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CU Buffs Football history for dummies

DustyRhodes

Active Member
Somebody give me a simple history lesson of the history of CU Football, I'm talking in the modern era. I don't care about what you did in the 40s. Who's all been your coaches, what types of systems did they run, were they any good, what were your good times, what were your bad times, etc...

Thanks,
Dusty
 
Somebody give me a simple history lesson of the history of CU Football, I'm talking in the modern era. I don't care about what you did in the 40s. Who's all been your coaches, what types of systems did they run, were they any good, what were your good times, what were your bad times, etc...

Thanks,
Dusty

I'll give it a crack...I have really only been following the Buffs since 1987, so anything before that will be short.

Pre-Mac period

1970's the Buffs were a solid team, Bobby Anderson, a couple of O bowls, then had some recruiting problems/sanctions, tried to resurrect by bringing in Chuck Fairbanks and everything went to crap. Enter Mac.

MacCartney. Came in in 1984 I believe. Began recruiting like the freakin' recruiting madman he was. Ran the Bone for a while, went to a hybrid I-Bone around '88 and won the Big 8 '89, '90 and '91. Shared MNC in '90, had some great teams but had an attack of conscience because of family problems he felt were brought on by his bing away all the time. Handed the reins over to Slick Rick. Mac thought either Bob Simmons, his first choice, should have gotten the job. Others thought Eloit Uzelac, still others GB, but he had just started at NU and wasn't ready to jump.

Slick. Did well while Mac's talent and discipline were still here. Over tiem, he turned the team into a finesse throw first run third type of outfit which included smallish RB's. Went to the Aloha bowl in his last year saying he would not be looking around while he was probably already playing footsie with the UW AD. Bolted on an important recruiting weekend pretty much screwing up that year's class, and allowing recruits to raid the AD equuipment room which resulted in later sanctions for CU. Thanks Rick.

GB. Was supposedly the second choice as Gary Kubiak had all but agreed to the job. Kubes pulled out, enter GB. GB's dream job. Promised RTD. Got decent results first year, but teams always seemed to start slow. 2000 class was a top ranked bunch, but 2000 was a 3-8 disaster. 2001 he rang the bell, Big 12 championship, BCS appearance, with a nice mix of Rick and GB recruited talent. 2002, good year, but lost Bienimy and Embree, the best recruiters on staff. 2003 shifted to more of a WCO look. DC V. Okruch took over when co-DC fell ill. D began to falter. Crappy finish, no bowl, lost to frickin' Baylor. 2004 the scandal that wasn't begins to rear it's ugly head. CU competitve in Big 12 N, but beginning to get blown out by ranked teams. 2005 more of the same, GB keeps the team competitve, but the damage is done. Losses to ISU, NU and a monumental shellacking by UT seal his fate.

Hawk...work in progress.


Hope that helps.
 
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Here's my very brief and limited summary. I recommend MBB and 30 for more info as both lived through "the modern era".

Late 70's - Chuck Fairbanks - Passing offense. We sucked. Baby blue unis. Some consider it the darkest times of CU football
80's to mid 90's - McCartney - Wishbone then Pro style offense. 1 NC. The glory days of CU football.
Mid to Late 90's - Skippy Neuheisl - Pro style offense. Downward trend in performance. Growing discipline problems and the team frequently "lost focus on the bus to the game".
Late 90's - 2005 - Barnet. Pro style "balanced offense" riddled with infuriating bubble screens. Some success in early 2001. GB era tainted by his stubbornness in not making changes to his assistants despite poor performance. Oh yeah, and then there was the recruiting non-rape scandal.
 
Last edited:
Here's my very brief and limited summary. I recommend MBB and 30 for more info as both lived through "the modern era".

Late 70's - Chuck Fairbanks - Passing offense. We sucked. Baby blue unis. Some consider it the darkest times of CU football
80's to mid 90's - McCartney - Wishbone then Pro style offense. 1 NC. The glory days of CU football.
Mid to Late 90's - Skippy Neuheisl - Pro style offense. Downward trend in performance. Growing discipline problems and the team frequently "lost focus on the bus to the game".Late 90's - 2005 - Barnet. Pro style "balanced offense" riddled with infuriating bubble screens. Some success in early 2001. GB era tainted by his stubbornness to make changes to assistance despite poor performance. Oh yeah, and then there was the recruiting non-rape scandal.



:lol::lol::lol: I had forgotten that Skippy jewel.
 
This might have a few holes or so....

The Crowder era - 60's to early 70's

Bobby Anderson - stud QB/RB late 60's earns first team AA and guides the Buffs to a huge Liberty Bowl win over the Bear lead Bama

1970 - Blow out state Penn in Boulder. Jo Pa's crew had some looooong winning streak and were ranked 2nd or 3rd.

1971 - finish 3rd behind kNu and OU. OOC that year saw wins at LSU and tOSU.

Crowder steps down as coach becomes full time AD and Bill Mallory takes over. Still basically an I - option team. Buffs win B-12 in 76?. Right after, tough times start, Mallory is booted and the chuckster is hired. CU hits the skids highlighted by a 42-82 blasting at the hands of OU.

The chuckster is canned and the savior, Bill McCartney, is hired. Buffs end 19 game losing streak vs. the holers in a 20-10 victory in Boulder in 1986. 1988...Buffs oh so close in Lincoln and JJ flanigan fumbles as he's heading in to tie the score and the Buffs lose 0-7...which by the way is the last time CU has been shut out. 1989 - the year of emotions....Sal Aunese succumbs to cancer and passes away....the Buff team shreads everyone and everything on its way to its first 11-0 season. Lose in the Orange Bowl to granny holtz and the domers.

1990 - Buffs play virtually every major conference winner that year....Washington, Tennessee, Illinois, saxeT in the OOC....and finish the season at 10-1-1 headed back to the OB to play granny holtz's team again. Along the way their is the infamour 5th down play at Mizzou. Buffs beat the domers and claim 1/2 the MNC...would have had it all but the ****er osborne votes for Georgia Tech.

1994 - Salaam wins CU's first and only heisman. Buffs finish #3 going 11-1 losing only to the MNC holers. During the year there is the Miracle in Michigan....65 yard pass Stewart to Westbrook as time runs out in the bighouse.

1995 - Skippy Neuheasil takes over after McCartney steps down so he can run Promise Keepers. Skip's Buffs post back to back 10-2 records and top 10 finishes. 1997 - preseason #1 and skippy ball takes over...Buffs go 5-6 and miss out on a Bowl game.

1999 - Skippy has skipped and Barnett takes over.
 
Slick Rick really liked to have 12 guys on the field at one time. Cutting edge stuff.
 
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