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Going to a BBQ tonight . . .

Make sure you say hi to his wife. She is an awesome lady. When we were down in Austin the last time, my buddy and I had brought our 11 year olds down for the game. We went to the CU sponsored event held at one of the bars and the night before the game. The mangement would not let our kids in and we were about ready to leave and go some to a different venue. Coach Cabral's wife came up to us and said leave the kids with me and you two go in and check out the festivities. She said that CU wanted a family atmoshpere and this was supposed to be a family event and apologized as the management did not let them know that kids would not be able to come in. My buddy and I went in and had one beer and then went back to get our kids and move on. She had decked the kids out in all kinds of Buff gear ( in addition to what they already had on) and she had bought them hot dogs from one of the street vendors. We tried to pay her back and she would have none of it. I cannot speak highly enough about how much that family has given to CU and how much they bleed black and gold. Brian and Becky (I believe that is her name - I called her Mrs. Cabral) are as good as it gets for CU.

Wait, you left your kids with a stranger outside a bar so you could grab a beer with your buddy...how did you know it was Cabral's wife?

In all seriousness, that's a very cool story (unless it wasn't Cabral's wife, in which case it's creepy).
 
Sorry for the delay, guys! I missed some work for the BBQ yesterday, and had to take care of it before I could write an update. (It's 12:30 right now in Hawaii.)

The BBQ was great. I was the only person there that wasn't family but they made me feel at home as part of their ohana (definition, Snow Buff?) From start to finished we all just hung out and talked story. When I arrived we went throught the formalities. He showed me his Super Bowl ring . . . epic. I kind of wanted to get his take on that dirt bag Bear, Cutler, but I held my tongue. Brian's brother, Jeff who coaches at Punahou, looks like his identical twin, and was a great host. His wife's food was UNBELIEVABLE with ingredients that came from their own yard! I'm also happy to say they all loved the beer I brewed!

He had just traveled to some schools all over the island, after arriving the day before. He had a great energy but also seemed mellowed out, either from jetlag, the busy day, or just hanging out with family. They hadn't been together in a long time, so I just went with the flow, but I still got to ask about all kinds of stuff and found his answers really interesting.

As far as Hawkins goes, his brother was a little more forthright in venting frustration. I think Brian must have found it really hard to see this guy run the Colorado program into that ground so badly. The sentiment was that Hawkins really stopped coaching football in the end and pretty much just acted like some sort of life coach that was getting paid a ****load. I could tell that Brian just hated to see all the tradition of CU football disappear. I asked about how much he tweaked once he took over for the last three games, and he said he "made it about football again. Went back to the basics." He reminded them of the great tradition that only a true Buff can convey. He "lit the flame then he just had them play Colorado football." He really loved all the kids on that team, and I think he feels like they really could have won a few more games than they did if they had a coach that was worth a damn. (He never said that explicitly but that's what I took from it.)

As for recruiting, his main point was that "half the battle is just getting the kids to Boulder." It is just a "special place" and once the kids get there they'll see what an opportunity being a Buff really is. He went on to say a lot of out of state kids have a preconceived notion of Colorado having cowboys and some podunk thing going on, but once they get there they eat it up.

He talked about how the California recruits often can see and appreciate the appeal of Boulder since it is a similar mentality with a different environment. The same goes for Hawaii. The weather is different and they trade amazing beaches for amazing mountains. Why go to the west coast with ugly, cold beaches and worse weather? Buffnik: I also mentioned Willingham, and he had great things to say about the kid. Perhaps he could have contributed to the program right away, but when someone just wants to experience a different place it can be impossible to change their mind. Fair enough, seeing that I find it pretty lame how so many Texas kids stay in Texas, So Cal kids stay in LA, etc. He and the staff have a firm grip on who might be interested in Colorado based on their 'wonderlust' factor. They've offered a lot of kids scholarships, but I am thinking they'll really hone in on the true candidates that want to go out of state in a few months so they spend energy wisely.

He is overall really happy they're focused on the best recruits in the country. Clearly that is what it takes to be a top notch program, rather than always aiming for some underrated surprises.

I can't say he feels great about the DB situation. It sounds like they'll be getting real creative with the safeties and dropping back linebackers. I think we'll be extremely agressive up front. He is soooo excited to hear about the contingent of fans coming into town (and already in town planning events) for the game, but I could see that their passing game could expose things. On the plus side they lose their starting WRs, but they've got a system where they can just plug in two more without an issue. They have a brand new O line and hopefully our front seven can disrupt Moniz enough to minimize the passing game's effectiveness.

He didn't mention any specific player that he expects to 'become a houshold name" or anything. I actually think he likes what they've potentially got in the linebacking department. He seemed high on the D line.

This Hawaii trip is going well, I think. It looks like the two best players in the state go to Punahou (YEAH!) I think we'll be in good shape with the islands next year and years to come. Samoa seems to be on the radar as I would expect but never seem to read about.

Rivalry? I asked him about missing the Nebraska game and if he'd like it back. I think he kind of seemed aloof. Like 'who cares?' He is really excited for the PAC-12. (Mentioned Cali alumns quite a few times.) I mentioned, "do you think Utah is a worthy rival?" and to my surprise he actually said, nah. "I think we've got some history with Oregon and USC. I think they sound better." I kind of have been in the group of people liking the natural (and historic) rivalry of Utah. I think his train of thought is along the lines of McCartney making Nebraska a rival way back. You aim for the best and make sure your team does that same. Of course Utah is good, but they're more cyclical than USC and Oregon (well, we'll see.) Our true rival should be someone we are competing with for the PAC-12 title year in, year out.

Final points: Pretty obvious but good to hear him state emphatically is that the 180 degree change in pride for the CU football program is HUGE. I have the impression that the last couple years with Hawkins were just terrible in the lockeroom. It seems more like it was being run as a youth camp that had intramural (*cough*cough*) football than a team with championship pride. Now that pride is back and tenfold where it has been in recent years. The new recruits are going to eat that up. And honestly, the best people to do that for the program right now are former Buffs.
 
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Love me some coach Cabral. I've had dinner with him a couple of times in smaller settings. He's awesome.
 
Thanks for the recap Timmy. I am so glad we were able to keep Cabral around the program through another coaching change, he is a fantastic coach and ambassador for CU.
 
Speaking of keeping him around. Just for fun I asked him if he could ever imagine coaching University of Hawaii down the road. I mean it sounds like a viable fit, right? He stopped and thought about it, and said, "nah I don't think so." His family followed up that he loves it in Colorado too much.
 
Timmy,

Great write up, and thanks for sharing. It sounds like you had a great time. I would have the annoying guest gushing over his experiences with CU and da Bears.
 
haole, ohana means family. Everyone knows that. nice shaka bradda

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