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And now we get to the part of the week where we have to talk about the Colorado Buffaloes.
Do we have to?
Yes, unfortunately. It has to be done.
Everyone knew this year was going to be a monumental task. Colorado was playing too many true freshman and new faces for this season not to be a struggle. The Buffs were going to be underdogs in pretty much every game they played in conference play. Yet before the season their early schedule seemed to give them a good shot at winning multiple games and give them an outside shot at bowl eligibility.
Noooooooope.
Colorado didn't just lose to normally inferior opponents. They lost to normally inferior teams that have already lost to equally unimpressive teams (Sacramento State got blown out in Las Cruces by New Mexico State, and Colorado State was handled happily by North Dakota State).
The stats aren't encouraging either. Colorado's pass efficiency defense? 114th. Completion rate defense? 104th. Sacks allowed? 118th. Rushing yards per carry? 101st. Rushing yards per game? 104th. That's a lot of triple digits, and yes that's a small sample size, but against Sacramento State and Colorado State???
Up next is a trip to Fresno, then Pullman. Colorado almost assuredly has to win their next two games to have any shot at pulling back into a contest for bowl eligibility, because then the schedule gets near impossible (eight games in a row where they'll probably be heavy underdogs). Colorado has yet to prove they're capable of winning outside the mountains though; they've been outscored 193-51 in their four trips to Pac-10 schools.
Where does that leave Jon Embree? On the ledge man. On the ledge.
SB Nation Snippets
Jon Woods of Ralphie Report laid down his thoughts here on what Colorado needs to improve upon.
It's clear that this team still has a lot of growing up to do. Both lines are struggling immensely, against the weakest competition they'll see all year. The secondary needs work and time to grow, and doesn't have a whole lot of time to do so with the Pac-12 conference schedule quickly approaching. Ray Polk and Greg Henderson should return next week and provide a boost, but Fresno State on the road is no pushover. The defense's inability to create turnovers is going to haunt the Buffaloes every week until they get it corrected.Finally, Jordan Webb is not the guy to lead this team going forward. He's seems to be a great kid and a hell of a worker, but this program needs a quarterback it can grow with. It needs someone that has talent and a high ceiling and can learn how to use it. We've already seen what this team can do with low-ceiling quarterbacks.
Ash Jackson of Ralphie Report had this short reminder to Colorado fans.
The Buffs will be good again, eventually.
That's the nature of college football, after all.