This weekend the Cardinal gets its first look at one of the two newcomers to the Pac-12, the Colorado Buffaloes. The Buffs fired coach Dan Hawkins midway through last season, and they seemed to be trending up during the final weeks, but this year has been something of a disappointment thus far.
All signs point towards a big win for the Cardinal on Saturday evening, but stranger things have happened. Robert Bell from the incredibly thorough Buffalo blog, The Ralphie Report, was good enough to answer a few of my questions about the Buffs and their season so far. Check, check, check it out...
Go Mighty Card:
I know it's early in the season and that the Buffs have played only one conference opponent, but how has the transition to the Pac-12 been for Colorado? How have the fans handled it all?
I know it's early in the season and that the Buffs have played only one conference opponent, but how has the transition to the Pac-12 been for Colorado? How have the fans handled it all?
Ralphie Report:
Fans overall are still very excited. Larry Scott has been very impressive with putting the conference together and getting the teams a great television deal. We all just wish we were showing better on the field. The Pac-12 South is a wide open league this year but the Buffs just aren’t in a position to contend yet.
GMC:
The team showed signs that they were ready to play for coach Jon Embree when he talk over for Dan Hawkins towards the end of last season, but things haven't gone as well as some had hoped this season. Is Embree the right man for this job? What are the expectations for the rest of this season and beyond?
RR:
Jon Embree was actually a hire this offseason, linebacker’s coach Brian Cabral took over when Hawkins was fired. It is still way too early to comment on if Embree is the right man for the job. It is clear, this team is lacking talent and after five losing seasons, does not know how to win. They fail to make big plays when the game is on the line. Losing 19 consecutive games on the road is another indication, this program has a long way to go. Since the beginning of the season, we knew this was going to be a tough season for the reasons stated above but also the extremely tough schedule the Buffs have to play this year. I think year two or three will be a better time to give some indication if this staff is the right fit.
GMC:
Quarterback Tyler Hanson has been having a nice season, highlighted some huge numbers in an overtime loss to Cal. How good is he? What are his strengths and weaknesses as a quarterback?
RR:
Tyler Hansen has some nice stats especially against California as well as the 11 touchdowns to 2 interception ratio. He has struggled the past few years throwing more interceptions than touchdowns so it is a good sign that he seems to be protecting the ball better. But his completion percentage shows that he still has been pretty inconsistent. I think his inconsistency is a weakness of his as well as making big plays when the game is on the line.
GMC:
What about Rodney Stewart and the rest of the running backs? Stanford's strength is run defense, so it will be interesting to see what happens. Will Colorado continue running the ball if they aren't
successful, or will they ditch the running game completely to take advantage of the Cardinal's youth? Are there any other players we should key on?
RR:
Colorado’s running game has been a disappoint overall. It showed some positive signs against a below average Washington State defense, but the prior three weeks CU’s running game was poor. That explains some of the high passing attempts from Tyler Hansen. Colorado does have a tendency to give up on the run quickly so if Stanford can handle the Buffs up front, this becomes a pretty one-dimensional offense. Rodney Stewart is a solid running back, though, and can have big games given some running room. He is Colorado’s second leading rusher all-time and was an all Big 12 player a year ago. The other main threat for Colorado is WR Paul Richardson. He had 280 yards receiving against California, a Colorado school record.
GMC:
How has the defense looked this season? Are they ready for Andrew Luck? The Stanford offensive line has been vulnerable against teams with strong pass rushes, and those teams were able to knock Luck around a bit and get him out of his rhythm. Do you see anything like that happening on Saturday?
RR:
Colorado’s secondary is definitely the weakness of the defense, especially considering four cornerbacks were suspended indefinitely this week. Colorado is also very banged up at the cornerback spot so you will see a converted WR and converted RB playing corner this week. That is a bad combination when facing Andrew Luck. I expect a long day if the Buffs don’t get pressure from the front four. The fact that Stanford uses its tight ends so much should really keep the safeties and linebackers at bay and give Luck a chance to attack the corners with Owusu and Whalen.
The defensive player to look for on the Buffs is middle linebacker Doug Rippy. He has been the best defender by far. He can really get to the line of scrimmage and make plays.
GMC:
One last question about Mr. Luck. From an outside perspective, what do you see when you look at Luck?
GMC:
One last question about Mr. Luck. From an outside perspective, what do you see when you look at Luck?
RR:
Hopefully a future Denver Bronco! He is the real deal in my opinion. Love his confidence, love his smarts for the game. I heard he was calling plays in a game this year; he just has all the intangibles to go along with the physical ability.
GMC:
Finally, what's your prediction for the game. Give me a final score
and an idea of how you see things going on Saturday night.
RR:
I think it is going to be ugly – 49-17.
