Buffalo Savior

Everyone likes a good rumor or prediction, as I have already proven. It gives people something to discuss and analyze without the burden of reality. In this instance, I want to put forth a name that I truly think could help save the University of Colorado football team: Mr Marc Bronco Clay Mendenhall.



Can't you practically see the halo?

As a fervent University of Utah supporter, it is a very odd article topic but I also feel it allows me to evaluate the situation from a unique point of view. His name has been mentioned in relation to the Colorado football head coaching position but it didn't seem to progress past the infant stages of negotiation. I think that is a mistake. Colorado should be doggedly calling Bronco until he agrees to be their head football coach in 2013.

Colorado needs to take a honest look at itself before making any sort of football related goals for the next few years. They should not be focusing on competing for a conference title in the near future, but rather a winning record. Dan Hawkins made a mess of the program from Dec. 2005 through Nov 2010 and Jon Embree promptly knocked it down even further during his tenure.

After giving up 46 ppg (points per game) and finishing 1-11 in 2012, there isn't much lower the team can sink. This hire needs to be about reversing course for the long term, not trying to shortcut its way to the top.

A pretty good snapshot of how the Colorado vs Oregon game went in 2012.

The record is dependent on many things, but the most glaring factor has to be the 46 ppg listed above.  To even stand a fair chance of winning more than a couple of games, that number needs to decrease by at least 14-16 ppg.

Enter Bronco. This has been a historically good year for BYU as they currently rank 5th in the FBS with 14.7 ppg given up. They have been fortunate to have some breakout star emerge that are not common in Provo but regardless, a Bronco coached defense is a solid one. BYU is never blessed with the most athletic team but their defense usually finds a way to keep them in the ballgame.

Next to Rocky Long of San Diego St, Bronco is considered the authority on the 3-3-5 defense. This defense is specifically designed to limit big plays and follow a bend but don't break philosophy. While BYU hasn't had to employ it as much this year, he has it in his tool belt for a situation identical to Colorado where the talent may not be as good as the opponents. The defense would go from touch football to at least league average fairly quickly. It would give the offense a chance to get the team into ballgames.

Colorado started 3 separate QBs this season, which is actually a step up from BYU (4). While that may seem menacing, it is not an indication of Bronco switching QBs by choice. BYU suffered a string of QB injuries but Bronco remained loyal to his starters, almost to his detriment. Anyone who wins a starting position will get 100% support from Bronco at all time. While this can cause frustration from fan bases, it will inspire loyalty from the players and as much stability as injuries will allow. He will never let outside pressure force his personnel decisions.

Riley Nelson probably throwing an interception or hurting himself.
 

Bronco will be the first to admit to a limited offensive knowledge. The fact that Bronco's offensive knowledge is limited is precisely why he is available and probably less expensive than other similarly successful coaches. Fair or not, scoring points gets attention. Outside of the SEC, defensive coaches are typically overlooked and undervalued. T

he key will be to force Bronco to hire an experienced offensive coordinator not named Brandon Doman.Without diving into too much of a tangent, Doman's inability to properly establish an offensive identity probably cost BYU games and put the players in situations to fail and/or get injured.

Why would Bronco jump from a solid program to one that floats near the bottom of the PAC 12? After 8 years in Happy Valley, I think he may be ready for another challenge. The head coach of Brigham Young is seen almost like a spiritual beacon in the community. He is under scrutiny for football and about a dozen other things.

While operating under the mandate that football is not a priority, he constantly fails to meet the unreal expectations of some fans that are stuck in a 1984 mindset. Next to the service academies, BYU has one of the most unusual recruiting situations in the country. While some Mormon youth recruit themselves to the school, many other players (Mormon or non-Mormon) would never consider it because of the culture.

Your 1984 kind of champions.

Since taking over in Gary Crowton in 2005, he has a record of 73-29 overall, 24-21 against teams with winning records. He has finished in the top 25 of the Coaches' Poll in 5 of his 8 years. He knows how to win. He may not be Nick Saban Jr., but he consistently puts a solid product on the field. With BYU's decision to pursue football independence rather than aligning with a BCS-tied conference, the team has no realistic shot to play for a national title. As a coach, he wants to compete at the highest level. Does BYU give him that opportunity? No.

I seriously doubt it would happen this year because of Bronco's loyalty, but I hope it gets more consideration. Colorado won't get an elite head coach in the Saban mold but they also don't want another attempted band-aid like Embree. They need a stabilizing force that will set the program up for improved long term success and an ability to compete quickly. Sounds like Bronco to me.

Thank you to ESPN and Keith Shirts for some of the information listed in the article. I blame them if it is wrong.

7 Utah College Sports Predictions

Here are 7 random predictions for college football in Utah as of 11/27/2012. All of them can't come true since some contradict each other or are dependent on something else happening, but I might as well list them on the off chance I get 1 or 2 right.

1) Utah hires a QB coach to relieve Brian Johnson of the responsibility. I originally heard this idea floated by Hans Olson on ESPN 700 and it made a ton of sense. He is young and inexperienced enough that he needs to limit his focus for the next few years. If would probably need to be someone non threatening to Johnson but with enough experience to perhaps help Johnson gameplan. Johnson's age makes it hard to find someone to fit that bill so they probably will bring in a QB that is only a few years himself from playing college ball and looking to break into coaching.

Perhaps these two could be working together again soon?

That being said, a good option would have been Jordan Wynn. He was already fulfilling that position to a degree after his career ending injury but Norm Chow hired him as the QB coach at Hawaii. A good backup option could be Jon Hays for a lot of the same reasons as Wynn. Hays knows the league, knows the personnel and fits the part of being from the Kyle Whittingham tree. Not an exciting hire but one that could free up Johnson to learn how to call plays that don't involve a sweep, double reverse or sideways pass.

2) Utah State offensive coordinator Matt Wells interviews for the OC position at a lower end BCS school. He probably wouldn't get the job but major schools are always on the lookup for good young coaches and he is proving be just that.

I am actually very interested in what happens with him because it isn't very often that Utah State has a good young coach like Wells. If Gary Andersen leaves for a new job (see #3), I could easily see Wells following him. If #4 happens, I could easily see him staying on with an eye towards a long term fit with Utah State (he is a Utah State Alum). Utah State would be very wise to invest in keeping him around.

Matt Wells appears to be mimicking the motion required to turn a school bus. Perhaps that is where Wells sees #2's future going if he doesn't play better.

3) Utah State head coach Gary Andersen leaves to take a head coaching position at a BCS school. His name seems to be floating around because of not only this season's success (first 10 win season in Utah State history) but because he built the team from the ground up in 5 years. College football is not a patient institution, but he has the potential to win now with a talented roster OR build up a poor program through recruiting and coaching.

Colorado may make sense from a recruiting standpoint, but I don't like the fit. They fired the last coach 2 years into a rebuilding effort. Would Andersen really want to walk into that? I wouldn't, not with other options out there. I love Andersen at Cal but after letting Tedford go, they might want a bigger name hire. Andersen could fit well though because of recruiting and a lesser pricetag than most other major candidates. I hope Cal happens.

Due to a limited budget, Coach Andersen is forced to supplement his income by working the drive thru window at a local food chain.

A more likely scenario is Andersen being the 4th or 5th choice on the opening round of head coaching vacancies. After those positions are filled, he would become the 1st or 2nd choice for the 2nd round of openings. A team like Cincinnati could be a great fit for Andersen since they have a history of hiring coaches from lower leagues (Brian Kelly in 2006 and Butch Jones in 2009, both from Central Michigan). This job could also appeal to Andersen because it is a BCS job and has proven to be a great jumping off point for the 3 prior coaches (Mark Dantonio, Brian Kelly and Butch Jones). This is obviously based on the assumption that Butch Jones leaves, which he is heavily rumored to.

4) Utah State names Mike Sanford head coach after Anderson leaves. While this could potentially cause large amounts of groaning in Logan, it would make sense. Sanford knows the program, has head coaching experience (albeit a miserable record at UNLV), is familiar with the area for recruiting and would not be very expensive.

While the hire would not excite the fanbase like the hiring of Andersen did, it could allow Utah State to maintain a fairly competitive team for several years into the future. Given the volatile nature of college football alignment, that could be enough to get Utah State into a BCS league....especially if everyone races to 16 team leagues.

Mike Sanford pointing the way to the exits for all the fans who would leave as soon as they heard this hire.

This would also give Matt Wells incentive to stick around and continue to develop. As a Utah State Alum, he would be well positioned to take the reigns from Sanford 3-4 years from now. A move to hire Sanford would hopefully be with an eye towards the eventual promotion of Matt Wells.

5) BYU "re-assigns" Brandon Doman to a new position or brings in a co-offensive coordinator. BYU's offensive has yet to find an identity in 2 years under Doman's watch. After mangling the management of Jake Heaps, BYU cannot afford to mess up the development of their next batch of QB recruits.

I really just wanted to mention Jake Heaps so I could post this picture. I really disliked him.

My only suggestion for his replacement would be Andy Reid. While Reid hasn't officially been fired, he is almost certain to be let go by the Eagles once the season concludes. It could seem like an odd career choice for Reid but it could be the one that makes the most sense.

By returning to his Alma mater, he could be given duties that don't require active recruiting except for during on campus recruiting trips. That could free up more time for him to spend with his family and recharge his batteries. He could also have a young coordinator to groom in Doman that could greatly benefit from having someone of Reid's experience around. Focusing simply on the offense could allow Reid to re-discover his offensive touch and land him a NFL job in a few years.

I don't think it would happen because after a few bad games fans would ask for Reid to replace Mendenhall, but it would be a fun situation if it happened.

6) Kilana Sitake becomes head coach of San Jose St  or Fresno State when their current head coach leaves for a BCS coaching job. This may not seem likely but Sitake is a good young HC prospect that may appeal to schools in a similar recruiting base as Utah. He is a defensive minded coach that has strong ties to the region. While his background in defense may seem to be an afterthought, schools may see it as a reason he sticks around longer. Offensive minded coaches are a much more popular hire for big schools than ones with a defensive background.

This is a picture of Mr. Sitake but my favorite part of this photo is that Morgan Scalley is rocking a sweet Under Armour fishing hat in the background.

From Sitake's point of view, it is a win/win scenario. It allows him to remain in his recruiting comfort zone while continuing to develop his coaching abilities. Best case scenario: Sitake uses the job as a jumping off point to a HC gig in a big school in 3-4 years. Worse case scenario: Sitake gets fired and is forced to become a defensive coordinator again. It is a win/win for Sitake.

7) Morgan Scalley is named defensive coordinator for the University of Utah.  Kyle Whittingham has already demonstrated a strong desire (some would say weakness) to promote from within his current staff. Scalley has been with the program for quite some time and is already well known within the community. He knows the defensive players and is already known to recruits.

He looks much more dignified without the fishing hat, though not as fun.

His actual ability to lead a defensive scheme is unknown, but with a defensive minded coach like Whittingham overseeing things (like he did with Sitake), it is much less worrisome then when an inexperienced OC was put into place.

While it isn't entirely relevant, it does speak to his potential when Urban Meyer tried to get him to follow him to Florida as a graduate assistant. If Meyer likes you, it isn't a bad thing.

One Year

Life is hard. Not exactly a ground breaking observation but an honest one. It is because of this simple reality that I have embraced the One Year philosophy, which simply means that I think every fan deserves at least one year of ultimate success during their fandom.

Over the course of time, sports have undeniably evolved into a major part of our culture by allowing us to escape real life. This escape allows us a way to emotionally invest large amounts of ourselves into a seemingly trivial event and thus artificially create additional life value and worth.

It doesn’t really have to make a ton of sense, it just had to be recognized. In other words, sports matter to fans much more than is logical because many fans assign some of their own personal worth based on how a particular sports team or event unfolds.

This wouldn’t be terrible if fans actually had a significant impact on a team’s performance, management or results. Unfortunately that is not the case. The overwhelming majority of all sporting outcome are completely out of the fans’ hands. Fans are a merely a passenger on a team’s season, unable to impact it in almost anyway. This fandom and obsession is an unfortunate reality, not a logical decision.  

This is why I cling to my philosophy. Life is hard enough without something as random as sports making it worse.

People will disagree with my hope and philosophy for a myriad of reasons. Frankly, I don’t care. No matter what factors led to one team being more successful than another, I still typically want the longest suffering fanbase to win. I do not blame the Charlotte Bobcats’ fans for the poor management style of Michael Jordan anymore than I applaud the fans of San Antonio for the amazing “discovery” and development of Tim Duncan.

To understand the true value sports can create in one’s life, talk to a diehard BYU football fan and see how long it takes for 1984 to crop up. Strike up a conversation with a Mets fan and you will probably end up discussing the Amazing ’69 Mets. Even bring up 2004 or 2008 to me and I will talk for hours about the University of Utah football team and how the BCS screwed an entire fanbase out of a chance for even a split national championship. Sports fans love talking about these times when life is good and they absolutely cling to these times when life is bad.

My One Year philosophy isn’t perfect. Every year I root for my University of Utah football team to go undefeated and my Utah Jazz to win the NBA title. Assuming that ever actually happened, I would root for it to happen again and again. That is the nature of being a fan. I just hope that when if/when my Utes and Jazz lose, they lose to a team that is on its way up rather than to a team that never seems to go down.

If society is going to falsely assign even the smallest amount of self value based on a sports team, then I want everyone to have at least a single sports team or season to use to boost themselves up. It may sound dumb, but life is hard enough. Every little bit helps.

Quick Lakers Vs. Jazz Prediction

Here are some quick predictions for the Lakers Vs. Jazz 2nd round series

1) Lakers will win game 1 by 18 points
2) Lakers will win the series in 5 games
3) Paul Gasol will dominate the series

I wish I could have more faith in the Jazz but I have been burned too many times before. I hope I am wrong.

White Men Can't Jump

It never is truly summer until TBS or some other random cable channel starts showing the same shows non-stop. I am not sure if it is merely lazy programming, cheap distribution rights or simple supply/demand but every year I encounter it.

While I definitely enjoy watching Mandy Moore in Walk to Remember every Saturday morning, it isn't my favorite summertime rerun. That honor would go to White Men Can't Jump.

Wesley Snipes' hat is the real selling point of this poster. White boys couldn't pull it off, I tried.

This movie teaches us many many things:
1) Pickup basketball look exciting, popular and easy.
2) White people cannot, indeed, jump. (Side note, I get sick thinking of the Jazz drafting Cole Aldrich with the #9 overall pick)
3) Rosie Perez could dominate Jeopardy like a sassy Ken Jennings.
4) Two short players with extremely ugly jumpers can dominate a game of 2 on 2 basketball against actual life size players..

Worst. Movie Voice. Ever.

While points 3 and 4 are interesting, they do not actually lead into the rest of my entry......so laugh and forget about them. Points 1 and 2, however, tie in quite nicely.

When most people think of pickup basketball, they think of scenes like those found in the before-mentioned movie or even classic images/documentaries of famous places like Ruckers Park in Harlem. Each depiction shows "warriors" doing battle for pride, honor and/or money.....or something like like. It romanticizes the simple nature of the game, transforming it into a modern day arena where basketball gladiators go to battle.

Definitely not in Utah.

When I think of pickup basketball, I think of those same types of battles but my image of the battlefield couldn't be more different. Instead of full length courts and crowds, I think of narrow driveways, odd angles and the strangest boundaries you could think of.

Utah is known for being a mainly "white" state and it shows up on the basketball courts, especially when you are young. Everyone is roughly the same size, speed and coordination level, which makes for some pretty horrible-to-watch basketball games when played on regulation 10 foot hoops. All the youth leagues are filled with these types of players (see pictures below), which kind of killed the fun.

A typical youth team. Aren't I a cute #23?

When your entire team is made of of cloned players, you end up running the "umbrella" offense. This consists of the tallest player being banished to underneath the basket while the remaining 4 teammates are spread evenly behind the 3 point line, rotating who takes the shot. Like i said, a very horrible-to-watch type of game. Throughout grade school, this is all I knew so I understandably disliked basketball. This all changes when I discovered the best invention for the state of Utah that I have ever come across: The Adjustable Basketball Hoop!

The Adjustable Hoop...where short white kids can pretend to be real basketball players.

Finally, a hoop that could be adjusted to allow for our underwhelming perimeter skills! Almost overnight, our umbrella offense molded into a more traditional offense with  yours truly developing some mean post skills to go with his now towering 5'9" frame. I could dunk, I could block shots, I could actually play basketball the way it was meant to be played!

Basketball quickly became the go-to activity for summer days and nights. Those neighbor houses with adjustable hoops became the coolest place to hang out. Each house had its strange rules and angles but we didn't care. Who needs a wide court with a true 3 point line when you could have a narrow court where the 3 point line could be 15 - 35 feet depending on the grass line? Does that mean we didn't take the games seriously? Hell no, I got more heated about those games than I ever did in soccer or baseball. My absolute favorite sporting memories are from playing pickup ball on these mini hoops.

Guess who always got double teamed?

Eventually, the playing field began to shift as some of the elect few grew to be over 6 feet tall and develop real jump shots. These "elite" began to play in school leagues while the others began to focus on other, more attainable, sports. The games on the mini hoops became less and less frequent, until you rarely could even get enough people to play 2 on 2. It was a depressing end to an incredibly fun sports era of my life.

I still play an occasional pickup game of basketball on a regulation hoop, but it isn't the same. As you can imagine, Utah is practically bursting with 5'10" point guards, but many of whom can shoot/run/pass/play much better than me. The fun isn't there for me anymore. My shake and bake post moves, my sky hook and even my little bank fade-a-way are wasted when some 6'6" guy (OK, probably anyone over 5'11") can simply stuff the ball back into my face. It just isn't the same.

One day my future son will be old enough to start playing sports and I hope he enjoys them as much as I did and do. I will make sure he has a bin of baseballs, a bag of soccer balls and a box of footballs. But my first serious purchase? An adjustable basketball hoop for the driveway....even if I end up being the only one to use it.

Key to 2010 Playoffs?

Seeing as the Utah Jazz are the only true professional sports team in Utah, I do not really have a choice in supporting them. They have repeatedly disappointed me by failing to show up for the big games but have mostly been competitive. This year, despite my instincts and common sense telling me otherwise, I have an inkling of hope. Why? One man - Kyrylo Fesenko.

 Fes!

Fesenko is anything but an all-star, gathering only a handful of minutes all year. During these minutes he normally was paired with Kosta Koufos to form one of the most humourously uncoordinated and whitest frontcourts the NBA has ever seen while averaging 2.6 ppg / 1.8 RPG / .4 blocks a game. He would hardly seem like the type of player you want to depend on during the most important time of year.....so why am I?

The whitest frontcourt duo in the NBA. To be fair, they are probably the ones who knocked Milsap down in the first place.

The answer lies in the person that he is replacing: Mehmet Okur. Here is a summary of Okur's Home/Away splits for 2009 and his career.

 While this is only a snapshot of information, it is clear that he is a much better offensive threat at home than on the road. In fact, I would wager he is well aware of this and stays a bit closer to the hoop while on the road to grab an extra rebound or two every few road games.

Okur is a slow Small Forward stuck in a Center's body. This has worked to his advantage thus far in his career because it has allowed him to surive despite being slow and athletically unremarkable. It has also allowed him to typically be guarded by the opposing team's Center, meaning he normally can take 3's with little challenge. His lack of defense is more easily concealed because the majority of Centers in the NBA are not offensive wizards and he is known as an offensive player. Plus he plays for the Jazz, who believe in simply fouling a player instead of guarding him.

Look at that lift!

Why does that matter? In the playoffs, this type of player will kill you. With a partially gimpy Okur spending a good portion of the each offensive/defensive possession more than 15 feet away from the basket, the Jazz are left without their normally tallest player anywhere near the basket for rebounds/defense/easy buckets. This opens up the lanes for opposing players to get close to the hoop, either getting great looks at the basket or drawing fouls from a delayed defense. Add to the fact that Boozer has been bothered by a sore rib,  rebounding and interior defense greatly suffer.

Could this be the moment that saved the Jazz's season?

Enter the Fes. At 7'1" and 300 lbs, he is a large body to have occupying the middle of the floor. On the offensive end, he spends the majority of his time hovering around the basket either looking for easy layups or rebounds. At the defensive end, he is quick enough (compared to Okur) to get down the court and clog the lanes. Cutting players no longer have open lanes but a towering, aggressive white dude interrupting their shot. A major improvement over Okur's recent performance. Additionally, when he does inevitably get into foul trouble, Sloan will play Boozer and Millsap together much more regularly than he has in the past.

Someone tall, near the basket and with his arms up in a Jazz uni? Must not be Boozer or Okur.

Fesenko will not single handily carry the Jazz through the first round and beyond, but he gives them a better chance than Okur did prior to the injury. Even after AK comes back, Fes' size, presence and energy should provide valuable help to the Jazz without the drain of an expected amount of shots or minutes.

Early 2nd Round Thoughts

The second round is only about 10 picks in but I wanted to post my early thoughts...

-Koa Misi goes to the team that provides the best fit. In the 3-4, he will be a rushing OLB in the Ware and Merriman mold. Great pick by the Dolphins.

Watch out AFC East, Misi is coming!

-Baltimore Ravens selecting Sergio Kindle, OLB Texas. This player dropped out of the first round and went to a team that will get the most out of his abilities. He will have a chance to learn from Ray Lewis, Terrell Suggs and all the other members of the solid Ravens defense.

-Rob Gronkowski to the Patriots. I really don't like this pick, it goes back to my adversion of using a high draft pick on a player that missed the entire previous year. The Patriots have gone from being the best drafting NFL team to league average. Waste of a pick this high.

-Zane Beadles to the Broncos. I am biased, but he will be a solid guard for 10 years in the league.

-I do not understand the "guest" pick announcers, whether they be hall of famers or current players. Add the fact that the analysts continue to talk over each other and offer redundant opinions and the NFL draft may have finally jumped the shark....I will keep watching though, I just am aware of the inferior product.

PREDICTION- Arizona is on the clock, I bet they take Clausen. (Nope!)