Buff Nation –
When CU played Iowa State in 2005, my oldest brother was visiting me in Monterey, CA. It was Saturday, November 12, and we were excited to catch the CU Buffaloes vs. Iowa State game on TV. My brother was a walk-on CU football player twenty years earlier and CU had been a part of our lifeblood ever since. CU was ranked #22nd in the nation and had been a powerhouse program on and off for the past decade. Back then, it seemed like they were always playing on national TV, contending for the national title (winning in 1990) and always putting out a first-round draft pick. We loved every minute of it but took the whole thing for granted.
Against Iowa St 2005, CU was leading in the 4th quarter, but gave up two late touchdowns and eventually lost the game. My brother and I were bummed. But we had no idea that CU would not be ranked again for nearly eleven years. Not until yesterday would CU find themselves again in the national polls.
As the last seconds ticked away on CU’s total domination of OR St this past Saturday, I couldn’t help but bask in the glow of Colorado finally cracking the top 25. For many years it just seemed impossible. CU sucked too much, and other teams were so much better. Joining the PAC-12 powerhouse didn’t help. The speed of the teams (e.g. OR, Stanford, USC, ASU) was too much. It felt like watching a high school team play against a college team.
I remember watching prime time college football at home after having attended a CU blow out. Regardless who was playing, both teams looked SO MUCH better than CU. I was so jealous of those fans .It was impossible to fathom CU ever getting that good again.
And now they are. Buff Nation can once again bask in the glow of being nationally ranked and being on the other end of those beat downs. Serendipitously while CU is on the upswing, the PAC-12 South seems to be on the down swing. Teams such as UCLA, USC, ASU ,AZ and Utah suddenly seem vulnerable. Maybe, just maybe this is CU’s year.
This Saturday CU travels to LA Coliseum to play the USC Trojans. CU is a six-point underdog and has not beat USC for the past ten meetings. CU’s newly minted national ranking, while very exciting for Buff Nation, can also be a determent. We know we have a good team. Now the college nation knows it as well. This is going to make it more difficult to sneak up on teams. I give CU a 50/50 chance to win @ USC. If we win, we’ll be ranked in the Top 15. If we lose, we’ll drop out of the Top 25. Either way a strong showing against USC will be further evidence that CU is legit.
By the way, CU’s next home game is Saturday, October 15th, against Arizona State. CU has a hard time beating ASU, so this too will be a challenge. The game has been moved to 6pm, to be televised on the Pac-12 network. If CU beats USC, you will see north of 50,000 fans attending the ASU game. Assuming the Fall weather holds up, it stands to be a top ten day of the year (at least for me).
Hard to believe we are less than half-way through the season. It only gets better from here.
Go Buffs!
Doug