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  Home Page » Sports » College » Coachs Candor Makes Believers Of CU Buffaloes

Coach's candor makes believers of CU Buffaloes

Players rally around Hawkins as Colorado to host Mizzou today

by Pat Graham
AP Sports Writer

BOULDER - Dan Hawkins spoke candidly in a lengthy monologue, laying out the pitfalls that have plagued the Colorado Buffaloes program and how he planned to turn things around.

The rhetoric of a desperate coach? Possibly.

But his players bought into it, throwing support behind the fourth-year Buffaloes coach.

As Hawkins gave his soliloquy Tuesday at his weekly press conference, quarterback Tyler Hansen listened from a table in the back of the room. He appreciated Hawkins' emotional candor, applauded his coach's impassioned speech.

"He wants this thing really bad," said Hansen, whose team hosts Missouri today. "You can tell that every day. ... He's all there. It's fun to watch him. It kind of motivates you to know that your head coach cares that much about it and wants it that bad." Hawkins has come under fire for his team's inconsistent play. They lost to rival Colorado State and underdog Toledo to open the season, before upsetting a then-ranked Kansas team two weeks ago.

But the momentum was short-lived, as the Buffaloes (2-5, 1-2 Big 12) were soundly beaten 20-6 at Kansas State last weekend. In the wake of the loss, the team huddled for a players' only meeting, hoping to work things out among themselves.

"It was just a reminder for us as a team," offensive lineman Ryan Miller said.

Any specific reminders?

"That we need to do our jobs," he said.

The game against the Tigers (4-3, 0-3) couldn't arrive at a better time for the Buffaloes. They're still seething over a 58-0 loss to Missouri last season, ending a 242-game scoring streak.

"We need a game to get us motivated, get us going a little bit," Hansen said. "It's been a big target on our schedule ... I think everybody knows that, especially after getting beat 58-0. It's definitely a good time for this game to come." The Tigers are contending with their own difficulties as they try to snap out of a three-game skid. Their quarterback, Blaine Gabbert, also is bothered by a sore ankle.

"It's getting better day-in and day-out," Gabbert said. "I can still make the same plays." Colorado's quandaries at quarterback continue. Although Hansen has started the last two games, he was replaced by Cody Hawkins to run the 2-minute offense at Kansas State.

Hansen understood the decision, saying he's simply got to improve. That's all his coach wanted to hear.

"Seize the moment, seize the day," coach Hawkins said. "I don't think he was as assertive as he could be or wants to be, and I think he'll tell you that. Is that part of that nature of the beast? Yeah. I thought particularly in the Kansas game he was way more assertive." Just how much the Buffaloes will use its backup quarterback remains unclear. So Mizzou coach Gary Pinkel is scheming with both in mind. Hansen gives CU more of a running threat, while Cody Hawkins has a better overall grasp of the offense.

"They are a great football team," Pinkel said. "They just had a great win against Kansas." That's why the clunker against Kansas State stunned the Buffaloes. They thought they had turned the corner and finally found some traction.

"Coach Hawk will tell you we're real close. We're right there," Hansen said. "We are there. We just have to open our eyes and believe we're there. We're where we need to be right now. We just have to believe and open our eyes and actually think that we're there." Miller couldn't agree more.

"I definitely believe we can win. We just have to execute," he said. "It's exactly what I've been saying since Colorado State: 'We're a great team, we just have to play like we know how to play.'" That was precisely the message coach Hawkins was trying to deliver in his speech.

"I feel strongly about what we're doing ,and I think when you talk to the players, they are very positive," he said. "I think they like what's going on. I think they feel good about what's going on. They're frustrated about not winning more, just like we are. ... We're right there. There are a lot of pieces in place. I believe in what we're doing."