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Barnett would look pretty good in Columbia - where he's always wanted to be - no? Especially since the bad rap on him has proven to be just that...
On field, Colorado steady as they come in Big 12 North
By JOE WALLJASPER Tribune sports editor
Published Sunday, November 6, 2005
BOULDER, Colo. - The Colorado football team has assumed its position atop the deteriorating Big 12 North Division and stayed there for the better part of five years without arousing much interest from inside or outside the state’s borders. Rather, in recent years, it has been the news of arousing recruiting practices that has defined the Buffaloes and made Coach Gary Barnett a lightning rod for criticism.
While former Big 12 North powers Nebraska and Kansas State have regressed and none of the other teams in the division has shown much progress, Colorado keeps plodding along, steady as Ralphie the Buffalo on his pregame lap around the field. Since 2001, CU has amassed a 20-3 record against North opponents.
To unseat the Buffs, you have to overwhelm them with superior talent or play with minimal mistakes. Missouri doesn’t have the former and didn’t do the latter. With yesterday’s 41-12 loss to Colorado, the Tigers’ hopes at a North title during the Brad Smith era basically vanished into the thin Rocky Mountain air. It was a pipe dream, anyway, to think a team as erratic as Missouri (5-4, 3-3) could contend for something more meaningful than a lower-tier bowl game.
The Buffaloes, meanwhile, are well on their way to their fourth North crown in five years - not that many people have paid attention. Even Colorado’s own fans seem underwhelmed. More than 3,000 fans who bought tickets didn’t show up at Folsom Field yesterday.
For those who watched, though, the differences between a solid program and a shaky one were obvious yesterday.
Colorado (7-2, 5-1) prides itself on being one of the few Big 12 teams willing to play a competitive nonconference schedule. Barnett doesn’t duck in-state rival Colorado State, even though the Buffaloes have little to gain by beating the Rams. This year, he took his team to Miami to play the Hurricanes.
The Buffaloes usually lose a game or two early but keep improving and eventually play their best football in November. They are 15-6 in November under Barnett.
"Our team knows November is the big time," Barnett said. "Only a few teams are standing in November, and we’re one of them."
And then you have the Tigers. Missouri Coach Gary Pinkel is a dedicated believer in a soft nonconference schedule. He refused to play a scheduled game against Iowa, so the Hawkeyes were replaced with Arkansas State. The Tigers’ offense looked mighty good in that win, as well as a loss to New Mexico and a victory over Troy. But as the opponents have improved, the offense has become a fickle beast. It surges one week and sputters the next.
Opposing coaches either understand how to stop Smith and the spread option attack, or they don’t, and there is little middle ground. Pinkel has proved far more adept at taking responsibility for Missouri’s problems than figuring out how to fix them. It appears to me there is way too much talent at the skill positions for the Tigers to have one offensive touchdown in the last two games.
Those offensive woes have left Missouri increasingly dependent on its defense, not only to keep the score down, but also to provide points. That’s no way to win a game against a team as good as Colorado.
Sadly, although he breaks school and NCAA records by the bushel, Smith hasn’t developed into a better quarterback than he was in his first game as a redshirt freshman. He set the bar mighty high, of course, but wasn’t it fun back then to dream about what he and Tigers could accomplish in four years?
Unfortunately, it appears the list won’t include any Big 12 North titles. In case you haven’t noticed, Colorado has a monopoly on that.
On field, Colorado steady as they come in Big 12 North
By JOE WALLJASPER Tribune sports editor
Published Sunday, November 6, 2005
BOULDER, Colo. - The Colorado football team has assumed its position atop the deteriorating Big 12 North Division and stayed there for the better part of five years without arousing much interest from inside or outside the state’s borders. Rather, in recent years, it has been the news of arousing recruiting practices that has defined the Buffaloes and made Coach Gary Barnett a lightning rod for criticism.
While former Big 12 North powers Nebraska and Kansas State have regressed and none of the other teams in the division has shown much progress, Colorado keeps plodding along, steady as Ralphie the Buffalo on his pregame lap around the field. Since 2001, CU has amassed a 20-3 record against North opponents.
To unseat the Buffs, you have to overwhelm them with superior talent or play with minimal mistakes. Missouri doesn’t have the former and didn’t do the latter. With yesterday’s 41-12 loss to Colorado, the Tigers’ hopes at a North title during the Brad Smith era basically vanished into the thin Rocky Mountain air. It was a pipe dream, anyway, to think a team as erratic as Missouri (5-4, 3-3) could contend for something more meaningful than a lower-tier bowl game.
The Buffaloes, meanwhile, are well on their way to their fourth North crown in five years - not that many people have paid attention. Even Colorado’s own fans seem underwhelmed. More than 3,000 fans who bought tickets didn’t show up at Folsom Field yesterday.
For those who watched, though, the differences between a solid program and a shaky one were obvious yesterday.
Colorado (7-2, 5-1) prides itself on being one of the few Big 12 teams willing to play a competitive nonconference schedule. Barnett doesn’t duck in-state rival Colorado State, even though the Buffaloes have little to gain by beating the Rams. This year, he took his team to Miami to play the Hurricanes.
The Buffaloes usually lose a game or two early but keep improving and eventually play their best football in November. They are 15-6 in November under Barnett.
"Our team knows November is the big time," Barnett said. "Only a few teams are standing in November, and we’re one of them."
And then you have the Tigers. Missouri Coach Gary Pinkel is a dedicated believer in a soft nonconference schedule. He refused to play a scheduled game against Iowa, so the Hawkeyes were replaced with Arkansas State. The Tigers’ offense looked mighty good in that win, as well as a loss to New Mexico and a victory over Troy. But as the opponents have improved, the offense has become a fickle beast. It surges one week and sputters the next.
Opposing coaches either understand how to stop Smith and the spread option attack, or they don’t, and there is little middle ground. Pinkel has proved far more adept at taking responsibility for Missouri’s problems than figuring out how to fix them. It appears to me there is way too much talent at the skill positions for the Tigers to have one offensive touchdown in the last two games.
Those offensive woes have left Missouri increasingly dependent on its defense, not only to keep the score down, but also to provide points. That’s no way to win a game against a team as good as Colorado.
Sadly, although he breaks school and NCAA records by the bushel, Smith hasn’t developed into a better quarterback than he was in his first game as a redshirt freshman. He set the bar mighty high, of course, but wasn’t it fun back then to dream about what he and Tigers could accomplish in four years?
Unfortunately, it appears the list won’t include any Big 12 North titles. In case you haven’t noticed, Colorado has a monopoly on that.
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