Colorado 24 West Virginia 35

Colorado 24 West Virginia 35

Perhaps the better title should have been, “Hawkins Family 24, West Virginia 35”.

I know that might sound a little annoying to fans of Colorado, but I just can’t shake the feeling that this Colorado team was built for only one person…the coach’s son.

I blogged earlier today predicting West Virginia to win by about 7 points, but in actuality the could have, and SHOULD have, won by more than 11 as the final showed. The Buffaloes scored near the end of the game, and with West Virginia having a load of turnovers in the first half, the final score could have been something like 48-30.

It’s funny because I remember last year when Pat White was the starting QB, and it looked like West Virginia was trying some new wrinkles with the team. It cost them the first couple of games last year, trying to do what they were not really built to do…throw. But once they figured out what they needed to do, they had a very successful season.

This year it seemed that they were quite set on making the passing attack a part of the team, which has not been a major part of West Virginia the last several years. And it seemed to show, and even did so last week. Numerous turnovers by the quarterback easily tells us that when you have a star quarterback that leaves the program, it is hard to have somebody step in and fill his shoes, especially if he never had the number of snaps needed to build confidence.

This is what we saw in the first half with West Virginia, but that slice of Blame Pie goes to several other members of that offense, even one to the defense. But Colorado was not able to truly take advantage of it, missing two field goals in a row.

It seemed a little later that the Mountaineers realized that they had a running back…Noel Devine, that was actually pretty good. I am glad they remembered that, because he IS good.. Odd, that the guys on ESPN said that he would not make a good NFL running back…who are they to judge? This guy is awesome.

While both teams missed opportunities to score, the second half seemed to be redefined in how this game was going to play. When West Virginia began to run first, throw later, they took control. Noel Devine got over 200 yards rushing, which put them out in front. If you take away several sacks that were almost calculated in miles, the scoring might have even been better.

I just didn’t see anything with Colorado, and I say that knowing that this team is built around Cody Hawkins, the coach’s son. I blogged about this before, and I know it is noble for a father to keep his son first, but when does it get to a point where the team suffers when the quarterback is the coach’s son?

This loss puts Colorado to 1-3, and on pace to not going to another bowl. Consider this folks, their next game is on the road vs. Texas…this can turn out to be a 1-4 team very quickly. They are home against Kansas and on the road again vs. Kansas State. Missouri and Texas A&M come visiting, then two road games vs. Iowa State and Oklahoma State.

Colorado beat Iowa State and Kansas State last year, if you assume they can repeat that, then give them 2 more wins…but both of these games are on the road. To me, this team could be 4-7 before their final game vs. Nebraska…on the road.

Looks like another year of underachieving for the Buffaloes.

There’s a saying that goes, “can’t see the forest before the trees” which implies that sometimes the obvious is right in front of you, but we refuse to see it. Is it possible that the program is not geared to help Colorado win, but rather help a coach’s son win?

Don’t laugh, high school football around this country is filled with stories where influence puts a coach’s son, or some rich family’s son in a position he may not be qualified for. Does this mean Cody Hawkins is not a good quarterback? Of course not, but would we consider how much consideration he gets if he was not the coach’s son?

It just seems that this Colorado team sold out on favortism, sacrificing on talented athletes who may have opted away from Colorado because it was fixed for one player, rather than a team…I mean, let’s face it, the record speaks for itself. Dan Hawkins told the supports of Colorado that he expected to win 10 games…he just didn’t mean over 2 or 3 years.

And what have we learned of West Virginia? Is this a team that can “run the tables”? I remember seeing how good Devine was last year, and I believe they have a rock solid back, but they also have a very good offensive line to create the blocking necessary. This is a dangerous team, and if they can get their quarterback to stop running backwards, they can indeed be a team to beat.

The Mountaineers’ schedule looks very favorable, with games at Syracuse, home vs. Marshall and Connecticut. Easily looking at a 6-1 record, and a top 25 ranking. But how will they fare on the road against a tough South Florida team?

Consider that West Virginia lost 4 games last year, to ECU, Colorado, Auburn and Cincinnati. All four they play this year, and have avenged two of those losses. Auburn handed West Virginia their lone defeat, and they play Cincinnati later this year. The bug here is that West Virginia seems to hate playing on the road…after all, their only loss was AT Auburn, and half their losses last year were on the road.

Do I think West Virginia can run the tables…that will be hard. Outside of Louisville, the remaining 4 of the last 5 games feature teams that won at LEAST 8 games… this is not a picnic for West Virginia. It’s just too much of a stretch to expect West Virginia to win all these games, especially with the kinda defense they played tonight, loose and missing tackles. But I will say this, if this team begins to focus more on the running game, it just might make the difference in one or two more games.

Eight wins is not out of the picture for West Virginia, but I think maybe 9 could be more realistic…IF they cut down on all those turnovers. But mark my words, if they continue to turn the ball over, they might be lucky to win 7 games.

Overall, an entertaining game. I am sure Kordell Stewart is turning over in his bed wondering what happened to the glory days of Colorado. The Dan Hawkins era has apparently been a bust, and maybe he should have stayed at Boise State…

But would Boise State have allowed Cody Hawkins to take the helm as quarterback…hmmmm…..a thought for another blog….