Following a massive breakdown of this Monday's Broncos-Steelers contest, Mile High Report's Steve Nichols predicts: "Denver wins (fingers crossed and nervous as Hell)." Right there with you, Steve.
Alan Gottlieb at Education News Colorado says that a bad decision or two by Denver's school board could doom Colorado's chances to collect federal Race to the Top funds. The reward isn't good grades; it's cash!
Colorado Pols links to Joel Warner's report about yesterday's medical-marijuana motion by declaring that anything with the headline "The Pot Wars Have Begun" will almost certainly be promoted on the site. We won't let you down!
Despite votes of confidence from his CU superiors, Hawkins' unemployment future is easily twice as terrifying as Paranormal Activity -- and the only way he won't wind up on the cutting-room floor by season's end is if he manages to string together some wins, beginning this weekend against Texas A&M. The Aggies are 5-3, with some quality wins (against Texas Tech and Iowa State) to go along with inexplicable lapses (namely, a 62-14 lay-down to Kansas State). As such, the Buffs either need an off-game from A&M talents like Von Miller, who leads the nation in sacks, or they must put together the kind of performance that they've managed only once in 2009 (against Kansas). And close won't be close enough this time. No amount of attaboy excuses from Hawkins will turn an "L" into a de facto "W." Period.
Dan Hawkins has a lot to say -- except about Darrell Scott.
The folks at Mile High Sports Radio found an interesting archival bite related to five-star recruit Darrell Scott's decision to leave the CU Buffs. Shortly after the team's one impressive victory this season (against Kansas), Mile High host Les Shapiro asked embattled coach Dan Hawkins if he was afraid Scott might jump ship owing to a lack of playing time. Hawkins, proving his prescience, said "no" before talking about how the current generation of ballers are obsessed with immediate gratification and don't understand that the struggle of waiting a year or two for their big opportunity can make them better people as well as better players.
Which is all very inspirational. But Hawkins' comments seemed to imply that even if a freshman or a sophomore is better than a junior or a senior, he'll have to bide his time before getting much lineup time -- and that is, to put it mildly, insane. Football is a meritocracy. The best players belong on the field; they shouldn't have to work their way through some kind of antiquated seniority system before getting their chance. The idea is to win, and if that means giving Scott the ball over a back who's been there a couple of years longer, then do it.
Yes, Scott's had to deal with numerous injuries during his CU time, as Hawkins' dwindling number of apologists continue to emphasize. But if, upon his recovery, he knew he'd be relegated to the bench for arbitrary dues-paying reasons, he was right to fly away from the Hawk.
Former Colorado Independent staffer Wendy Norris launches Western Citizen, her new online news project, with a story about the tough financial times being faced by backers of the latest personhood amendment. Fetus don't fail them now.
John Reidy at South Stands Denver interviews ESPN's Dave Demshek in anticipation of the Broncos' Monday night matchup against Pittsburgh. Be warned: Dave's a Steelers fan.
Colorado Pols notes that Jared Polis is now an official supporter of the House's healthcare reform bill "after months of spoon-feeding Republicans their talking points." Guess it helped the medicine go down.
You won't be seeing Darrell Scott in black and gold anymore.
First, there was CU Buffs coach Dan Hawkins' astonishing news conference, when he tried to talk (and talk) (and talk) away the sting of the previous week's 20-6 loss to Kansas State. Then, after an even larger humiliation at the hands of the Missouri Tigers, Hawkins focused his post-game remarks on how well his squad had played during garbage time. And now? Running back Darrell Scott, the most highly regarded recruit to come to Colorado in recent memory, has left the team, possibly for UCLA.
B.G. Brooks' sympathetic (to the university) account of the departure makes the back seem churlish, and he probably was. After all, goodbyes by text message are a lot like breaking up with a Post-it. But as with most of the disasters that have taken place with the Buffs in 2009, this one comes back to Hawkins. Before Scott was hurt in the Toledo game, he was being severely underutilized as a contributor to the main offensive unit (as opposed to special teams). Given how electric he was every time he touched the ball, this situation was totally inexplicable, and likely contributed to Scott's decision to move on.
As for the normally loquacious Hawkins, he declined to comment about the turn of events other than to say he was surprised. We weren't, though. Don't know if Scott was in the coach's doghouse -- but after yet another blow to the future of the program, Hawkins is certainly in ours. As he's been for most of this truly lost season.
"Prebles" will be jumping at the chance to lure the 2026 Winter Games to Colorado. It'll be the fiftieth anniversary of the city's historic 1976 Olympic snub, and Denver no longer feels mousey about the future!
The folks at Rocky Mountain Right are launching the Red Dawn Project, described as "a new initiative to help promote viable, conservative challengers seeking offices currently held by Democrats in Colorado." For the love of Swayze!
Because of the Nuggets' disinterest in defense, Jeremy at Roundball Mining Company thinks the team's win over the Grizzlies last night was "less than satisfying." He's got a point, but 3-0 is still mighty tasty.
A Colorado Pols readers' survey asks visitors if they're "Liberal, and proud of it!," "Moderate," "Conservative," "Really, really, seriously freaking liberal" or "Wing-nut bat-shit crazy right wing." What about "All of the above"?
"I think we showed tremendous character in the way we got pulverized..."
CU Buffs coach Dan Hawkins certainly talks a good game. Trouble is, football is about making plays, not excuses -- something Hawkins didn't acknowledge in the wake of the team's 36-17 loss to the Missouri Tigers on Saturday (see lowlights below). In a post-catastrophe conversation with KOA's Mark Johnson, who called the game (and sounded like he was in intense pain during most of the broadcast), Hawkins started out by praising his squad for their performance in the second half, thereby transforming subsequent comments about a slow start into a virtual afterthought.
Okay, fine: At least the Buffs kept fighting. But showing life during extended garbage time after going into a 33-0 hole is, at best, a moral victory -- and we're several years past the stage when those mean anything. (By that standard, CU's 54-38 defeat to Toledo in September was a testament to the triumph of the human spirit, not a gruesome embarrassment.) Bottom line, the Hawkins experiment has failed. Now all that's left to determine is if the votes of confidence from athletic director Mike Bohn and chancellor Phil DiStefano were inspired by kindness intended to help Hawkins prepare for a dignified exit or certifiable insanity sure to leave alumni feeling homicidal. Good luck spinning that, everyone.
Mike Klis can still report -- but not prognosticate.
For as long as most of us can remember, beat writers at the Denver Post have been allowed to make game predictions about teams they cover -- but no more, because of a decision by the paper's editor, Greg Moore.
The dictate went public Friday afternoon, when Broncos writer Mike Klis appeared on Mile High Sports Radio, at 1510 AM, with hosts Nate Kreckman and Joel Klatt, who hooted at the very idea of a prognostication ban.
No one's deep-throating any shotguns following the Broncos' 30-7 loss to the Baltimore Ravens yesterday. The Broncos had been lucky to be 6-0 -- hell, they were fortunate to be 1-0 -- and they were more than due for a reality check. But the way the game developed raises worries for the future. Specifically, the offense was so focused on not committing any more mistakes after Knowshon Moreno's early fumble that it never made anything happen -- or at least not nearly enough. As a result, the Broncos' much-improved defense was on the field for far too long, and it eventually it wore down.
The scenario raises chicken-and-egg kinds of questions. Is coach Josh McDaniels offense simply too rudimentary to break through against an elite defense like Baltimore's? And could quarterback Kyle Orton do more if given the chance? Or is the scheme so simple because McDaniels knows Orton doesn't have the skill level to handle anything more challenging, thereby dooming Denver whenever an opponent builds up a sizable lead? We won't have to wait long for more evidence. Next Monday, the Broncos take on the Pittsburgh Steelers, a team very much like the Ravens, only more so -- better offense, more consistent defense. So... will McDaniels open the playbook wider, giving Orton the chance to either win the game or lose it faster? Or will he stick with the basics and hope the defense can hold up even if the Steelers hold the ball two-thirds of the time or more?
Nate Timmons at Denver Stiffs points out that last night's Nuggets win over the Blazers was sloppy, but at least it had a happy ending. After reading over this last sentence, I find myself getting strangely aroused.
Over at the Colorado Independent, David O. Williams writes about Colorado firms that have criticized the U.S. Chamber of Commerce for its alleged desire to have a "Scopes monkey trial" on global warming. How evolutionary.
Ray Lewis wearing his Ray Lewis costume. Horrifying.
The Broncos are 6-0, while the Baltimore Ravens, who they'll play on Sunday, are 3-3. No problem, right? But the Ravens can be a terrifying team, and not just on Halloween weekend. Given a couple of breaks here and there, they could be undefeated as well -- they were absolutely robbed against Minnesota on October 18 -- and Baltimore remains a grueling place to play, as coach Josh McDaniels made clear during an appearance on KOA this morning.
Of course, some Ravens are more frightening than others, no matter the time of year. Here are the five scariest this season:
The engraving on the case containing this commemorative basketball reads: "Dan Issel -- All Time Kentucky Fantasy Five -- The Fan Favorite."
Those of us making ends meet on modest salaries are always astonished when we hear about celebrities who earn much, much more but still manage to piss it all away. Case in point: Denver Nuggets legend Dan Issel, who declared bankruptcy in June thanks to debts estimated at $4.5 million. His belongings are being peddled as part of an online auction that ends at 6:30 p.m. tonight, and the assortment of goodies, many of them one of a kind, is flabbergasting. There are 410 items in all, ranging from personalized awards, many of them decorated with horses per his nickname, to all manner of jewelry and sundry doodads, including a 14 karat gold toothpick.
Paging through all this stuff may offer a voyeuristic jolt, but it's also more than a little sad to think of such a seemingly indefatigable player brought low by financial realities. Even after everything's gone, he still won't be just like the rest of us -- but he'll be a lot closer.
Eyeballs, meet local blogs that'll treat your pupils properly.
The Nugg Doctor's Nick Sclafani says Melo "revoked Paul Millsap's player card with a posterizing dunk" in last night's season-opening win over the Utah Jazz. Get started on that paperwork right away.
"Are you calling my dad a liar? Screw you, Colorado Pols!"
Local bloggery worth perusing.
Colorado Pols says gubernatorial candidate Josh Penry isn't letting facts stand in his way when he talks about the state's alleged "hiring spree." If the facts would just clear out when they saw him coming, everything would be fine.
Mile High Hockey's Joe Dunman feels the Avs' fast start means they can lose a game here and there and it's no big deal. Not that they seem interested in that.
CU Buffs coach Dan Hawkins' news conference yesterday, excerpted in the Boulder Daily Camera clip above and viewable in its entirety below, began with an opening statement that lasted more than twenty minutes, and it seemed longer. Hawkins is a smart guy, and he's got to know that he's not long for his job, given a miserable 2009 campaign marked by humiliating defeats (hello, Toledo) and a quarterback controversy complicated immeasurably by his reluctance to put his son, Cody, on the bench and keep him there. Still, he seems to think he can cajole fans and alumni and the press and CU's administration into keeping him around despite a dispiriting record of underachievement -- and he can't. If he's not handed his head at season's end, former CU quarterback-turned-Mile High Sports Radio host Joel Klatt will lead a pitchfork-and-torch-wielding mob straight to Folsom Field and start wreaking a lot more havoc than the Buffs have on the field.
Right now, fans of pro sports in Denver have a difficult task -- figuring out how not to spontaneously orgasm at inappropriate times (like during fully clothed meetings with the boss) due to the magical confluence of seasons involving all the big-four sports: baseball, football, hockey and basketball. The World Series starts tonight, and while the Rockies aren't part of it, the glow from their unexpectedly successful season hasn't worn off -- and besides, the prospect of the Phillies' Cliff Lee matching up against the Yankees' C.C. Sabathia is enough to rev up anyone, no matter his specific rooting interest. In the meantime, the Broncos continue to defy the expectations of anyone with a fully functional medulla oblongata; the Avalanche, who most hockey observers had marked for mediocrity, lead the NHL in points after last night's convincing 3-0 smothering of Edmonton; and the Nuggets begin their defense of the Northwest Division crown against the Utah Jazz tonight, with Chauncey Billups about to begin a complete campaign at the on-court helm.
Has there ever been a better time in Denver sports? A moment when all four of the city's pro franchises had more success than they're enjoying now? Can't think of one -- and if I could, I'd probably be erupting with even more joy than I already am. And now, please excuse me: I've got some cleanup to do.
Jeremy at Roundball Mining Company predicts that the Nuggets will surpass last year's 54-win mark by four games, declaring, "Yes we can! The sun is out. The seas have parted. The basketball gods are shining upon us!" Keep hope alive!
The Denver Egotist kicks off a new agency profile series with a look inside Karsh/Hagen. Dig that barber poll.
Colorado Independent's Joseph Boven writes that the new version of the Personhood Amendment "would move the legal definition of a person further back into the reproductive cycle, granting cells the full spectrum of citizen rights." Wow: My personal voting bloc would be huge!
Sports talk shows and blogs blew up over the weekend after cameras spied New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez eating a hot dog on the sidelines during a TV time out. Some critics have said Sanchez, who apologized after the game for some reason, was showing up the pathetic Oakland Raiders, who the Jets destroyed 38-0, by violating some sort of unwritten rule about eating during a game.
That seems a little overblown. And anyway, Weinergate has nothing on the Snicker Kicker, otherwise known as new Broncos punter Mitch Berger.
When Broncos fans Googled new quarterback Kyle Orton this past spring, many of them were greeted with image after image of KO boozin' it up and getting' crazy with the ladies. He's reportedly left those lifestyle extremes behind, or at least engages in them when there are no cameras present -- and the same may be true of former CU punter Mitch Berger, who's about to take over booting duties for the Broncos according to the Denver Post. Deadspin published several shots of Berger-related liquor-n-babe mania in June sans any indication of when they were taken. However, they were apparently captured in Las Vegas -- so allow us to put the lie to that whole what-happens-in-Vegas-stays-in-Vegas slogan. Look below for more hard-partying action!
Jay Cutler looks better sucking than any QB in the league.
Last week, Fox Sports' Tim Ryan insisted that Jay Cutler was worth everything the Chicago Bears gave the Denver Broncos to get him even though Cutler had only racked up a 3-2 record at that point this season, as opposed to a 6-0 mark for Kyle Orton, the QB the Broncos got in the trade. Our blog about Ryan stirred some passionate debate -- but I wonder if the pro-Cutler forces will be a little less positive after yesterday, when the Cincinnati Bengals absolutely destroyed the Bears, 45-10.
Cutler's completion percentage -- 26 of 37 -- was actually pretty impressive, and his 251-yard total can't be described as an embarrassment. On top of that, he seemed confident and in control even when he was throwing not one, not two, but three interceptions and mishandling two snaps. In fact, he almost always appears to have more command than Orton. But here's the problem: He either makes idiotic throws that can cost his team wins or he fails to take his game to another level when the pressure's on, unlike Drew Brees, who brought the Saints all the way back from a Bears-size deficit yesterday. Sure, it'd be great if Cutler's raw skill and Orton's ability to avoid gaffes could be combined. But if forced to choose between the two of them this year, anyhow, the limited player who doesn't commit costly errors looks like a much better bet than the mega-talented one who regularly makes stupid decisions.
5280's Michael de Yoanna wonders if Mark Udall can save Christmas for folks who've had their credit-card rates jacked up. It'll take a lot more than a red suit to make Senator Mark look like Santa...
Okay, you and me, and most of the local media, and all of the national media -- everyone, really, except this guy. We read his age, and we heard the lip-smacking and the no-commenting, and we saw all the former Patriots showing up in Dove Valley, and we decided: This guy's gonna fail. We wrote him and his Broncos off, penciled them in for 3-13 or 4-12 or, maybe if a couple teams had plane trouble and missed the games altogether, 6-10.
Fox Sports' Tim Ryan and Jay Cutler have a thing goin' on.
Sorry, Kyle Orton. Even if the Broncos go undefeated this season, you probably still won't get any respect from NFL media wise guys. Latest example: Fox Sports' Tim Ryan, who was asked in a "5 Questions" piece if the Bears made the right move giving up so much to get Jay Cutler. His answer: "Yes, absolutely. Cutler is worth it. When was the last time we saw that kind of talent available for a trade at his age (26) with his production and his contract?" In Ryan's view, the Bears "knew what they had in Kyle Orton and that he could run a tight-end offense, but they wanted to go deeper than that." Orton may fit what Josh McDaniels likes to do -- "You saw that last season with Matt Cassel in New England" -- but he "doesn't have the mobility or the skills, and he can't drive the ball down the field like Jay Cutler can. Orton is much more a flat-liner than Cutler. His upside is so much greater than Kyle Orton's."
Hard to argue with a lot of that from a statistical standpoint. But there are some other numbers worth considering -- like career record as an NFL starter (Cutler: 20-22, Orton: 27-12) and wins and losses this season (Cutler: 3-2, Orton: 6-0). Guess Ryan's using the new math -- the kind that doesn't always add up.
Bob Moore says in a Colorado Pols post that the National Republican Congressional Committee's latest attack on Betsy Markey is inaccurate. That would be a first, right?
Jay Cutler's Twitter profile pic. We miss the page-boy cut! It was bangin'!
A few months back, Jay Cutler's Twitter feed was actually kinda entertaining -- mostly because the person tweeting under Sweet Baby Jay's name was an imposter. Now, however, Cutler has what appears to be a legit Twitter account, and he used it to confirm that he's just signed a hefty contract add-on with his new team, the Chicago Bears: "Signed a 2 year extension. Thanks to the Bears, the McCaskey family and all the Bears fans for the support," he wrote.
Unfortunately, that's as interesting as Cutler's tweets get. Here are his posts in advance of Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons:
Josh Penry, champion of water projects (when convenient).
Our daily round-up of local bloggage.
Colorado Pols has an interesting little bit about Josh Penry's sudden and quite convenient about-face on water projects. He seems to like them better when there are a bunch of water geeks hanging out.
And so it begins: 60 percent of Mile High Report's readers now believe the Broncos are Super Bowl contenders.
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