Football fans in Colorado – the real ones, the fans who know the difference between the Cowboys (Wyoming) and the Cowboys (New Mexico Highlands) – can still feel the reverberations from Colorado’s embarrassing loss to Montana State two weeks ago.
But riddle us this: How is it that a Buffs defeat to a Division I-AA school actually propped up football in Colorado?
The answer is like playing “Five Degrees of Doak Walker,” so keep up. Colorado lost to I-AA Montana State. Then, in an equally shocking turn, the Bobcats lost in Week 2 to Division II Chadron (Neb.) State. Chadron State plays in the the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference with several Colorado teams, including Adams State in Alamosa, Colorado Mines in Golden, Fort Lewis in Durango, Mesa State in Grand Junction and Western State in Gunnison.
Here’s where things get weird. Chadron State – a team that defeated a team that beat Colorado – was picked to finish third in the RMAC, two places behind Fort Lewis.
So, by thin reasoning, DII Fort Lewis is a better team than DI-A Colorado. Heads up, Buffs fans!
That might be a reach, but clearly the RMAC is not some also-ran football congregation.
Fort Lewis, picked to win the RMAC in a preseason poll of coaches, has losses to Cal Poly and Idaho State, both I-AA teams. But the Skyhawks wrecked Western New Mexico in a league game in the first week.
Chadron State, picked to finish No. 3 behind Fort Lewis and Nebraska-Kearney, already boosted the RMAC’s image with nonconference victories over the University of Mary and Montana State, one of only two games involving RMAC teams this season to draw more than 10,000 fans.
Check out two interesting RMAC matchups Saturday, when Nebraska-Kearney (1-1) travels to Durango to take on Fort Lewis (1-2) at noon in a battle of league heavyweights. Skyhawks wide receiver Kris Ducy, a Pueblo South graduate, trails only Colorado Mines’ Derek Dykstra in catches per game this season among conference teams.
Also at noon, Adams State (1-1) goes to Golden to take on Mines (1-1). Grizzlies quarterback Clint Buderus, formerly of Florence High School, takes on the league’s most prolific passer so far in the Orediggers’ Garrett Mehl, who is averaging 242.5 yards in the air.
What we’d like to see
After an inauspicious, mistake-laden beginning to the season, Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer riled a town full of armchair quarterbacks into chasing him mercilessly with figurative torches and pitchforks. But Plummer’s Frankenstein complex has two possible fixes. First, he clearly needs to bring back the beard, for karmic purposes. And second, Broncos fans should divert their rage at the Go Deep Armchair Quarterback Challenge, a Papa John’s-sponsored tailgating competition in the Invesco Field at Mile High parking lot Sunday that will test fans’ ability to throw a football from a recliner – while holding a slice of pie. What remains, then, is whether you can throw better than Jake.
The couch
On: Congratulations, Jeff Fisher. The Titans coach and head of the NFL’s competition committee is No. 1 with a bullet on the Scrooge list of buzzkills after the league’s first week drew far too many yellow flags for celebration penalties. Borrrring. Were touchdown dances really ruining the league? With that entertainment ripped from our television screens, turn your attention this week to a beloved Denver tradition: kicking the Raiders when they’re down. When Oakland (27-0 loser to San Diego in Week 1) takes on Baltimore (27-0 winner over Tampa Bay) on KCNC-4 on 11 a.m. Sunday, the Silver and Black will be a generous 12-point dog.
Off: Forget the spirit of competition. Who cares about the thrill of victory? Four outdoors events this weekend are a great excuse to go on holiday and tour Colorado. On Saturday, try the 13th Tour of the Vineyards, a 25-mile bike ride through Western Slope wine country in Palisade that’s part of Colorado Mountain Winefest (emgcolorado.com). Or, check out the Autumn Color Run, a half-marathon, 10K or 5K in Buena Vista (fourteenernet.com/colorrun). On Sunday, try the Crossroads Half Marathon and 5K, formerly known as the Easy Street Wheat Half Marathon, run at Buckingham Park along the Poudre River in Fort Collins (crossroadshalf.com). Or, for a full weekend adventure, how about Del Norte’s Run, Rock and Roll, a 1-mile run, 5K run, 3K fun run, 10-mile mountain bike loop and a mountain climb/free hike in Penitente Canyon near Del Norte (delnortechamber.org).
Around town
Now in its 31st year, Sunday’s Governor’s Cup 10K has one of the most prestigious pedigrees for competitive running in this state. Started by former Gov. Dick Lamm in 1976, along with the Governor’s Cup cross country ski race, the 10K once was the premier fall-time race among hard-core runners. Even now, with dozens more races every weekend across the state from which to choose, the Governor’s Cup still draws an elite crowd. There’s also a 5K and a 1/4-mile kids fun run to round things out at the State Capitol. Check out the event calendar at bkbltd.com for more information.
Weak in review
Former Northern Colorado punter Mitch Cozad apparently thought he was entitled to the fame and attention of playing for a college football team. Mission accomplished. Cozad, then No. 2 on the depth chart at punter, ended up in every newspaper sports section in the country after stabbing No. 1 Rafael Mendoza in his kicking leg, allegedly out of jealousy. Cozad must not have been a criminal justice major – he was caught after a witness saw him leave the scene in a 2006 Dodge Charger with the license plate “8-KIKR.”
