Good post,
I don't think many here are willing to admit exactly how little talent was left on this squad when GB left. I know that some will pop up with Dizon and the Goldfish, et. al but from a standpoint of having 85 guys or even 45 guys who were ready to play or even develop into ready to play in one of the two toughest conferences in college football it wasn't even close to there. Six scholarship O-Lineman, one with a bad knee. Bernard Jackson as your best option at QB ahead of Cox, a nice kid with a D2 arm and White who got beat out when he transfered to D1-aa.
The first recruiting class was a wash-out, the second better but they were still getting to know the HS coaches and a lot of kids had already been building relationships with other schools since their Soph/Junior years. Third year recruiting was excellent, last year lacked big names other than Kasa but was very solid.
As a result we may have the youngest O-line in the country, CSU was the first real game action for three guys. The line includes a RSFr, three Soph (only one of of who has significant prior playing time) and a Jr in his second year as an O-Lineman. Then the center gets injured and we go with a sub who was a WO in his first significant playing time. This group improved a huge amount from game one to two and has a major upside.
We have no upperclass WRs other than a JC Transfer. This position is improving rapidly. I know that people give Scotty grief about being a small, slow, walk-on but he gets open and catches the ball. If he were to leave a lot of D1 schools would be happy to have him. Simas is finally going to get on the field, we have all heard the same things about him, Simmons is a legit big reciever with hands and speed. The three Fr are all significant upgrades from what we have had. I don't like seeing Espy out there either, he should be Scotty's seldom used back-up.
How many teams wanted Darrell Scott, this week we got to see a little of why that was the case, not many teams wanted Steward, now many see that they made a mistake. Lock is talented and Sumler looks a lot like what CSU has been throwing at people for years.
TE Deehan is young and was highly rated, This is the one position where we lose a lot to graduation after this season. Thornton gives hope for the future.
QB is the problem area. Cody was actually fairly highly regarded coming out of HS but has shown that he is not the answer. Hansen showed flashes, Evans has his supporters but who knows. This is an area that is very questionable.
I could do the same breakdown for D and it would look similar. At all positions we have made major upgrades from what we had at the end of the GB era. The trouble is that at most positions including the most important on a defense the line we are painfully young.
We are starting a huge number of guys who would be welcome at top 20 schools around the country but in almost all cases they would be comfortably settled in on the depth chart behind an upper classman getting their experience in carefully measured doses and situations.
Hawk has made some huge progress in his time here but truthfully this team is not ready for prime time yet. It is to young and the guys who should be the depth are starting for lack of upperclassmen in front of them. This also means that there is a lack of depth behind them. This doesn't come instantly when a team was so deep in a hole as when Hawk got here.
I like you valdez, think that Hawk has potential still as a winning coach. He needs time to build the program and we may in our anger over two ugly losses jumped the gun.
At the same time Hawk needs to grow into Big XII football just like his players. It is understandable losing to teams like Texas and Missouri and even some of the lower teams that are not battling the lack of depth and experience. What is not understandable is a coaching staff that looks clueless to stop offenses that are doing to same thing over and over to us. What is not understandable is a defense that when it gets to the ball doesn't look like it has a clue about fundamental tackling (wrap the guy up and bring him down instead of slapping at him or bouncing off.)
He also needs to get over himself and realize that this isn't Boise. You don't win in this conference playing the hustle guys and the underdogs, you get run over. That doesn't mean that it is okay for guys not to hustle but CU is a BCS conference school. We are going to get the very best that CSU has every year, this is their chance to show in their own minds that they are as good as Big XII players. Schools like Toledo are going to do the same because again this is their shot at ligitimacy. We are not going to beat them on hustle and desire, we are going to beat them because we have bigger, stronger, more talented players who given time and the right game plan will wear them down.
Does Mack Brown play all his walk-ons and effort guys against a Wyoming, no he stays with his quality players even if the game is close at half knowing that eventually he will wear them down and after the game is over on the scoreboard his hustle guys will get their shot.
He also needs to be willing to look at his staff and hold them to the same standard as he claims to hold his players. Those who are doing the job get more prominent roles, those who aren't get replaced. If a coach isn't cutting it he needs to change his performance or find another place to work. CU assistants are not highly paid as BCS conference assistants go but for the privilege of working at the game they love they are paid well enough that a lot of other qualified guys want their jobs.
Lastly he is were the buck stops. He is the one who is responsible for the issues at QB. He is the one who has not made sure that we have a better option than Cody or if we do he hasn't been put on the field. I believe that Hawk truly believes that Cody is a legitimate answer at the position. I also believe that like many fathers he is seeing what he wants to see, not what he needs to see. Cody is a great kid and would make as good a back-up QB as you could ask for but he is not the answer as a starter and Hawk is responsible for not having that legitimate starter on the field at the single most important position on the team.
At the end of the CSU game I was ready to see Hawk go, after Toledo I was ready to help him pack. Reality is that he isn't going anywhere this year, as a true fan of the Buffs and someone who believes that at heart he is a good man and a good coach I hope that he grows into the job just as his players are growing into the college game. If he does we could end up with a solid winning program, if not then the coach who replaces him at least won't be starting in the same hole Hawk did.
