The straight scoop from
Colonel Mustard
Nov. 30, 2000
A highlight in a season with very few of them. Best finish that I can remember. This year any win is a good one. Remember, CU played Washington even -- these guys aren't a bunch of slugs. Ochs was terrific and will give us trouble for years. Crouch did a great job on the last drive even though our clock management was a problem.
We will go from the negative to the positive. First is the crowd. I thought I was at a funeral. They had to play the tunnel music in the 4th quarter to get the crowd going. Ol' Dan must have a secret urge to keep Colorado in the game, because for the second year he fumbled on the game-clinching drive to start the third quarter. Our team can't seem to put people away when we have the chance. Crouch throws the ball into the ground with a open Wistrom waiting. Fumbles, penalties, blocked kicks, missed FGs -- we just don't execute very well. It hurts to say this but we just have a good and not a great team. As I said last week, I believe we have the talent on the sideline and on the field. They underachieved this year. Colorado ran the ball on us like I have not seen in a long time. Our tackles get penetration and sometimes make big plays. But they don't hold up on the run and get almost no pass rush. Vanden Bosch had a great game and Stella had one his better games. Green was the second big-gun receiver that we were powerless to stop, even when everyone knew they were going to him. I think teams can't wait for third down because they always seem to pick it up. This was a regular season to forget.
Now the positive. This was a confindence-building win, something to feel good about and build on for next year. Crouch needed to lead a game-winning drive and did. Brown made a big kick. We threw the ball effectively and in general the offense only was stopped when it stopped itself. This is a win that we need to enjoy and not say that we should have played better, because with this team in this season any win is a good one. And you can't tell me that you didn't like stealing one from our old buddies at CU.
We need a good bowl to get excited about. I hope it is the BCS or the Cotton. We could get excited about playing a good SEC team on New Year's Day.
We will talk about next year over the next month. But we
need a
play-caller and a game-breaking I-back more than anything.
-- The Colonel