Quick Post: Cal Wrap

We as fans often discuss the impact officiating can have on the game, but usually in terms of how it affects 'our' team.  "The refs screwed 'us,'" etc.  As a former official myself, however, I tend to look at it on a more holistic level.  Poor officiating, in fact, rarely just leverages against one team; it usually strikes both, bringing down the quality of play across the board.

Such was the case Saturday at the Coors Events Center.  The officiating crew of Marc Beasley, Michael Irving, and Deron White took it upon themselves to keep a tight leash on the proceedings in the opening minutes, whistling numerous touch fouls for little or no cause (11 called in 10 minutes).  As a Colorado fan, I can tell you that this heavy hand from the zebras knocked forwards Wes Gordon and Tory Miller out of the action with two soft fouls a piece, but a Cal junkie would similarly bemoan the quick whistles against Charlie Moore and Jabari Bird. Regardless of what side you were cheering for on Saturday, though, the result was the same -- quality players who should've been free to play the majority of the half were relegated to the bench for whole stretches.  All-in, there were 18 fouls called in the opening frame, two more than there were field goals scored.  Officials should be there to keep the play clean and facilitate an open and honest expression of the sport.  Instead, over the opening 20 minutes in Boulder, this trio did the exact opposite, wrenching the life out of the action before it even had a chance to flourish. The play to that point had not been overly physical, it had not been aggressive.  The stripes just came to town with an itchy trigger finger and laid waste to anything that moved.

The end result in the 1st half was this: 47 total points scored, a combined shooting percentage of 27.6, and 32.5% of all minutes played by reserves.  Colorado, without their best forwards, was eviscerated on the glass, getting out-rebounded by nine.  Cal, starved for points without their guards, were unable to capitalize and score, leading to a hilarious series of missed bunny layups.  Simply, one of the worst halves of basketball I have ever been subjected to, and a situation wholly to blame on the refs for having no sense of rhythm, circumstance, or process.  A pox on the house of officials everywhere.

Luckily for Colorado, the game did not simply end at halftime out of a sense of shame.  Instead, we got a second half of action, within which the Buffs were able to right the ship.  Wes Gordon returned with a lot of energy and started attacking the defensive paint with a sense of purpose.  He would pick up three blocks in the final frame, and, while he wouldn't score, seemed to help settle things down under the rim.  George King recorded his only points of the second half with a monster put-back dunk that brought the crowd to life for the first time all game. He also grabbed eight boards, helping CU out-rebound the Golden Bears by six after halftime. Derrick White and Xavier Johnson, on their senior day, combined for 25 points in the final 20 home minutes of their careers.  White even closed out the game with a desperation three after nearly falling out-of-bounds with the shot clock ticking towards zero.  While not perfect, Colorado at least seemed to be in a much better way after the break, looking much more like themselves.  By the final horn, they clearly deserved the 54-46 victory.

Cal, however, continued to struggle. After shooting 30% in the 1st, their hit rate from the field dropped to 24% in the 2nd, and just 1-8 from deep.  That translates to 0.72 points per possession, and just 11-40 from inside the arc.  CU was doing a good job on defense, but the Golden Bears were also missing open looks while settling for static, unimaginative sets.  Overall, they looked nothing like a team competing for a NCAA Tournament berth.  All things considered, and including their dismal performance against Utah from earlier in the week, Cal doesn't even appear to be NIT-worthy, at this point.  Whatever happened in Berkeley to jump this group off the tracks, it was decisive -- they're completely lost right now on the basketball court.

Still, kudos to the Buffs for coming through in the regular season finale.  With NIT hopes on the line, they played gritty, determined basketball, fighting through poor officiating and a 1st half disaster on the boards to power through to victory.  It was the kind of closing ability the team was desperately missing earlier this year, and something that should serve them well in post-season action.

And, with that, attention turns to the Pac-12 Tournament.  Thanks to this win and the predicted belly-flop from Arizona State against the UofA, Colorado finished 7th in the league.  This means the Buffs will get Washington State in the 7/10 game on Wednesday, a 7 pm MT tip from T-Mobile Arena.  It also sets up a potential quarterfinal matchup with Arizona, something that any trip to Las Vegas just wouldn't be the same without (exasperated *sigh* implied).  I'll be back on Wednesday with some more specific thoughts on Colorado's place in the bracket, but, for now, I will say this is about as good as the team could hope for, and that they have an excellent chance to both swing past WSU and give the Wildcats a game.  Any more than that, however, and you're dancing for rain.

Tuesday Grab Bag: Riding that #TadBall wave

So, given the current run of positive play emanating from the Colorado Men's Basketball Program, can we reasonably begin to plot extraordinary paths for the team, once lost adrift a sea of losing, to somehow chart their way into the NCAA Tournament?

Simply, no.

I don't mean to undercut the happier vibes of late, but the possibility seems to be popping up every now and then among BuffNation, and I feel it needs to be addressed.  Currently, the Buffs boast a RPI ranking in the low 100s -- depending on where you look, it's usually 107th in the country.  That is a terrible place to be entering middle February, essentially disqualifying in its own right.  Add to it the fact that CU currently has more losses to RPI 100+ teams than they have wins over teams ranked in the top-50, and the peril becomes quite clear.  Colorado simply doesn't have a Tournament-worthy resume, and they're not even particularly close.

'Well,' you might ask, 'what if CU wins out in the regular season, would they have a chance then?' Again, the answer is no. While it is true that they would then boast four wins against the top-50, including two over current top-10 RPI ranked Oregon, the overall picture only brightens slightly. According to RPI Forecast, a 20-11 record would only boost Colorado up into the high 60s.  With the rest of the resume the way it is, with three ugly losses still on the docket, a high-60s RPI wouldn't be enough.  Further wins in the Pac-12 Tournament could help here, especially with a favorable draw, but, by that time, you're asking to hit a point on far too many successive rolls of the dice to make any statistical sense.

Really, the only shot the Buffs have at landing a golden ticket into the field of 68 is a mad-dash sprint in Las Vegas, akin to the magic they pulled off in 2012.  If you want to take those long-shot odds, at least you'll be in the appropriate venue to do so.

Sorry, but the best-case scenario at this point is continued winning, a nice seed in the NIT, and a run for NYC.  After the ups and the downs of the past few months, though, would that be all that bad of a future?

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Today in the bag, I'm talking the win over WSU, the fuel behind the revivification taking place in the CEC, and how the rest of the Pac-12 fared this weekend.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: "... the water for Oregon was just the tears of sadness"

As you might recall, I correctly predicted the upset over Oregon in last week's grab bag:

"What I'm saying is, as helpless as this feels right now, weird things happen all the time. The current squad could pop out of their slumber this week, and shock the Ducks on Saturday. You laugh, but I've seen dumber."

Of course, some jackass would later #hack both my blog and my twitter account, leading to these blatant reversals of my true opinion:

"As such, the Ducks are going to come in here and rip Colorado; no doubt in my mind. No amount of Tad's black magic witchery is going to save CU this evening. Give me Oregon by a boat-load."

... and...

@Matt_Wiens @CUGoose @pachoopsab LOL, we're getting ripped up and you know it.

— Benjamin Burrows (@Rumblinbuffalo) January 28, 2017

So, I come before you today to talk about the importance of account security, and the necessity of routinely changing your passwords.  Otherwise you too could see your accounts #hacked and have some idiot run around claiming your favorite team will get crushed the day of a top-10 upset.

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Today in the bag, I'm talking the win over Oregon that I totally predicted (and totally did not lose a bottle of scotch over), how the rest of the Pac-12 fared, and a brief blerb on signing day.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: On to Santa Clara

I looked up and found myself in a weird place.  I was at midfield in Folsom, surrounded by thousands of my fellow Buffs.  We were all celebrating; there was formless dancing, hoarse voices screaming unintelligibly, and marijuana smoke floating through the air.  The scoreboard flashed something improbable: "BUFFS WIN... SOUTH CHAMPIONS"  Surely, this is a dream, I thought to myself.

No, it's not a dream.  It's a reality that has lost touch with itself.  Colorado Football... yes that Colorado Football, has won a division in a major football conference.  They didn't need to drop down to a middling league or hope for extra downs.  This was not a collection of blue chips wining for the names on the back of their jerseys.  Nope, they did it themselves with an inspiring edifice of grit and determination.  It was organic, locally sourced brilliance, the likes of which may never be seen again. This is it, folks, we've seen the pinnacle of everything we're told sports stands for -- the dream of the underdog, and the promise of pure, unadulterated joy. I hope you took a picture.

And yet, there's still more to play for.  There this week's Pac-12 Championship in Santa Clara against Washington.  Oh, then the small matter of the program's first bowl since the George W. Bush presidency.  #TheRise may have risen, but the journey isn't over yet.  Strap yourselves in, because the "Hold-my-beer-and-watch-this Run for the Rose Bowl" is about to culminate.

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Today in the bag, I'm talking the win over Utah, the men's basketball win over Wofford, and the women's basketball team's fiery start.

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Monday Grab Bag: Buffs On The Cusp

I come to you this morning from Brooklyn, NY, having flown all the way from Boulder to watch the Legends Classic. I'll have a teaser for the CU/Notre Dame game up later today, but know that the overall schedule this week is slammed.  After the bag and teaser today, I'll have more Legends Classic thoughts up tomorrow before the second game of the tournament, a Utah football teaser and beer post up Friday, and a Wofford basketball teaser up... sometime before Sunday's game with the Terriers. You want content, you're going to get it this week.

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Today in an abbreviated bag, I'm talking the big football win over Washington State, and the Men's Basketball Team improving to 3-0 after their tilt with Louisiana-Monroe.

(Apologies for the lack of photos this morning, but it couldn't be helped.)

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Tuesday Grab Bag: The Games They Remember Are Played In November

At the beginning of the year, the Colorado Football Team announced their stated goal of becoming 'Pac-12 champs, on and off the field.'  While I am unable to comment on the pursuit of any championships away from the gridiron, I'd be hard-pressed not to note the position that the team has put themselves in, entering the final two weeks of the regular season.  Alone atop the Pac-12 South standings, the Buffs control their own destiny in pursuit of that stated goal, needing just two wins to make the conference's championship game in Santa Clara.  The most storied ride in the modern history of the program is coming to a head; now it's time to see just what this team is made of.

It won't be easy, of course.  While both games are at home, they will each be against teams ranked in the top-25.  Competitive and tough, both the Washington State Cougars and the Utah Utes are worthy opponents for the stage. A stumble against either would most likely eliminate CU from title contention.  I wouldn't have it any other way.

These will be the most important games played in Folsom since 62-36 in 2001.  Woe to you, the Buff fan who won't make a point of being there for both.  These are the games you become a fan for, the kind that keep you up at night in anticipation.  If you can't be bothered to get your ass to Boulder to see a pair of top-25 matchups with a conference title on the line, then turn your fan card in tomorrow.

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Today in the bag, I'm talking last night's CU/Seattle basketball game, the football win in Tucson, and the Soccer Team's activity in the NCAA Tournament.

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Monday Grab Bag: Yes, Basketball Season Is Still A Thing

It's finally here!  Basketball season is ready to begin, with the Colorado Buffaloes Men's Basketball Team tipping off the 2016-17 campaign this Friday against Sacramento State.  It's been a long road since that that fateful March day in Des Moines, but we're finally back to the business of #TadBall and the OG Rise.  I can't wait!

Of course, with the start of basketball season comes by annual Massive Basketball Preview. Weighing in at nearly 23,000 words, and touching on every topic from the current roster to the next recruiting class, it's the definitive fan-written document on the outlook of the program.  The beast will drop at 8:30 am tomorrow; I really hope you can find the time and energy to give it a look before Friday night.

In the mean time, I have this grab bag for you! Pressed for time, I'm only talking the gritty football win over UCLA, and previewing my preview.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: Surviving the Bye Week Blues

Hey, happy November!  You know, that month that marks the start of basketball season. It's been a long winding road, but we're almost there.  Two Friday's from now, the season will finally tip off against Sacramento State, and we'll get to see just what Tad and the team have in store for us.  I'll have my annual Massive Preview up for consumption early next Tuesday, but, til then, we'll just have to do with this non-basketball filler.  I apologize in advance.

Oh, and the football team has a sort of big game this week against UCLA.  I guess you can be excited about that, as well...

Today in the bag, I'm reminding you that there are always championships in the #BananaStand, how the rest of the Pac-12 fared in football with the Buffs on a bye, and a stumble on the soccer pitch.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: Hold My Beer and Watch This

With four games left to play in the regular season, the Colorado Buffaloes have dispatched with the formality of qualifying for bowl eligibility.  From here on out, the only question on the board is 'how far can they ride this beast'; or, as I'm calling it, the 'Hold my beer and watch this' run for the Roses.

He's so excited. He just can't hide it. #CUvsSTAN pic.twitter.com/73wtl293iB

— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) October 22, 2016

At this point, there's no reason to doubt this team or their ability to achieve everything they covet. With three of the four games remaining scheduled for Folsom Field, and the other on the road against the worst team in the division (Arizona), their destiny is decidedly in their hands.  Regardless of how it plays out, it should be a fun journey.

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Today in the bag, I'm talking the win over Stanford, how the rest of the Pac-12 fared, and a stunning last-second win for the Women's Soccer Team in Berkeley.

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Quick Post: Goin' Bowlin'

Today, all of BuffNation is Andy Dufresne.  After nine years of foulness, we have crawled through the river of shit and come out clean on the other side.  Yes, Colorado Football is, once again, bowl eligible. Bask in the rain of freedom, my friends.

To honor the occasion, we need music, and there is only one choice.  It's a song in the marching band's repertoire that is only played in victory.  A re-imagining of the original CU Fight Song, 'Glory Colorado,' it oozes celebration, and is one of my favorite tunes ever scored.  It is, of course, 'Rejoice Colorado.'  Enjoy:

Tuesday Grab Bag: One win away...

What a wonderful Homecoming Weekend it was in Boulder.  I got to play my tuba a little, see some old friends, and watch a triumphant effort at Folsom.  Really, my only regret from Saturday was that I could not take in the annual open basketball scrimmage, held up at the CEC while I was otherwise preoccupied with alumni band business.  The Ralphie Report has a write-up for those interested, and everything I've heard indicates that it was a pretty decent showing for this stage of camp (though Tad, as ever, was unimpressed with the defense).

Looking forward, those of you who are season ticket holders should've already begun to receive your stubs for the coming year in the mail -- the surest sign yet that basketball season is almost upon us. Just 24 more days... this is getting serious! #RollTad

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Today in the bag, I'm talking the win over Arizona State, how the rest of the Pac-12 fared on the gridiron, and the continued dominance of the soccer team.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: Ranked

Even considering the early (12:30pm) kickoff on Saturday, I was a little stunned to see Folsom half-filled (I'm being generous) at kickoff.  While the fans eventually showed up by the start of the second quarter, I felt that the team, in acknowledgement of their success over the first third of the season, deserved to run out of the tunnel to full stands of applause.

Then, as the Buffs took full control headed into halftime, the late-arriving crowd began to leave early. I guess I understand, with the result well in-hand and the sun shining, that the lure of greater-Boulder would draw a number of those in attendance out of the stadium. Further, football games are unbearably long, especially if its a blowout.  Still, after years of painful slogs against conference opponents, horrors too numerous to list here, I felt bolted to my seat in appreciation, and was surprised to see my fellow Buffs didn't feel the same.

Look, #TheRise is real, and deserves a fanbase equal to the matter at hand.  My appeal is simple: show up on time, and stay in your damn seats for a full game.

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Today in the bag, I'm talking the win over Oregon State, how the rest of the Conference of Champions fared this weekend, and the start of basketball season.

Tuesday Grab Bag: Buffs are Risen

Well, Pac-12, ya done fucked up.  You had Colorado Football at its low point, dead for all intents and purposes as a competitive football entity, yet allowed the program to get up off the mat.  #TheRise is, apparently, very much real, and y'all in some serious trouble.  I'm not saying from the team, for whom the sky appears to be the limit, I'm talking about the fanbase.  BuffNation is a bunch of certified cocky shits when we have something on the gridiron to root for.  We are now the fly in your punchbowl.  Prepare for some ruckus, and we do not apologize in advance.

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Today in the bag, I'm talking the historic win over Oregon, a look ahead into the near future of the football schedule, and the start of basketball season.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: "They’re basically starving."

I continue to be impressed with #TheRise.  Through two weeks the Colorado football team looks good... honestly, legitimately good.  They're making plays, executing, and getting the most out of every snap on both sides of the ball.  Head Coach Mike MacIntyre, after the game Saturday, chalked this up to the players entering the season 'starving' for success.  They certainly look it.  It's to the point that I'm expecting a quality performance this week in Michigan, despite the fact that they were installed as 20-point underdogs to the #4 team in the country.  Maybe the Buffs won't win, maybe they can't win, but I at least know they're going to show up.  I believe: Colorado is going to head east, give it their best, and prove to the nation that CU belongs on the same field as one of the heavies in the sport.  It's a confidence I haven't had in recent years, but have now. Damn, this kool-aid tastes good.

Go get 'em, Buffs.  Shock the world!

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Today in the bag, I'm talking a first round TKO of the Idaho State Bengals, some big recruiting news from Tad Boyle's basketball kingdom, and a roundup of the week's action in Pac-12 football.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: #TheRise Explodes Onto National Television

Before I get to the bag, celebrating a strong start to the new football season, I would like to take a moment to admonish those of you removing the brakes from the hype train as it begins to leave the station.  Yes, the Buffs looked good Friday night, and, yes, the rest of the Pac-12 South looked suspect throughout the remainder of Week 1.  However, anyone insinuating (or out-right stating) that the Buffs, after just one game against weak competition, are suddenly players in a league and a division they have routinely played whipping-boy to has lost their damn mind.

I don't want to throw cold water on a performance that certainly deserves recognition and excitement - this is, after all, the best Colorado has looked after a game against FBS competition, such as it is, since... what, Wyoming in 2009? The 2010 RMS? - but let's keep some perspective.  This team was never going to be defined by the way it performed in this game; it will be defined by how they take to the conference slate, something that is still far from known.  Basically, on this happy Tuesday, my message is this: call me after that trip to Oregon at the end of the month.

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Today in the bag, I'm talking the Rocky Mountain Beat-down, notable action around the world of college football, and how the rest of the CU Athletic Department fared.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: 'Final Four' and 'Colorado' in the same sentence

I come to you today from Newark, NJ, of all places, stuck in the relatively benign airport hell of a three hour layover on the East Coast. How and why I came to be here is neither important or interesting.  Suffice it to be said that I can't wait to board the next flight, and get back to beautiful, colorful Colorado.

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As a quick aside, there were some unscrupulous bloggers around the intertubes tossing around the notion that the University of Colorado would be well-served by a return to the Big XII.  See, the old conference of UT lackeys is looking to re-expand, and there are a few lost souls out there who are naive enough to think that CU was anything but thankful to be rid of that albatross of a league back in 2011.  Let me assure you all out there in BuffNation, these articles were written by people with no understanding of the factors in play, and no contacts within the Athletic Department.  Colorado is well and clear of that debacle, and never going back.

Further, for the record, I still think CSU's hopes of earning a bid to that league are as laughable as the notion that CU might want back in.  Unless the BigXII has to dip into their third-tier of choices, which I doubt, the Rams will still be on the outside of the Power Five looking in once this dust-up settles.

But, enough of that nonsense. Today in the bag, I'm talking about Team Colorado and The Basketball Tournament, some hoops scheduling notes for the CU Men's team, and My Sox at the end of their road.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: It's March!

No time for idle chitchat.  IT'S MARCH!

Today in the bag, I'm talking the win over ASU, how the rest of the Pac-12 fared, and what's at stake over the final week of conference play.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: Where have all the students gone?

Another busy, holiday-shortened week, another brief intro. Straight to the action!

Today in the bag, I'm talking the big win over the Huskies, the weekly peek around the other Pac-12 results, and student attendance.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: Go Home, Pac-12, You're Drunk

Have you been watching Pac-12 basketball recently?  Have you noticed how everyone seems to be capable of beating any other team on any random night (some exclusions may apply)?  Well, then this image from Reddit should come as no surprise to you:

It's only been four weeks, not even halfway through the conference schedule, and we can create a "12 degrees of parity" scale.  The standings themselves are even more confusing - there's currently a six-way tie for 3rd.  While teams like Arizona State and Washington State are clearly behind the rest of the Pac, they've still earned entry in the circle; one large mish-mash of confusing, hilarious sameness.  As we continue to inch closer to the second week of March, and the annual rumble in the MGM Grand, I can only giggle at the idea of a conference with a six-way tie for 3rd place, and no real way to set a bracket.  This is the kind of stuff Doc Brown warned about in Back to the Future II.  Indeed, this is heavy...

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Today in the bag, I'm wrapping the split earned in the State of Washington, taking a look at the rest of the 'League of Parity,' and battening down the hatches in advance of the oncoming surge of Super Bowl mania.

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Tuesday Grab Bag: Salvaging a Split by the Bay

Last night, I missed what may go down as the greatest regular season college basketball game of the modern era.  Out in Lawrence, KS, the #1 KU Jayhawks and #2 OU Sooners did battle for 55 minutes of action, playing to three overtimes and the beatific adoration of the entire college basketball consuming universe.  The final - a 109-106 victory for Kansas - is one of the most intriguing lines I've seen in a while.  In defeat, Sooner Buddy Hield was so good, posting 46/8/7, that even the Jayhawk fans had to recognize, and they payed homage with a standing ovation after his post-game interview.  The whole thing was truly a game for the ages; just remember that they'll meet again in Norman on February 13th.

Kansas survives in a thriller against OU.  From: CBS Sports

I may have missed the action for a good cause - a scheduled alumni band performance at the CU/WSU women's game - but I will cop to being a little dismayed at missing this epic affair.  To make up for it, I'm carving out a block of my evening to watch the replay.  If you need me, I'll be in the Rumblin' cave, getting my DVR on.

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Today in the bag, I'm talking the men's win over Stanford, the rest of the action around the Pac-12, and some women's hoops.

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