57-yard field goal, interception give Huskers win over Buffs
By B.G. Brooks, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Published November 28, 2008 at 4:35 p.m.
By Chris Schneider / The Rocky/By Chris Schneider / The Rocky
Colorado tight end Riar Geer scores a touchdown on a 68-yard Cody Hawkins pass in the first minute of the game against Nebraska on Friday. The Buffs scored on their next drive as well to open up an early 14-0 lead.
Photo by Chris Schneider / Rocky Mountain New
Nebraska celebrates after Colorado quarterback Cody Hawkins, left, threw an interception that was run back 30 yards for a touchdown by Ndamukong Suh with 55 seconds to play Friday at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln. Hawkins was trying to rally CU after Nebraska went ahead 33-31 on a 57-yard Alex Henery field goal.
Photo by By Chris Schneider / The Rocky
Nebraska kicker Alex Henery is greeted by teammates after his 57-yard field goal. During a timeout, Henery had to convince his coach, Bo Pelini, that he could make a kick of that distance before getting the opportunity.
What aspect does the CU football team need to improve upon next season?
LINCOLN, Neb. — All season, coach Dan Hawkins had preached the benefits of starting fast to his young University of Colorado football team.
So the Buffaloes, winless on the road in 2008, opened with a bang, followed shortly by another, here Friday against heavily favored Nebraska.
But owning the first 4 1/2 minutes in red and raucous Memorial Stadium didn't compare to what the Cornhuskers were saving for a final 103 seconds packed with heartbreak for the Buffs.
Parlaying a stadium-record field goal and a ground-shaking interception return for a touchdown by a 300- pound defensive tackle into a 40-31 victory, Nebraska denied CU a sixth victory needed for bowl eligibility and put the Buffs (5-7 overall, 2-6 Big 12 Conference) home for the holidays.
Hawkins was proud of them anyway - maybe even beyond proud.
"I don't think I've ever been more proud of one of our teams," he said. "Our guys battled, scrapped, gave it everything they had - not an inch left . . . those guys, nothing but guts. They laid it out there."
So did Nebraska sophomore Alex Henery, whose 16 points Friday afternoon included a stadium-record 57- yard field goal that pushed the Cornhuskers ahead 33-31 with 1:43 to play.
Henery's longest previous successful kick was a 48-yarder against Virginia Tech. He had missed attempts of 53 (vs. Texas Tech) and 52 (vs. Baylor) and admitted after the game Friday he "hadn't been hitting it that far in pregame . . . I don't remember watching (the kick) go through at all, but I was pretty sure I made it."
He did, with maybe 2 yards to spare, but in the timeout called by Nebraska before the attempt, coach Bo Pelini wanted some assurance from his kicker before he sent him back onto the field.
"I just wanted him to look me in the face and tell me he felt he had it in him," Pelini said. "He kind of looked at it . . . normally his range is around 52 (yards)."
Henery trotted back out, but the Buffs - they huddled on the sideline in front of their bench before the kick and talked about "finishing together," said tailback Demetrius Sumler - were surprised Henery was given the green light to try it.
"I didn't think they were going to . . . it was a 57 yards," said CU freshman safety Patrick Mahnke, who played the second half with a shoulder separation but nevertheless sacked Nebraska quarterback Joe Ganz for a 15-yard loss on third down that pushed Henery's attempt to that distance.
Henery's kick - it was the last of four (35, 27, 37, 57 yards) for the day - surpassed the previous Memorial Stadium record of 55 yards, set by Chris Drennan in 1989 against Northern Illinois. That also was the most recent field goal of at least 50 yards by a Nebraska kicker at home.
"The kid stepped up and made a huge kick, and that's the nature of it," Hawkins said. "You've got to tip your hat to a guy like that. He made a big play, (but) our guys battled."
The battle, and a war in which CU scored its most points this season in a Big 12 game, ended with 55 seconds left.
Gargantuan Ndamukong Suh gathered in a tipped Cody Hawkins pass and turned it into a 30-yard scoring run that put the game out of reach for the Buffs, who are left as postseason spectators for the second time in Hawkins' three-year tenure.
"It hurts . . . the seniors are crying in there, the young guys are sad because we're not going (to a bowl game)," said sophomore CU cornerback Jimmy Smith, whose heady play on a badly botched Nebraska fake field-goal attempt resulted in a 58-yard touchdown run that helped tie the score at 24-24 just before halftime.
Smith's touchdown was CU's first since its opening two possessions, when Hawkins and tight end Riar Geer teamed for a 68-yard touchdown and Sumler ran 36 yards for a score on the Buffs' next series.
Want a fast start?
Consider: CU used four plays and 92 seconds for its first two touchdowns, and a mass murmur spread among the mostly red-clad 85,319 - Nebraska's fifth-largest crowd ever and the 297th consecutive sellout, an NCAA record.
"It just showed we could make plays," Sumler said. "Coach 'Hawk' has talked to us about starting fast all season . . . we did, and it gave us some momentum."
But Nebraska, finishing its first season under Pelini at 8-4 (5-3 Big 12) and possibly in line for a Gator Bowl bid, surged back from its 14-0 deficit and went ahead 17-14.
CU tied the score at 17-17 on a 37- yard field goal by Aric Goodman, who finished the season 2-for-3 on field-goal attempts in his last two games after he suffered through an 0-for-8 stretch.
Nebraska took a 27-24 lead after halftime, but CU answered to go ahead 31- 27 on Sumler's second scoring run (a 4-yarder). Then, the Cornhuskers looked to Henery for their next six points - his 37- and 57-yard kicks that pushed Nebraska ahead 33-31.
After the record setter, the Buffs got possession at their 21-yard line with 1:37 remaining. They gained 12 yards before Hawkins' pass was tipped by 6- foot-7 defensive end Zach Potter, then the ball was gathered in by Suh, who stiff-armed and stepped over a diving Hawkins en route to the end zone.
It was a loss, and Dan Hawkins was reluctant to acknowledge the game Friday was CU's best this season: "It's hard to say. . . . Clearly, just in terms of where we're at and all that, I think they just continue to show tremendous resolve.
"I'm really proud of our coaches and our guys for how positive they stayed (throughout an injury-marred season). . . . Even when no one gives you a chance, you've got a chance."
But the Buffs must wait until 2009 for their next one.
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November 28, 2008
5:14 p.m.
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scooterchic writes:
Woohoo! Go Big Red. What a hell of a game. Alex Henery with a 57 yard field goal, and then the interception for a touchdown by Ndamukong Suh. I thought both teams played with such heart and sportsmanship. It is sweet revenge to send the Buffs home without the possibility of a bowl game. Hopefully we keep the momentum into the bowl game! What a great day to be a Husker citizen of Colorado.
November 28, 2008
5:42 p.m.
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rowdy1 writes:
GO BIG RED!
November 28, 2008
5:44 p.m.
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ifyem writes:
A good day to simply be a hater of the Buffs!! Ha ha!! Go Rams!!
November 28, 2008
6:03 p.m.
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maxpower writes:
CU outplayed NU most of the game. As an NU fan I am relieved our team was able to win, but my hat goes off to the CU players. They deserved to win probably more than we did. Our players played uninspired, sloppy, and stupid. Our coaches were outcoached by CU's staff. The fake field goal was one of the stupidest calls in Husker history. Joe Ganz played poorly and made horrible decisions all game. Not throwing the ball away and taking that last sack is really unforgivable. Do your talking on the field, and not in the paper Ganz. Props to both teams for an entertaining game. I'll take the win, but our squad was lucky today. Props to CU for playing hard.
November 28, 2008
6:18 p.m.
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ManginoTorreta writes:
"The fake field goal was one of the stupidest calls in Husker history."
I'm not sure who was responsible for that call, but Pellini needs to understand that he's at Nebraska, not Boise State. He's lucky that it didn't come back to haunt the team.
Shame that the Buffs couldn't pull it out, but they just couldn't quite get it done all season. The injuries didn't help, but this is a team clearly without an identity right now and Hawkins has a lot of work to do in the offseason if he has a chance of sticking around Boulder after next year.
November 28, 2008
6:27 p.m.
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HeftyHusker writes:
While i will agree that Neb. was lucky to pull this one out, you cannot say CU out-played them. Look at the stats. We pretty much handed them 21 pts on blown coverages and bonehead trick plays.
They gave up 166 on the ground to an injured Helu, and turned the ball over 4 times. CU played well enough to win, but NU did play better, and did get the win.
November 28, 2008
6:32 p.m.
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scooterchic writes:
The Huskers tried the fake field goal against K•State and it worked, so I'm sure they figured why not try it; but they got caught. It was a hard fought game, and both teams made mistakes. It wasn't pretty, but I'm glad that the Big Red came out on top this time!
November 28, 2008
6:34 p.m.
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bryancervantes writes:
Hey Maxpower, if you think Nebraska was outcoached and outplayed by CU, then why did NU pull off the win. What are you trying to do, brown nose the Colorado fans? Reading some of your Mary Poppin's posts sometimes, just makes me sick! There's nothing wrong in saying that we will need to watch out for CU next year, because it looks like they are on the way also. It was however, a great, great game. Anyway, I'm hoping to see as many Husker fans at the Gator Bowl as any we've been to in the history of the program. GO BIG RED!
November 28, 2008
6:36 p.m.
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The_Man writes:
Who did the Huskers beat this year that was ranked?
How about last year?
The year before?
I thought so!
November 28, 2008
6:37 p.m.
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Corny writes:
" Do your talking on the field, and not in the paper Ganz"
Can you tell me what Ganz said. All I heard from him this week was that he would like to get the win to keep Colorado out of bowl like they did to the Huskers last year.
CU outplayed NU?????? Did we watch the same game? CU had three or four big plays and did a good job capitalizing on NU mistakes. They didn't score as many points or gain as many yards or hold the ball nearly as long.
How do you define 'outplayed'?
Weird.
Love Dan Hawkins though, compared to the dreck coaches they have had before.
GBR
November 28, 2008
6:55 p.m.
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maxpower writes:
Bryancervantes, We were an 18 point favorite. We have better players, better coaches, and a better team, and we had to kick a 57 yard field goal to win. If we had played as hard and smart as we are capable of then we should have won by 30 points. CU is not a good team, and has lost many players to injuries. We shouldn't have to win on a 57 yard field goal. That's why I believe we got outplayed. It was a great, entertaining game to watch, and I'm overjoyed that we won and appear to be headed to the Gator Bowl. I'm not sure what a Mary Poppin's post is, but I do hope your feeling better. Forgive me if I'm not one to gloat, but I don't feel it portrays any class.
November 28, 2008
7:09 p.m.
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Aesop writes:
So being outplayed is relative thing?
November 28, 2008
8:13 p.m.
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dougste writes:
Great game to listen to on the radio! Yes, the huskers were sloppy and the coaches made mistakes. In fact, coach Pellini admitted that the fake field goal was a bone head call!! Hell, he is a first year head coach and the fact that they are 8-4 and going to a bowl is a lot better than Michigan. The comment by Manginotorreta that Bo needs to remember he is at Nebraska and not Boise State is kind of dumb! CU's coach was at Boise State and Bo was at LSU and the Packers.
November 28, 2008
8:33 p.m.
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mrmagoo writes:
Scooterchic, that fake fg would have worked had the holder tossed the ball far enough, it was short and the Buff picked it in mid air. As to who outplayed who, IMHO the Huskers outplayed the Buffs by a lot. Just a couple of breakdowns by the big red led to this thing being close. It wasnt as close as the score indicated.
November 28, 2008
8:56 p.m.
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cnelson_311 writes:
good game today, i enjoyed being in memorial stadium for this rubber match.......big ups to both teams
and to "the_man", i don't think you want to start talking about history, comparing the buffs to the huskers is like comparing the rockies to the yankees... in other words, your a lost cause...
GO BIG RED
November 28, 2008
9:33 p.m.
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ScreamingEagle writes:
Cody and Papa Hawk got Cornholed!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Serves the bamboozelers right <<>> HaHa
November 28, 2008
9:38 p.m.
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Mike846 writes:
If attitude and guts gets any style points, Hawk and his kids are doing fine. Three starting offensive linemen out, two starting safeties out, leading rusher out and they still almost pulled it it off. Next year CU should start with about 8 or 9 experienced offensive linemen, be three-deep at tailback, and have most of the defense back. They catch CSU, Wyoming, Kansas, Missouri (sans Chase Daniel and, most likely, Jeremy Macklin), Nebraska and Texas A & M at home, Miami of Ohio and a much weaker West Virginia on the road early, Iowa State and K-State on the road late. Throw in Texas at Austin and Oklahoma State in Stillwarter, and I can see 8-4 to 10-2, if they stay healthy. The cupboard was bare when Hawk got here. He's doing it right, and is in one of the two toughest conferences in the country; it ain't the WAC. You had to figure it would take longer. They played 6 teams ranked in the top 12 in the country. I'm satisfied for now. We'll add it up next year at this time. Mike
November 28, 2008
9:49 p.m.
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ScreamingEagle writes:
I'm a Buffs fan that's a major hater of coach hawk and his little sparrow.......I hope they both get hit by lightning and ate by bears!!!!!!
November 28, 2008
11:35 p.m.
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den2mke writes:
First of all, don't they have a newspaper in Lincoln? What exactly do all you Husker fans prove by making your voice heard here? We just got through a week of same from Raider fan, you guys got no chance to top that.
And, how would we know that 'Colorado isn't a good team' anyway? By virtue of beating WVU (top 10 then, worse now)? Having their chances to win against folks like FSU/NE? Or simply getting beat by some of the best teams in the country in one of the nation's toughest schedules?
Any perspective on this team has to consider where the program was a few short years ago, as most of the talent is still very young. They're good, not great--but there's no room for that in the Big 12 this year.
Forget about who out-played who, because all that matters is the scoreboard. If you'd have asked me...Would you take going into Lincoln, being up one with only a possibility of a 57 yard FG to beat you? I'd have taken it, as I'd never have thought they'd be in that position.
Big 12 is going to be tough for some time...
November 29, 2008
5:37 a.m.
The_Man writes:
(This comment was removed by the site staff.)
November 29, 2008
7:39 a.m.
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RJS07 writes:
glad to see you are such a gracious loser The_Man....or should it be The Little Man?
November 29, 2008
7:50 a.m.
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canadianrebel470 writes:
Real Mature The_Man (try the_7yearoldmisfit maybe...), And let's say NU is looking back to the 90's, what exact history does CU have to look back on? And since CU beat NU 62-36, NU has won four of the seven games, and guess what we had a new coach in a new system and young players! (sounds like a certain team you're cheering for now) If nebraska wouldn't have made a couple mistakes, the game would have never even been close. I guess you can continue to talk trash, but let's at least wait til CU is RELEVANT
November 29, 2008
8:08 a.m.
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Rutt writes:
Regardless of the past and who is doing what to whom in the future, I would just like to give CU major props for playing their guts out. That was great effort. NU also played hard but made some crucial mistakes. As a UNL grad and big Husker fan, I was glad to get the win but realize it took a miracle kick at the end to pull it off.
November 29, 2008
9:32 a.m.
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Str8Talk writes:
Kudos to Rutt, the only NU fan on this board with a little perspective. NU was an 18 point favorite playing at home against a banged up CU team. It took a miracle 57 yard field goal for NU to win the game. Good luck in the Gator Bowl against most likely an SEC team...you're gonna need it.
Let's face it, Pelini inherited a senior dominated team with a creampuff non-conference schedule. Let's take a look ahead to next year. You lose your starting RG, RT, both WRs, FB, IB, QB, DT, LDE, BUCK, WILL, LEFT CB, FS, P, LSNAP and PR. At least you keep your creampuff non-conference schedule in tact. CU next November in Boulder.
November 29, 2008
10:23 a.m.
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canadianrebel470 writes:
Hey everyone in here feeling bad because you aren't going bowling! There's great news! a bowl just came out that's gonna allow two teams with followings but don't have 6 wins to go to it! It's in Commerce City and they are inviting CU and Michigan! It's the "Countrywide - All we need is a bail out and we'll have some hope bowl".
November 29, 2008
10:30 a.m.
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Racerx writes:
Speaking as a person who grew up in Boulder County but now is raising his family in Omaha can't we all get along? I visit Colorado often, and trust me there is not much difference except that the Denver area is bigger. Same stripmalls, same suburban track housing with SUVs in the garage, same internet, same fast food restaurants, same supermarkets... Like CO, only a small portion of NE's population are rural. Some of these louts posting here who mock people from NE must think they are urbane cultural elites with a zeitgeist on par with Paris and New York. Sorry, the Denver area is suburban generica--the same as most of America including the Omaha-Lincoln area.
Go Buffs!
November 29, 2008
10:53 a.m.
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LilRedinDenver writes:
Come on Str8Talk. It is getting old hearing the Dever Radio pundits and CU fans talk about creampuff Non Conference schedules. Lets look deeper into that. Over the Past 4 years the Non conference has included the ACC, Big East and Pac 10 champs. It doesn't include the likes of Montana St. (how did the Buffs fare in that clash?) and Eastern Washington. It includes USC, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Pittsburgh and even Ball St, who is undefeated this year. The next 6 years has Miami, FL, Tennessee, UCLA, Fresno St, Southern Miss and Washington. Granted, some of the above are weaker now, but they should be on the rise and clearly have tradition. Let the strength of schedule issue go. Before the game CU had the 12th toughest schedule in the country and NU had the 17th. Not a major difference. After the first 5 games of the season NU had the #1 ranked schedule in the country. Their only losses were to 4 teams ranked in the top 25. Yawn, the arguement about weak non conference schedules is pase'. Tom Osborne has changed all of that and it is validated by the schedule through 2016.
November 29, 2008
10:57 a.m.
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HuskerSeattle writes:
To respond back to Str8Talk, NU will be back much better next year, half of the offense will be back, the IB Roy Helu is only a sophmore and he burns your defense with 166 yard playing hurt! The defense have couple speadster coming out of Redshirt next year.
It will be a long way before the Buffs can get any national attention.....
November 29, 2008
12:28 p.m.
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NQ writes:
Sorry it wasn't a win, but great game to finish the season BUFFS!
Our play calling ran out of steam in the 4th quarter, but it was our first game this year that showed good play calling beyond the first half.
Go get healthy, keep up your off-season training and '09 will be a great season! Hats off to the whole team!
November 29, 2008
12:55 p.m.
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Corny writes:
Umm, as far as the 'banged up CU team' goes... all teams are banged up. Just on a defense that was horrible last year the Huskers had just one starting linebacker who was on the scout team last year, a starting lineman out and a nest of newbies in the secondary. On offfense they were missing a lineman and their 1st string RB.
Banged up is not an excuse. you play with what you have. Colorado played gutsy, NU played sloppy. It was a fantastic game. I wish they could all be that way.
Again, Hawkins is on the right track, if you don't like having him, you just don't understand how a football works.
Yeah, we have papers here, but CU fans won't dare to tread (or are too apathetic about their team) and it really bothers you and that is fun.
GBR
November 29, 2008
1:35 p.m.
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ManginoTorreta writes:
"The comment by Manginotorreta that Bo needs to remember he is at Nebraska and not Boise State is kind of dumb! CU's coach was at Boise State and Bo was at LSU and the Packers."
That was in reference to the perceived need to use trick plays, not where the coaches were at previously.
November 29, 2008
2:59 p.m.
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Brain writes:
It was a great game to watch which surprised me; I'd take a 1 point lead well into the 4th QTR with this Buffs team anyday. This would've been a win for the Buffs except for a great clutch FG from 57 yds out, made for a great game.
CU will be a good to great team next year with all of the injured players back in the line-up; coach Hawkins is doing a good job for the time he has been here; he did take over a team that had NO recruiting ability his first season and last season recruited the best RB prospect in the nation, not to mention another RB (R. Stewart) that has great potential too.
NQ, den2mke, Mike846, I agree with you guys; Buffs future looks good!! GO BUFFS!!!!!!
November 29, 2008
10:26 p.m.
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BO writes:
canadianrebel-
Let's put Slauson's comment about CU aside. A couple of things:
1) Pretty amazing that he puts the Huskers in the same category with a team (Oklahoma) that drilled he and his teammates by 34 points 2 or 3 of weeks ago. That game was over by the end of the first quarter. Had they played Texas, the result would have been similar.
2) Where was all his talk before the Missouri and Oklahoma games? If you're really that big and bad, you talk before all your games, not just the one against a massively short-handed opponent.
Corny-
You're right- all teams are banged up. Banged-up and what CU was are different. Being w/o 2 starting OL, leading rusher, 2 guys at safety that had been multi-year starters were both out, etc. Heading into the game, CU had lost 109 man games (all but 10 or so were guys on the 1st or 2nd string O, D, or Spec. Teams. I believe that went up to 120 after the Nebraska game-info from Omaha World Herald) to injury and illness. I was expecting NU to win this one by at least 21 points. If I were a Husker fan, while I may be happy about the win, I wouldn't exactly be bragging about what largely amounted to beating a partial JV team (and it taking a school record kick on 4th and 25 to do it- and yes, I know that D-1 schools don't play JV games).
November 30, 2008
10:52 a.m.
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Corny writes:
"I was expecting NU to win this one by at least 21 points."
That is why they PLAY the games. That is why Ole Miss beat Florida, That is why Texas Tech went to overtime with Neb. That is why Neb needed a wierd illegal catch to beat missou in 97. That is why cu needed 5 downs to beat missou in 89.
Anything can happen in a football game.
Excuses will never win football games.
A little irony though, had NU not tried the earlier fake, would colorado try to block the low trajectory kick on the 57 yarder instead of backing off looking for the fake?
November 30, 2008
4:06 p.m.
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BO writes:
Corny-
I wasn't using excuses, and neither were any of the CU players. However, w/o the injuries, CU has a better season than they did, also just like any other teams. They played their guts out with what they had.
My points about Slauson's comments still stand.
November 30, 2008
7:24 p.m.
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mjayl64 writes:
It makes me sick to listen to all this bs about what ifs...injuries...tough schedules, etc. YOU LOST! YOU ARE NOT GOING TO A BOWL GAME! Get over it!
This is why its called a game. Things happen. If you want to talk about what ifs...NU should have beat and had Texas Tech beat without the interception that Ganz threw in the overtime period. We had VA Tech beat without the penality. That makes us 10-2. A game is a game and there is a winner and a loser. Once again CU is the loser! Nothing out of the norm for Buffs this year, next year and probably the year after that.
You are lucky that NU made some mistakes to keep you in the game or it would have been a total run away and then what would you have to cry about. I can take losing to KU/OU/Texas, but CU, NEVER! I am just surprised that you didnt have fans with lasers in the crowd. That would have, for sure given you a "W".
Your fan base is the worst in college football. It was impressive to see your student fans drunk, laying around the Holiday Inn Lobby on game day. Some things never change, and that is one of them.
Enjoy your holidays at home this year.