2011 Colorado Buffaloes Football Preview

The 2011 season marks a new day for Colorado football.

The Buffaloes received an invitation to join the new Pacific-12 Conference, for one thing. Second, the school luckily gained a very favorable divisional setup in the newly-aligned league. By joining the Los Angeles schools, the Arizona schools, and the University of Utah in the Pac-12 South, Colorado attained access to the fertile recruiting grounds of Southern California while also inhabiting a division in which it can compete.

That was just the beginning for the program, though. The past offseason witnessed even more change aside from the move to the Pac-12.

Head coach Dan Hawkins was fired, primarily the result of an epic collapse in the fourth quarter against Kansas. Jon Embree is the new sheriff in town with an eye on the future for a once proud football program. The recent past has not been kind to the folks in Boulder; the Buffs haven’t won more than seven games in a season since 2004. For a program that hadn’t won fewer than eight games for nine straight years in the 1990s, it has been a rude awakening. Will life in the Pac-12 be any different?

While 2010 was disappointing, Colorado showed signs of life. With victories over Georgia, Kansas State, and Hawaii, the Buffaloes proved they could play with bowl- caliber teams. The problem was that CU couldn’t transfer some Saturdays of excellence to others. The Buffs never gained a steady rhythm or carry one great week into another. The play of quarterback Tyler Hansen and running back Rodney Stewart are pronounced positives for this team. Colorado returns nine offensive starters and seven on defense. The problem is that only two of those returning performers were All-Big 12 selections. There is still much to be proven in Boulder.

The schedule is going to be interesting for the Buffs. Colorado is set to open the season on the islands against Hawaii in week one. After two home contests, the Buffaloes travel to Columbus to take on Ohio State. The Buffaloes do have Oregon, USC, and Arizona at home while they will travel to Stanford, Washington, and Arizona State.

Suffice to say, Colorado is thrilled to be a member of the Pac-12. The conference is much more conducive to the demographics of the university, and will allow Colorado to align with the West Coast. Not much is expected of Colorado on the field in 2011. It just might be that the Buffaloes surprise. They certainly don’t have anything to lose.

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