The BCS National Championship Game
On January 10th the Auburn Tigers and the Oregon Ducks will play for the BCS National Championship. I will admit the 600ish bowl games that take place between the end of the college football season and now mostly suck and a lot of people have moved on to other interests. However, this game should offer some good football and at least be a fun game to watch. (Plus Buffalo Wild Wings has great wing deals for bowl games.)

NFL playoffs
The Denver Broncos will not be among the post season teams this year which is unfortunate. None the less, post season anything is exciting. When teams are playing in do or die situations you are always going to get some good games.

NHL All Star Events
Last year in place of the All Star Events we got the Olympics and we learned All Star Events can’t top games that place national pride on the line. But the Olympics only come around every four years and we need something the other three years. I think most people will agree the All Star game itself is a snooze fest. I do however enjoy the skill challenges. Also, the decision to strap mics on some of the players was great.

There you have it. What I’m looking forward to this month.

-Derek

Really?

Why would you play if you have not fully recovered from an injury?  I understand the “gladiator mentality” that exists in sports but sometimes you need to cut your losses and sit for the greater good.  If you are an important player for a team, you sometimes have to make the tough decision and I do not think he made the right one.  I believe that Marshall brought up his defective hand because; he felt it had affected his performance.  I realize he said he was not using his hand as an excuse but he must have felt it did have an effect on his game or he would have never brought it up.  If he felt his hand had not sufficiently healed he should have informed the erstwhile coach and removed himself from the line up.

I think it is important to note there were many down points this year for the Broncos and Brandon Marshall’s numb hand, while a handicap for the team’s performance was not to blame for the poor season.  That blame can be spread wide.

I was bummed after their loss as most fans in Denver probably were.  It is always fun to get into the playoffs regardless of how well you will do once you get there.  However, I am rather disappointed in the local news outlets.  Rather than a “Broncos suck” section it would have been better to focus on next year and some of the positive aspects of the team’s future.

From what I have read thus far most of the focus is on Shanahan, Cutler and Marshall, one of which is no longer with the organization.  At any rate as more news/analysis surfaces here in the metro Denver area we will read as much as we can and bring you some more insight into Denver and the organizations’ reactions to the lost Bronco’s season.

All appropriate words used to describe CU football head coach Dan Hawkins’ comment last week, “10 wins and no excuses,” in reference to the upcoming 2009 season.  Those throughout the country may have found this comical, following a 5-7 season, thought by many to be a disappointment.  But those close to the organization know that the Buffs are close to getting over that hump to becoming one of the top caliber teams in college football.

This season reminded me a lot of the 2000-2001 season, when the Buffs went 3-8.  That year, the Buffs burned a redshirt on a true freshman quarterback (Craig Ochs) halfway through the season to give the team a spark; lost to Nebraska after a game winning field goal in the closing seconds; battled injuries throughout the season–including injuries to highly recruited freshmen tailbacks Marcus Houston and Bobby Purify, and LB Jashon Sykes; graduated only 8 seniors; played a brutal schedule: USC, Washington, and K-State (all top 10 teams) in successive weeks; and sat at home for the holidays after missing a bowl game.

How did, then head coach, Gary Barnett respond?  By guaranteeing a Big 12 Championship.

Gutsy.  Overly confident.  Asinine.  Those were the reactions that Barnett received for his comments.

How did the ensuing season turn out?  The Buffs went 10-3, won the Big 12, and finished a few tenths of a point in the BCS rankings short of playing Miami in the National Championship game.

Now lets take a look at the 2008-2009 CU football season:  Hawkins, burns a redshirt on QB Tyler Hansen to spark the team to victory over Kansas State; the Buffs lose to Nebraska because of a last minute field goal; battle injuries throughout the year (10 season ending), including injuries to highly recruited freshmen Darrell Scott and Rodney Stewart; graduate only 15 seniors; played a brutal schedule: West Virginia, Florida State, Texas, and Kansas in successive weeks; and also celebrate the holiday season on the couch, by missing a bowl game.

How did Hawkins respond?  By raising his expectations for the team–10 wins for 2009.

The similarities are almost scary.

Charles was quoted as saying, “I look at things from a common sense standpoint, how do you interview Turner Gill and pick Gene Chizik over Turner Gill?  First of all you can’t compare these two, their records. That’s not even close to being fair.  I believe race had a factor. Of course I do.”

In case you can’t tell, Chizik is white and  Gill is black.

This is an extremely controversial topic, and so I am going to try and play devil’s advocate.

First of all, in defense of Auburn’s hiring of Chizik:

The biggest argument against his hiring is that he was only able to compile a record of 5-19 in his two years at Iowa State.  But that’s not a fair assessment of potential in a coach.  Take for example, former University of Colorado head coach Bill McCartney.  His record in his first three season’s at CU was only 7-25-1.  However, he was able to turn it around lead the Buffs to a National Championship in 1990, and National Coach of the year in 1989.  He finished his career at CU with an all-time record of 95-55-5.

In my opinion, you wouldn’t be justified by criticizing the hiring of Chizik based on his coaching record.  Not to mention, 2-3 years ago, he was one of the most sought after assistant coaches in the game (Auburn Defensive Coordinator 2002-04, Texas Defensive Coordinator 2005).  He is a very qualified coach, and I think he will be successful as a head coach at Auburn.

Now lets take a look at the other end of the spectrum.  Here are some numbers:

50% of NCAA D-1A football players are black.

3.3% of NCAA D-1A football coaches are black.

Now you can see where many people, including Barkley, have a legitimate case to argue.  Any casual fan can tell you that just because you were a player doesn’t mean that you can coach, and visa versa.  No one in college football is going to get hired with no previous coaching experience, whether its in the lower ranks of college football, or an assistant.  Everyone has to put in their time.

So lets dig a little bit deeper:

31% of NCAA D-1A football assistant coaches are black.

Let’s take a look at the people making the decision to hire their university’s head football coach:

87.5% of NCAA D-1A university Athletic Directors are white.

92.5% of University Presidents are white.

100% of Conference Commisioners are white.

To me, these numbers are shocking!  What this tells me is that black assistant coaches are putting in their time, but when it comes time for a university to hire a new head football coach, white AD’s and white school presidents are hiring white head coaches.

Something needs to be done about this.  One thing I am not ok with, is hiring someone based on the color of their skin, whether its black or white.  But in the case of Auburn hiring over Chizik over Gill, I think it would be counterproductive to hire Gill simply because he is black.  In my opinion, Auburn hired a very qualified coach in Chizik.  And Gill deserves a chance as a head coach of a major program, which I think he will get.  But I also agree with Barkley, in that something needs to be done to increase the ammount of black head coaches in college football.  In a league where half of its players are black, there needs to be more than 3.3% black coaches.

Do I have a solution to all of this maddness?  No.  If I did, I would be a rich man.  However, one thing is certain: it is absolutely ridiculious that if you are black, you probably have a better chance of being president of the United States than you do as a head coach of a major college football team!

I know there are still 2 games left this season, but I think we can get a good feeling on what this Broncos team is going to look like in the future.  Barring any major injuries, I think they have an extremely solid foundation to build upon.

Offensively, the Broncos are well stocked at just about every position.

QB: Jay Cutler has the talent, tools (i.e. Brandon Marshall, and Eddie Royal) and the playcalling to become one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, if he hasn’t proven so already.  I think he’ll learn to throw the ball away if no one is open, which will cut down on his INT’s.  On a side note: what are Matt Leinart and Vince Young (both drafted before Cutler in the 2006 NFL Draft)?  Last I checked, both are riding the pine for their teams.

WR: Marshall and Royal are going to be one of the best WR tandems in the NFL for years to come.

OL: Ryan Clady, and Ryan Harris have exceeded expectations (to say the least) in their first seasons in the NFL, and Clady, despite being a rookie, may be the best tackle in the league.  Ben Hamilton has a few years left in him, and Chris Kuper is only 25.  The only position in need of some depth would be the center, with Tom Nalen’s career in question (knee injuries), and Casey Weigmann being in his 13th season.

TE: Daniel Graham has at least 5 more years in him, and Tony Sheffler has shown that he can be one of the leagues best if he stays health.

RB: The only offensive position in need of rebuilding is at RB.  Peyton Hillis showed that he can be a 100 yard per game rusher, but will he move back to fullback next year when he gets healthy?  Ryan Torrain has already shown that he is injury prone (broken elbow, and torn ACL) in his rookie season.  I don’t think he will be the RB of the future.  Selvin Young has been battling injuries all year, and hasn’t impressed me at all.  Does anyone else remember that Young said he was going to rush for 2,000 yards this year?  He’s close.  With 268 yards so far, he only needs 866 yards in each of the remaining two games and he will be there.  As for Andre Hall, Michael Pittman, Tatum Bell, and P.J. Pope, I don’t see these guys being the answer for the future.

As for the defense:

To put it honestly, there are two players on this team that are NOT expendable: Champ Bailey and D.J. Williams.  Other than that, it’s time to reload.  Leslie Woodyard and Spencer Larson were a nice surprise, but it hasn’t been enough to change the reputation of this pitiful defense.

The Broncos have 10 draft picks in the 2009 draft, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Shanny used 9 of them on defensive players (safety and d-line are in need of the most help).  I think that he should use a 1st or 2nd round pick on a top tier running back, and complete the offensive side.  With the remainder of the picks, the Broncos need to stock up on the defensive side.

That being said, if Shanahan can turn his horid defense into a middle of the road defense, I have no doubt that as Cutler and the young offense continue to improve,  so will the Broncos as a whole.  Within 1 or 2 years, the Broncos will be a serious contender for the Super Bowl, with Mike Shanahan as the head coach.

I think it could happen for a couple reasons.  First the team’s record thus far this year is 8-5 which in not that bad.  I understand their Division isn’t the strongest but, a W is a W.  Second is the injury factor.  The amount of injuries the team has suffered is staggering and the team is still coming out each week and playing.  Injuries are sometimes a blessing in disguise but, when you had as many as Denver has it is hard for a team to recover due to the mental factor.  Third, they have a lot of good luck at the right time.  I have long believed that you make your luck.  You had to work hard enough to into a position where one lucky play can make the game for you.  For the reasons listed above I can say we have a reasonable chance at seeing a Super Bowl in Denver under Shanahan’s watch.  Others outside of Denver might disagree but, I am sticking to thoughts.