Ugly, messy, fought with unnecessary difficulty. These are the ideas that spring to my mind when considering Colorado's 60-52 win over Oregon State on Thursday. Similar to the first meeting in Boulder, the Beavers were allowed to stick with the Buffs, who possessed far more talent and depth than OSU could possibly bring to bear, for far too long. However, in the final minutes of regulation, with the Beavs sniffing out the possibility of their first Pac-12 win of the season, CU slammed the door on their over-sized tails. Clinging to a one point lead, Derrick White knifed into the action, and nailed a jumper. On the ensuing possession, he then extended for a miraculous block of Beaver forward Gligorije Rakocevic, which turned into a crippling blow when Xavier Johnson swished a corner three with some 30 seconds to play. Boom, just like that, a six point lead materialized on the scoreboard, and the game was effectively over. Thanks for coming, don't forget to tip your waitress.
That's what makes this effort against lowly Oregon State so befuddling. There's no reason Colorado should've let the hosts hang on, even going so far as to let them pull even with under two minutes to play. But the finishing touches shown by the Buffs in sealing the win were, none-the-less, impressive. CU was hungry for victory in this one; you could see it even as OSU was sticking close. The defense was tenacious, and the late-game offense was exquisite. This was the killer mentality that the team was missing earlier in the year, the desperate energy that so often separates the winners from the losers with post-season positioning on the line. It's a mentality that has been with the team since the Oregon game a few weeks ago, and one that could serve them well as the calendar starts to look a whole lot like March.
Beavs made it ugly, but the Buffs prevailed. From: the Press-Democrat
The star of the game is easy to pick out here. As much for his late-game heroics as his 20/1/4/2/3 overall line, Derrick White stands above the rest. Far from an isolated incident, either. The fifth-year senior transfer has earned KenPom's game-MVP honors in five of the last six evenings, a run that includes some of the best basketball he's played all year. The mercurial point guard is really coming into his own at the perfect time, carrying the Buffs and their fortunes on his shoulders as they race down the back-nine of their Pac-12 schedule. Let's not forget, though, the 17/4 efforts of Xavier Johnson. He hit the game sealing bucket, after all, and was aggressive in finding scoring opportunities all night long.
Overall, this was a rough night for Colorado, at least offensively. The Beavers almost completely disrupted the offensive rhythm that the Buffs had shown against Washington State last weekend, eliminating backcuts and interior penetration, while holding Colorado to just 42% shooting from the field. The big issue here was in the paint, where OSU clogged things up enough to limit the Buffs to just 28 points under the rim after they had claimed 44 against the Cougars. For as difficult as CU found it to score, however, they made up for it on the defensive end. While State was able to play them to near-parity on the glass (33-31), Colorado held the hosts to 38% shooting from the floor, 30% from deep, and squelched them in the paint to the tune of just 18 total points. CU was showing extremely hard on screens and giving OSU's point guards fits. The team as a whole managed just seven assists all night and committed 18 turnovers. Whereas the Beavers had shook off the CU defense in Boulder, the Buffs were able to hold them to just 0.83 ppp in Corvallis -- a night and day turnaround.
Colorado found a way. From: FOX Sports
So, as always, a win is a win, and this one pushed Colorado's winning blitz to six in seven games. It's impossible, at this point, to not look back to early January and wonder about 'what if?' All those close losses, all those calamitous final possessions and fumbled leads that helped fuel the 0-7 start to league play are now unavoidable thorns in the side of the team and their flagging Tournament resume. As friend of the blog Ted Chalfen pointed out after the game, CU is, in essence, eight points shy of sitting here today at 20-7 (10-4). When I say 'a win is a win', this is exactly what I mean. In all of the early season defeats to Arizona State, USC, Washington, and Washington State, the execution on the court wasn't anywhere close to where the Buffs' ceiling was. But, a couple of possessions here or there turn those results into wins, and, as ugly as those games were, all sins would've been forgiven, and Tournament tickets punched. Instead, we're where we are now, with BuffNation making plans for the NIT. This is a zero-sum game, basketball, and the win's the thing. Colorado has, of late, found their cut-throat nature, pouncing for wins with the result in the balance. Had they just been at that point five weeks ago, the season is completely different.
Alas, we've yet to find that 'reset button' on the great game of life, so BuffNation must soldier on. The Oregon Ducks are up next, and they're looking for a bit of revenge. Time to see just how far this CU team has come in their advance back up the ranks in the Pac-12.
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Hype Music for the Evening: "I Love LA" by Randy Newman
Doesn't make much sense, right? CU is playing Oregon today, why am I picking a song about Los Angeles? Well, that's because I'm actually in LA right now, in town for a family vacation. So, you get stuck with this diddy by the great Randy Newman. Enjoy!
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Tip-off from Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene is set for 1pm MT on Saturday. Televised coverage can be found on FOX national, with the radio call on 850 KOA.
For reference, my preview from the first game against UO this season can be found here.
Ladies and gentlemen, the streak is over! After their first seven tries against Pac-12 competition this season ended in failure, the Colorado Buffaloes finally entered a notch in the left-hand column with a 85-78 win over the Oregon State. Never mind that the performance itself was far from perfect, never mind that the Beavers are one of the worst, most talent-starved teams in the nation, any win at this point looks sweet. I'll take my sundae with three cherries on top, if you don't mind.
Plenty of new faces in the starting lineup on Saturday. From: the BDC
The biggest story to come out of this game, beyond the simple fact of the schneid-busting first league victory, was the starting lineup. In an effort to send a message to his charges, Coach Boyle went with five new starters, all of them underclassmen who had previously been averaging fewer than 15 minutes per game. When the names were first read out - Thomas Akyazili, Deleon Brown, Tory Miller, Bryce Peters, ad Lucas Siewert - most fans, myself included, thought it was error or awkward joke. None but Brown had started a game this season, how could this be? But, no, Tad was serious:
"That move was more a way to honor and to reward the guys who come to practice every day and who don’t get the minutes or haven’t gotten the starts.[...] Other guys have had their opportunities and I thought it was time for those guys who hadn’t to get their chance. [...] It’s not anything against the guys who have been starting but it was more because the guys who haven’t been starting deserved a chance, and I thought that they handled it well." -link
I'm not sure the unorthodox starting five paid huge dividends, with the Beavers sticking with Colorado, both off the opening tip and at the start of the second half, but the idea of a fresh look makes a certain bit of sense right now. The deck has cried out for a re-shuffling since the start of 2017, and this dramatic lurch, with five fresh faces getting their names called to start the game, was a quick way to accomplish that.
Nothing is ever easy with this bunch. From: the BDC
Bryce Peters certainly seemed to answer the call. In his first collegiate start, the spunky freshman combo guard went for 15/4/2 on 5-6 shooting. While not the most effusive player in Colorado colors Thursday evening, he was the most efficient, and really seemed to lead the charge with the reserves on the floor. Since he will head the next generation, it was good to see him step up when called.
CU was led on the evening, however, by an otherwise normal starter: George King. The junior scoring guard lit up the board with 24 points, most of it in the first half, fueling the Buffalo attack that boasted 52 points off the bench. His performance was highlighted by this thunderous tomahawk jam off a steal, which was one of the most exciting plays of the entire campaign. He would cool off in the final stretch into the halftime break, and some hasty shots darkened an otherwise brilliant evening. Still, this is just the latest in a string of games where we've seen King return to the form of last season in a way Colorado has been desperate for. In conference play, he's been the 16th-most efficient offensive performer in the Pac-12, with an ORtg near 120, an eFG over 61%, and a three-point rate of about 46%. A few more weeks like this, and he could wind up earning some conference honors when all is said and done.
George King, y'all. From: the BDC
But, of course, what we saw on the court from CU against the Beavers was far from perfect. OSU is a terrible basketball team, remember, adrift without their full compliment of stars, and seemingly destined for worst-in-Power-5 status. Yet, their offense, which struggles to walk and chew gum at the same time, was allowed to put up 1.15 points per possession, and their largest overall point total since a 93-90 home overtime loss to frickin' Savannah State. Drew Eubanks (27 points) and Stephen Thompson (26) were able to rip up the Buffs, with little to no defensive answer from those in white. Hell, the Beavs even out-rebounded CU. If not for some head-scratchingly bad turnovers in the second half, they could've won this game! Yes, a win is a win, but the faults we've seen all season are still there, and Colorado is still a fatally-flawed basketball team. I hope for the best, but the victory here does little to instill any new-found confidence.
So, attention now turns to... *sigh* the 10th-ranked Oregon Ducks. Raise the shields, because this one is going to be rough.
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Hype Music for the Evening: "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" by Elton John
I turn today to British rock-and-roll. Sir Elton went in an interesting direction with this track from his '73 album "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road," kicking in a roaring American-style hard rock anthem about getting lit at the local bars. Enjoy!
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Tip-off from the CEC is set for 7:30pm MT this evening. Televised coverage can be found Pac-12 Networks, with the radio call on 850AM
Pressed for time, I'm releasing this a day early. Enjoy!
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Hype Music for the Week: "Song from M*A*S*H" by Johnny Mandel and Mike Altman
Also known as 'Suicide is Painless,' this was the intro lullaby to one of the most successful televisions shows in the history of the medium. It was apparently meant to be 'the stupidest song ever written.' I picked this in recognition of the litany of major injuries suffered by both the Buffs and Ducks last week, severely limiting both rosters headed into the tilt. Enjoy!
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Kickoff from Autzen Field in Eugene, OR is set for 3:30pm MT on Saturday. Televised coverage can be found on Pac-12 Network, with the radio possibly on 850 KOA (unless scintillating Colorado Rockies' action preempts). For those going to the game, weather looks to be pretty nice, with sunshine and mid-70s in the forecast for the Pacific Northwest. For those watching at home, I hear you're in for room temperature and dry.
There's a lot going on this week. Yesterday was National Signing Day (with good results for BuffNation), the Super Bowl looms, and political insanity is descending for those so inclined. There is a pass out there for you who would want it, that it is too distractive right now to focus on college basketball. I would encourage all of you to avoid that trap, however. Good hoops is anywhere and everywhere, as long as you can be bothered to look for it. Take tonight's game, for example. CU vs Oregon looks, on paper, to be a big game. Number one in the Pac-12 vs a prominent member of the second place pack. If anything deserves your attention this evening, it's this tilt.
Realistically, the Buffs are fighting for relevance tonight. Even after last week's impressive sweep of the Bay Area schools on home hardwood, CU still can't manage to garner a single vote in the AP top-25 poll. Stony Brook - fucking Stony Brook - and their zero wins over Power 5 competition has a vote, but not Colorado. Win or lose against the Ducks, the team needs to show they're as deserving of their lofty place in the Pac-12 standings (still the deepest, most competitive league in America) as I think they are. A good showing is essential; a win monumental. Time to pony up to the bar and get serious.
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Hype Music for the Evening: "Zoot Suit Riot" by the Cherry Poppin' Daddies
Hey! Apparently these guys are from Eugene. That's kind of cool... Anyways, I fell hard for the swing/ska/punk movement of the late-90s, and I will admit to having this album buried in a stack of CDs somewhere in suburban Chicago-land. Even to this day this stuff gets my toe tapping. Enjoy!
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Tip-off from Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, OR is set for 7pm this evening. Coverage can be found on FOX Sports 1, with the radio call on AM 760.
For reference, my preview from the first game can be found here.
Sometimes, the beautiful game of basketball is just plain ugly. Such was the case this past Wednesday night, as the Colorado Buffaloes and Oregon State Beavers played discordant, arrhythmic hoops over the first 30 minutes of action. At the time, I compared it to the metallic jingle-jangle of a fork left in an on-turned garbage disposal -- jarring, uncomfortable, and, ultimately, destructive. There were turnovers, there were terrible shots, there were flat blown calls by the officials, and there were some truly questionable decisions by both coaching staffs. As ugly as the action was, though, CU had been seeming to get the best of the game into the U12 second half media timeout. Yet still, they had squandered a number of medium-sized advantages to head to the bench down 38-37. At this point, we all seemed doomed to a frustrating slog to the finish, with Colorado possibly spiking yet another home game.
Wes Gordon, yo! From: the Ralphie Report
Then, the Buffs flipped a switch. Just like that. They came out of that media timeout firing on all cylinders, and jumped out to a 19-6 run over the next five minutes. Overall, they would outscore the Beavers 34-16 over the final 11:44, dominating on both ends. What had been ugly and uncomfortable suddenly became free-flowing and easy. Where in previous games Colorado had struggled down the stretch, they soared in this one, and earned a very satisfying 71-54 win, in the process.
The key? A very Tad Boyle-like double-scoop of defense and rebounding. Lead by Wes Gordon, the Buffs were stifling on 'D,' holding State to under 30% shooting for the game, and controlled the glass throughout (+15 rebounding). In what was his best game to-date in a CU uniform, Gordon put up 12/14, with seven of those boards coming on the offensive end, and a startling six blocks. He ripped up OSU inside, leaving a team who lives on shots at the rim with essentially nothing to show for it. Oh, sure, Gary Payton II got his, going for an incredible 26/15/3/3, but the Buffs all but snuffed out the rest of the visiting Beavers, holding GPII's teammates to 24% shooting from the floor and only 28 points overall. In my preview I discussed how the son of the legend finally had some help this season, but Colorado all but erased that warning.
Josh Scott was the offensive fuel in this one. From: the Post
On the offensive end it was Josh Scott (who else?) fueling CU, as the 'Big Fundamental' put up 25 on only 11 shots. He would add 12 rebounds to make for his 9th double-double on the year, helping Gordon dominate the paint. J40 was joined in double-figure scoring by Josh Fortune, who, quietly, had his first 'good' game since Christmas. Going forward, the inside-out interplay of the two Joshes needs to remain a strong point for Colorado, should they have any hope of really competing in this league.
Attention now turns to a very important visit by the Oregon Ducks. The Pac-12 is a jumbled mess right now, and only USC seems to have this whole 'conference play' thing figured out. A win today would allow Colorado to keep pace with the tight upper echelon, as they head into a winnable road trip in the Pacific Northwest. With the frustrating loss to Utah the previous week, they can't afford many more slip ups on home hardwood, either, so best to just hold serve at the Keg and stay hot.
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Hype Music for the Evening: "Wild Horses" by The Rolling Stones
Listen, I know all you locals and wannabes will be tuning into the Bronco game this afternoon. Go on, shoot your shot. To honor y'all, here's one of my favorite tracks from the Stones' canon. Enjoy!
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Tip-off from the Coors Events Center is set for 5pm this afternoon. Once again, the Buffs get screwed because of NFL Playoff scheduling. I can't help but wondering, has CU ever looked into offering to trade time slots with anyone when, invariably, a Broncos game creates a conflict? Like, in this case, Pac-12 Networks has the Stanford/Oregon State women's game scheduled after UO/CU. Why not just swap those? Boom! A quick fix, and you get a bigger audience in Colorado. But, of course, corporate television schedules don't allow for creativity, so we're stuck with what we got.
For those still interested in seeing/listening to the Buffs today, you can catch the action on said Pac-12 Networks, with the radio call on 760AM. If you're still coming, and want to arrive early, the practice facility will be showing the Donkeys v Steelers -- that game should be ending around the end of CU's first half, so, theoretically, you could come, watch the action in the Boedecker Gym, and head on up to your seat when it's over. That's asking a lot, however, so I'm fully expecting to watch the game with just my fellow out-of-staters. We got this!
Conference play. It's been a 'Stop Sign' for the hopes of BuffNation since the start of the decade. Our new friends in the Pac-12, while wonderful in every other way, have proven to be less than accommodating to the Colorado football program. The Buffs, unable to swim upstream against the current of talent, have gone 4-32 through four seasons out West. It hasn't even been that close, with CU being outscored 1570-763 in those 36 contests for an average of 43.6 to 21.2 each week. *blech*
Well, the time has come, my friends; that crap is done and dusted. The season of relevancy is upon us. Colorado may not wind its way to a bowl, it may not yet release itself from the death-grip of the Pac-12 South's basement, but it sure as hell is going to put the fear of Ralphie into a few teams. It all starts tomorrow, as a wide-eyed, bruised, and beaten brace of Ducks come to Folsom. They've had the run of the series since expansion, but it's time for Colorado, yes COLORADO!, to make some noise. Into the wilds of a night time kickoff we go, let's give Oregon a healthy fear of #Pac12AfterDark!
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Hype music for the week: "Fear of the Dark" by Iron Maiden
MAIDEN! For the 12-yr old metal head in all of us, I present a quintessential track from this quintessential heavy medal staple. These guys are weird but harmless, and one of the most successful acts in all of music-dom. Crank it!
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Kickoff from Folsom Field is set for 8pm tomorrow evening. Folsom is never better than when it's packed for a night game, so I'm expecting everyone in the region to head to this one. Coverage for those unable to attend will be on ESPN: the Mothership, with the radio call on 850 KOA.
Please remember: if you're sitting in an even section - wear black, if you're a student, or are sitting in an odd numbered section - wear silver/grey.
Not a lot of time for idle talk today, as I biffed the rough draft. Straight to the action:
The Buffs are headed to Eugene for a tilt with a a well-funded rival. Tip-off from Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene isn't until 9pm this evening, though. Put on a coffee, 'cause this one is going late. ESPNU has the sights and sounds, with 850 KOA the descriptions and Mark Johnson.
Not much to say before this. The Buffs face a massively difficult road test in Eugene this weekend, in essentially an 'us against the world' scenario. No one thinks CU has a chance in hell of even competing for a few minutes tomorrow, and the rest of the college football landscape sees this one as a rest stop on the way to Santa Clara for the Ducks. But, as Chris Berman famously says, 'that's why they play the game.' Weirder things have happened...
Kickoff from the house that the Swoosh built is set for 2:30pm on Saturday. Televised coverage can be found on Pac-12 Networks, with the radio call on 850 KOA.
Oregon State is a team designed to frustrate Colorado, which is exactly what they did Thursday night throughout CU's 64-58 win. Through their zone defense (interestingly enough, a 2-3, rather than their knuckleball 1-3-1) and occasional spates of press, the Beavers do a great job shackling a fast-break team like the Buffs into uncomfortable half-court situations. Far too often through the course of the game, CU would find themselves with a short shot clock, and little, if anything, moving towards the basket. As a result, the Buffs became perimeter-happy and passive for large stretches, settling for desperation heaves, rather than working for quality shots underneath.
Josh could've used the ball more, as usual. From: the BDC
For a while, it looked like CU was going to get uglied into a second-straight home loss to OSU. The Beavers controlled much of the first half, sustaining a lead through the first 10 minutes of play. The insertion of Xavier Talton at the point, however, seemed to kickstart the Colorado offense, as the direct point guard sped right at the OSU zone. From then on, it was CU's game to lose, and, while it may not have pretty, they avoided the embarrassment of a loss.
Colorado was lead by a combination of Josh Scott, Askia Booker, and Jaron Hopkins. Scott, once again, proved to be be more than capable of banging with quality big men, as he dropped 13/10 while helping to hold OSU's heralded front line trio of Devon Collier, Angus Brandt, and Eric Moreland to only 14 combined points. Booker didn't show the efficiency he had been in recent weeks, but collected four rebounds with as many steals and two assists to go along with his 13 points; another all-around performance from Colorado's bulldog two-guard. Finally, Hopkins provided a much needed scoring spark off the bench, notching 13 points on 5-8 shooting.
Hopkins' aggressiveness served him well on Thursday. From: the BDC
The key here is not that CU struggled against the Beavers. The key is that they found a way to escape with the 'W.' They weren't able to accomplish that last season in a similar situation against Oregon St, giving me hope that the team is more capable of coping with uncomfortable situations than they were in '12-'13.
Having survived the conference opener, the attention now turns to Oregon. In what is most certainly the marquee matchup of the first round of Pac-12 play, the #10 Ducks and the #20 Buffaloes meet in what is one of the more highly anticipated games of the entire college basketball weekend. The winner not only gets to start out their conference slog 2-0, but will also enjoy a major boost to their national profile and Tournament resume. Regardless of who ends being that winner, I'm expecting a fast-paced, entertaining display of basketball. Should be a hell of a show.
Tip-off from the Coors Events Center is set for 3pm on Sunday. Coverage can be found on Fox Sports 1, with the radio call on 850 KOA.
No intro today, straight to the bag. I'm talking the monster upset on the volleyball court, wrapping up the football loss to Oregon, and taking my semi-weekly trip around the nation of football.
I feel so much better about 2013 knowing that the schedule is back up to 12 games. While you can never assume anything with this program, just seeing the name 'Charleston Southern' on the schedule opens the door to three, four, even five wins on the year. A bowl game is still a fantasy, but a few more victories would be concrete evidence of improvement and progression, which is all I was asking for at the season's onset.
Of course, we can't get ahead of ourselves. While waiting for the Buccaneers to arrive on October 19th, the Buffs will have to slog through two seemingly unwinnable games - home against #2 Oregon this weekend and at #22 Arizona St on 10/12. This could be a very rough stretch for the team, and watching how they cope and compete over the next two weeks may end up telling us even more than potential wins over ChaSo and Cal would.
Kickoff against the Oregon Ducks from beautiful Folsom Field is scheduled for 4pm MT. Coverage can be found on Pac-12 Networks (or - 'The Buffs Channel'), with Mark Johnson and the radio call coming on 850 KOA.
You can find previews from previous iterations of this series here and here.
It's weird to note that, with only one weekend of action to go, the Buffs could still finish anywhere from 4th to 8th in the Pac-12. A home sweep of the Oregons, combined with an Arizona loss to ASU, and the Buffs are gifted a first-round bye that they don't really deserve. Conversely, a pair of stumbles in the season's final two games, and Colorado would need another USC loss to avoid a humbling 8th-place car wreck finish.
I dismiss both of the extreme possibilities for the Buffs. I just can't
imagine this team finishing in 8th place - they're simply
better than that - and I have a hard time believing that ASU will beat
their betters on Saturday. So 5th-7th it is. Given those
possibilities, I think CU will stay were it is, with at worst a 1-1
finish over the final two, and not enough happening with the rest of the
middle to leave the squad in 5th.
Of course, the Buffs aren't the only team hoping to avoid an ignominious finish. Should Arizona find a way to lose to ASU, and slip out of the top-four, it would be the culmination of a humiliating collapse for the squad picked to carry the league. The Cats have gone 3-4 over their last seven, coughing up any hope of a league title along the way. 'Zona simply couldn't handle the best the Pac-12 had to offer, as they went 1-6 against the rest of the league's top-five, with that lone win coming via general shenanigans.
I find a lot of comfort in the fragility of the vaunted Wildcats. Compared to the old Big XII, the front-running teams in the Pac appear... fallible... flawed... human. Could you imagine Kansas slipping to 5th, regardless of circumstances, in any given Big XII campaign? Throw in Missouri, K-State, and Texas when they were good. All those programs seemed invincible at times. It may be a product of the Buffs being better over the past few years, but I just don't fear anyone that this conference has to offer, and it seems that feeling is mutual considering how chaos continues to reign in the West.
Case-in-point, who spiked the Gatorade on the UCLA sideline? A shocking defeat (first time @WSU in 20 years) at cellar-dwelling Washington State has possibly cost them the conference title. As a result, Cal - yes, Cal - had a chance to claim the #1 seed last night, but imploded against archival Stanford in a game where the majority of the Cardinal coaching staff was ejected... ... ... ... wait, what?
ESPN's John Gasaway was right:
Please don't treat the Pac-12 like a normal conference. Treat it as a random result generator.
— John Gasaway (@JohnGasaway) March 7, 2013
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Get a good look. There's only two remaining chances to see the Buffs live in Boulder. First up, a titanic rematch with the Oregon Ducks. Three of the last four meetings between CU and UO have finished in one-point Colorado victories. The games were furiously contested, showcasing some of the grittiest play of the Tad Boyle era. Will tonight be a repeat of the closely contested battles of the past two seasons, or will one of the teams take a step past their rival?
Tip-off from the CEC is set for 7pm MT. Coverage, if you can't find tickets, can be found on ESPN2, with Mark Johnson and the radio call back on 850 KOA.
For reference, my preview from the first game can be found here.
I'm really excited about this one. All three matchups with Oregon last season were fun in their own way, and these two seem to bring the best out of each other. Further, both squads need to rebound from painful losses last week. While the Buffs were flailing for buckets in SLC, the Ducks were getting humbled in NorCal.
Oregon needs this win to
recapture momentum in the conference title race once thought to be a
mortal lock. CU needs this win to rebound after the embarrassing defeat
to the lowly Utes, and re-state their claim to a spot in the
Tournament. Like two wild animals backed into a corner of their own
making, I expect both the Buffs and Ducks to come out swinging. As a result, I expect a good game from wire to wire.
The Buffs just lost a game we didn't expect, let's see if they can win a game we don't expect. Tip-off from Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, OR is scheduled for 8pm MT this evening. Coverage can be found on ESPNU, or with Mark Johnson on 850 KOA.
I'll be honest, I care a whole lot more about the basketball team's
scrimmage against SMU, than I do about this game. The scrimmage is in
Dallas, locked safely behind closed doors, and very much secret
(coaches, by NCAA rule, are not allowed to talk about these events).
The football game is in Eugene, but nationally televised, and openly
discussed. By Saturday evening I will know exactly how the scrimmage
went, yet still sit in the dark about the football result.
I
will not watch the football game, I will not listen. I
won't even check twitter to see how things go. I so vehemently don't
care about how many points Chip Kelly decides to have his team score on
CU this weekend, that I'm unjacking from the internet, and doing other things. I don't know, maybe a game of Monopoly.
15 days...
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Kickoff from Autzen Stadium in Eugene is set for 1pm MT. Coverage can bee seen on Pac-12 network (if you get it), with radio coverage set for 850 KOA.
