight)?

1:23 Quick 14. Buffs look excited. Guys high-fiving and getting excited on the sideline. Even Dan Hawkins seems to be expressing some emotion. Maybe we have a chance.

4th Quarter

15:00 3rd and 6. QB draw. Toledo QB runs 61 yards practically untouched for the TD. So much for a comeback.

14:41 Another big return for Scott. He'll be a good player for whoever our new head coach is.

8:41 51-24

8:03 The Announcers are wondering why Cody Hawkins is still in the game? Maybe Dan Hawkins is just hoping some of his starters get hurt so he can blame the loss on injuries.

5:41 Wow, this game will really never end.

3:53 Cody Hawkins sets a career high for passing yards. Now we know why Dan Hawkins kept the starters in the game. Way to go!

1:56 Poor Cody. He's playing hard in garbage time. 12 yard run for a TD on 4th down, took a helmet-to-helmet hit. Doesn't look like he knows where he is. Hope he's alright, but honestly THIS IS WHY YOU DON'T PLAY STARTERS IN GARBAGE TIME. HELLO DAN HAWKINS?!?

0:00 38-54 Final. Game wasn't even close though. No talent, bad coaching, big losses. None of that is gonna change until Hawkins gets fired.

Can anyone guess the over/under when we start playing ranked teams? 50? 100? a million? It's like asking when the other team will put in the 3rd stringers and run every down.

Toledo Really?

54-38. Wow.