What's new
AllBuffs | Unofficial fan site for the University of Colorado at Boulder Athletics programs

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • Prime Time. Prime Time. Its a new era for Colorado football. Consider signing up for a club membership! For $20/year, you can get access to all the special features at Allbuffs, including club member only forums, dark mode, avatars and best of all no ads ! But seriously, please sign up so that we can pay the bills. No one earns money here, and we can use your $20 to keep this hellhole running. You can sign up for a club membership by navigating to your account in the upper right and clicking on "Account Upgrades". Make it happen!

Official CU Head Coach Search Thread - Primetime


It’s been nearly a week since the Colorado Buffaloes parted ways with Karl Dorrell. They are one of five power-five teams that has cut ties with its head coach since the start of the season. The Colorado opening hasn’t garnered the same attention as Wisconsin, Nebraska or Arizona State. Still, CBS Sports’ Tom Fornelli believes it's a program that should at least compete for bowl games every season. Ahead of the hiring process, he dubbed former Washington coach Chris Petersen as Colorado’s dream candidate but explained why Alabama offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien is more realistic.
 
Great news for us on the ground below the bottom rung of the ladder
perfect loops climb GIF


Nowhere to go but up for us
 
Not to me. I'm very risk averse with this hire and there is a great pool of candidates this year who fit that profile.
You tweeted about liking the DC at Texas, Choate, but to me that's risky.

I put a lot of weight on having been a successful DC or OC. HC experience is more than a tie breaker for me.
But I see lifetime position coach in Choate's resume until this co-DC gig at Texas, where he shares the title with Kwiatkowski, who has had years of success as a DC.

That's not a disqualifier for me, but certainly higher risk.
 
You tweeted about liking the DC at Texas, Choate, but to me that's risky.

I put a lot of weight on having been a successful DC or OC. HC experience is more than a tie breaker for me.
But I see lifetime position coach in Choate's resume until this co-DC gig at Texas, where he shares the title with Kwiatkowski, who has had years of success as a DC.

That's not a disqualifier for me, but certainly higher risk.
Choate was a head coach (albeit at the FCS level) for 4 years.
 
Not naming a coach until the end of the season will ensure another lack luster recruiting class. Why would any recruit come to CU, literally the worst ranked team in the country, and not knowing who the coach and staff will be. The Buffs will probably lose some of their top committed players (other schools are already pouncing) and any player who commits right now is probably desperate to play at the P5 level. Inking a coach now gives that coach time to assemble a staff and probably most important, gives him time to get commitments form players he wants and increase the talent pool in year one.
 
Not naming a coach until the end of the season will ensure another lack luster recruiting class. Why would any recruit come to CU, literally the worst ranked team in the country, and not knowing who the coach and staff will be. The Buffs will probably lose some of their top committed players (other schools are already pouncing) and any player who commits right now is probably desperate to play at the P5 level. Inking a coach now gives that coach time to assemble a staff and probably most important, gives him time to get commitments form players he wants and increase the talent pool in year one.
If we hire one of the available coaches, like Bronco, I say announce it ASAP for the very reasons you mention
 
Not naming a coach until the end of the season will ensure another lack luster recruiting class. Why would any recruit come to CU, literally the worst ranked team in the country, and not knowing who the coach and staff will be. The Buffs will probably lose some of their top committed players (other schools are already pouncing) and any player who commits right now is probably desperate to play at the P5 level. Inking a coach now gives that coach time to assemble a staff and probably most important, gives him time to get commitments form players he wants and increase the talent pool in year one.
That tells me RG either is interested in people who are currently coaching or with a case like Mendenhall......wanting to wait until the majority of his guys (who I think are all working-that staff has been together for the last 10-15 years in Provo and Charlottesville) can join him here.
 
Not naming a coach until the end of the season will ensure another lack luster recruiting class. Why would any recruit come to CU, literally the worst ranked team in the country, and not knowing who the coach and staff will be. The Buffs will probably lose some of their top committed players (other schools are already pouncing) and any player who commits right now is probably desperate to play at the P5 level. Inking a coach now gives that coach time to assemble a staff and probably most important, gives him time to get commitments form players he wants and increase the talent pool in year one.
We aren't even half way through the season. The entire coaching carousel has just started in that jobs are opening up but not being filled yet, and CU isn't in a position to dictate anything or be the first domino to fall.

CU is going through the process of figuring out just how committed to football they are going to be going forward. They have to get Dorrell's buyout settlement taken care of, get a handle on the budget for new coach, staff, support staff, recruiting staff, admission hurdles, etc. They have to have their ducks in a row before they start reaching out to candidates as CU needs to be able to sell a candidate on the job just as much as the candidate needs to sell CU on themselves.

Once all the internal stuff is taken care of, they need to consult with as many people/groups as possible on a "long list" of viable candidates to consider, shrink that down to a "medium" list of realistic candidates who will even take their calls, and finally narrow it to a "short list" to conduct interviews.

They have to get this hire right, so the absolute last thing that needs to happen is to rush the process in order to hold together the 48th ranked recruiting class or potentially have an extra month to recruit, when they definitely won't have a staff assembled and in place until December/January anyways.
 
Not naming a coach until the end of the season will ensure another lack luster recruiting class. Why would any recruit come to CU, literally the worst ranked team in the country, and not knowing who the coach and staff will be. The Buffs will probably lose some of their top committed players (other schools are already pouncing) and any player who commits right now is probably desperate to play at the P5 level. Inking a coach now gives that coach time to assemble a staff and probably most important, gives him time to get commitments form players he wants and increase the talent pool in year one.
If we lost 90% of our current commits due to a coaching change, I wouldn't shed one damn tear. KD and Co. didn't exactly load up on game changers.
 
You tweeted about liking the DC at Texas, Choate, but to me that's risky.

I put a lot of weight on having been a successful DC or OC. HC experience is more than a tie breaker for me.
But I see lifetime position coach in Choate's resume until this co-DC gig at Texas, where he shares the title with Kwiatkowski, who has had years of success as a DC.

That's not a disqualifier for me, but certainly higher risk.
He was HC at Montana State and made the national semis in his last year there.
 
Grimes is exactly the type of coach that Colorado needs.

1) Elite run game philosophy. Want to run the GD rock? Need a guy who has gotten it done in multiple places. We will again have somebody who can lock down the actual good players that Colorado produces: OL, TE, and RB.

2) TEXAS. I feel like too many people are sleeping on having Texas connects from the top down as a big f!ucking deal. We need a guy who can not only get a staff to connect with Texas coaches to get back on board with CU, we need a head guy who can seal the deal with Texans.

Herman, Grimes as top two choices by a lot. I love Walters as an outside shot guy because I feel like he’d potentially give us a hometown discount, get the defense right, and connect with an innovative OC who can have full control.
I've been thinking about why someone like Grimes or Walters would come here.

I think both will have options available to them. As a first time head coach, why would you pick the option where

A) the team is coming off not one but TWO historically bad offensive seasons
B) The cupboard is more bare than a king soopers two weeks into March 2020 after COVID spiked in the US
C) Administrative support is bare minimum with no sign of transfer restrictions easing up
D) Uncertainty about the conference CU will be in going forward

If I was someone at a point in my career where I was about to make the biggest jump possible, I would want to go somewhere that gives me the best chance at success. Just doesn't make sense to pick CU at this point in time with people like RG and PD in charge.
 
Last edited:
I've been thinking about why someone like Grimes or Walters would come here.

I think both will have options available to them. As a first time head coach, why would you pick the option where

A) the team is coming off not one but TWO historically bad offensive seasons
B) The cupboard is more bare than a king soopers two weeks into March 2020 after COVID spiked in the US
C) Administrative support is bare minimum with no sign of transfer restrictions easing up
D) Uncertainty about the conference CU will be in going forward

If I was someone at a point in my career where I was about to make the biggest jump possible, I would want to go somewhere that gives me the best chance at success possible. Just doesn't make sense to pick CU at this point in time with people like RG and PD in charge.
Because P5 jobs are still very rare, they pay exceedingly well, even CU, and there is a ton of competition for them.

Grimes interviewed for the Utah State HC job and didn't get it. Alex Grinch has seemingly been a HC candidate for the last 5 years and nobody has hired him. The country is littered with P5 coordinators who want a P5 HC job but won't get one.

The uncertainty about the conference is a minor issue, but that's a concern for all non-SEC and B1G programs at them moment, not just CU.

The administrative support issue is the biggest hurdle, but that's a self imposed hurdle that the CU administration themselves will have to sell the candidates on.
 
I've been thinking about why someone like Grimes or Walters would come here.

I think both will have options available to them. As a first time head coach, why would you pick the option where

A) the team is coming off not one but TWO historically bad offensive seasons
B) The cupboard is more bare than a king soopers two weeks into March 2020 after COVID spiked in the US
C) Administrative support is bare minimum with no sign of transfer restrictions easing up
D) Uncertainty about the conference CU will be in going forward

If I was someone at a point in my career where I was about to make the biggest jump possible, I would want to go somewhere that gives me the best chance at success. Just doesn't make sense to pick CU at this point in time with people like RG and PD in charge.
Well, if you are looking for a place where the bar for success is low, and any sort of improvement will posture for a real job, CU has its allure. If you can leverage Rg's and possibly Dr. Phil's desperation to get off the hot seat into contractual requirements that the transfer window be opened so you aren't competing with one hand tied around your back, it is possible.


You come to CU get them to .500 and a bowl game a year or two after the historically epic failure that is the RG/LC/HCKD/Dr. Phil nexus and you will have offers a plenty at other schools.
 
I've been thinking about why someone like Grimes or Walters would come here.

I think both will have options available to them. As a first time head coach, why would you pick the option where

A) the team is coming off not one but TWO historically bad offensive seasons
B) The cupboard is more bare than a king soopers two weeks into March 2020 after COVID spiked in the US
C) Administrative support is bare minimum with no sign of transfer restrictions easing up
D) Uncertainty about the conference CU will be in going forward

If I was someone at a point in my career where I was about to make the biggest jump possible, I would want to go somewhere that gives me the best chance at success. Just doesn't make sense to pick CU at this point in time with people like RG and PD in charge.
Walters is probably a little different as he is obviously very close to the program. He is the one exception you take with "not hiring former buffs", if they want to go that route.
 
Well, if you are looking for a place where the bar for success is low, and any sort of improvement will posture for a real job, CU has its allure. If you can leverage Rg's and possibly Dr. Phil's desperation to get off the hot seat into contractual requirements that the transfer window be opened so you aren't competing with one hand tied around your back, it is possible.


You come to CU get them to .500 and a bowl game a year or two after the historically epic failure that is the RG/LC/HCKD/Dr. Phil nexus and you will have offers a plenty at other schools.
As long as the buyout for the next guy to leave is the remainder of the contract......
 
We aren't even half way through the season. The entire coaching carousel has just started in that jobs are opening up but not being filled yet, and CU isn't in a position to dictate anything or be the first domino to fall.

CU is going through the process of figuring out just how committed to football they are going to be going forward. They have to get Dorrell's buyout settlement taken care of, get a handle on the budget for new coach, staff, support staff, recruiting staff, admission hurdles, etc. They have to have their ducks in a row before they start reaching out to candidates as CU needs to be able to sell a candidate on the job just as much as the candidate needs to sell CU on themselves.

Once all the internal stuff is taken care of, they need to consult with as many people/groups as possible on a "long list" of viable candidates to consider, shrink that down to a "medium" list of realistic candidates who will even take their calls, and finally narrow it to a "short list" to conduct interviews.

They have to get this hire right, so the absolute last thing that needs to happen is to rush the process in order to hold together the 48th ranked recruiting class or potentially have an extra month to recruit, when they definitely won't have a staff assembled and in place until December/January anyways.
The AD should already have all of that in place. It is not a rush to do one's job, have contingency plans in place (it's not like Dorrell's firing came out of thin air, this was a painful build). RG should have already resolved the budget, spoken with the board and have his ducks in a row. I agree not to rush, but to not be ready is negligence and throws away the 2023 season. Let' s face it, the roster is trash, having a new coach, already hamstrung with the limitations of transfers and portal adds by the CU administration, the new coach will lose 50-10 every game next year if the players are of the same caliber. However, if the AD is proactive and hires early, the new coach can sell talent based on the coaches knowledge and history vs recruits watching the team go 0-12 next year as the tailspin continues. Nick Saban couldn't get this roster to a bowl game next season. The new coach should be hired quickly to provide time to recruit this year, not next year. There will be transfers out, along with graduation - and the younger players are not at the P5 level. Maybe McCown, the rest would struggle to start for a Mountain West school. Why not give the new coach every advantage possible by hiring methodically and quickly (different than rushing a decision) and improve the quality of players on the roster from jump....
 
How many schools in college football have fired their coach mid-season and hired the permanent replacement before the season was over?

There is ZERO chance CU names a new head coach before the season is over. CU will not get their pick of HC candidates, and no legit head coach is going to accept the CU job without seeing if there are better job opportunities with other schools that have coaches leave at the end of the season.
 
I've been thinking about why someone like Grimes or Walters would come here.

I think both will have options available to them. As a first time head coach, why would you pick the option where

A) the team is coming off not one but TWO historically bad offensive seasons
B) The cupboard is more bare than a king soopers two weeks into March 2020 after COVID spiked in the US
C) Administrative support is bare minimum with no sign of transfer restrictions easing up
D) Uncertainty about the conference CU will be in going forward

If I was someone at a point in my career where I was about to make the biggest jump possible, I would want to go somewhere that gives me the best chance at success. Just doesn't make sense to pick CU at this point in time with people like RG and PD in charge.
1) This bears repeating: with a strong recruiter and staff of recruiters, your fortunes in college football can change quickly. The portal gives guys who haven’t seen the field the chance to get playing time. If it’s true that PDS is on his way out, I think CU’s fortunes can change quickly.

2) The definition of making CU right again is very different than most other schools. If you can win 2-3 games in year one, 5-6 in year two, and 6-8 going forward, you will have a job at Colorado for a long time and very likely get a rich extension. You can also parlay that transition into another job — especially if you start hitting big targets ahead of ahead of schedule.

3) Most career assistants do not get even one shot to be the main man. Yes, Colorado is really bad. But, Colorado can win if the President gets the Chancellor and AD to commit themselves to winning. These are guys who want a shot to prove their worth as the main man.
 
The AD should already have all of that in place. It is not a rush to do one's job, have contingency plans in place (it's not like Dorrell's firing came out of thin air, this was a painful build). RG should have already resolved the budget, spoken with the board and have his ducks in a row. I agree not to rush, but to not be ready is negligence and throws away the 2023 season. Let' s face it, the roster is trash, having a new coach, already hamstrung with the limitations of transfers and portal adds by the CU administration, the new coach will lose 50-10 every game next year if the players are of the same caliber. However, if the AD is proactive and hires early, the new coach can sell talent based on the coaches knowledge and history vs recruits watching the team go 0-12 next year as the tailspin continues. Nick Saban couldn't get this roster to a bowl game next season. The new coach should be hired quickly to provide time to recruit this year, not next year. There will be transfers out, along with graduation - and the younger players are not at the P5 level. Maybe McCown, the rest would struggle to start for a Mountain West school. Why not give the new coach every advantage possible by hiring methodically and quickly (different than rushing a decision) and improve the quality of players on the roster from jump....
Do you really think Rick George has all that in place? I sure don’t. I blame him as the main reason we’re in the mess that we are.
 
Back
Top