Boulder – There’s a smart-alecky saying about college football teams coming off a disastrous season: “The good news is they have a lot of starters back. The bad news is they have a lot of starters back.”
Second-year Colorado coach Dan Hawkins said he believes it’s much better to have 16 returning starters off a 2-10 team than the alternative of starting over from scratch.
“You don’t want to be close to getting a raise. You don’t want to be close to graduating, but we were close (to winning),” Hawkins said. “We just couldn’t quite finish in a few games last year. But I think our leaders know which direction we’re going in. There’s a lot of momentum. I feel very good about that.”
Even if each of the five losses by nine points or fewer had gone the other way, Hawkins wouldn’t have done cartwheels over a 7-5 mark. For an eager achiever who averaged almost 11 wins a season in five years at Boise State and never had a losing record in 10 previous seasons as a head coach, 2-10 was tough to take.
That’s why, in addition to all the returning experience, Hawkins is excited about the newcomers. Ranked as high as fifth among recruiting classes in the Big 12 Conference and led by Parade All-American offensive tackle Ryan Miller (6-feet-8, 310 pounds) from Columbine, it’s a strong, athletic group that can provide help at a variety of positions.
“I talk to the older players all the time and they like a lot of the new guys,” Hawkins said. “They’re really, really impressed.”
Hawkins then goes a step further.
“I really could see maybe eight true freshmen really in the mix,” he said.
In Hawkins-speak, “in the mix” means working their way into the two-deep and making an impact. The best part, Hawkins said, is that newcomers can provide an infusion of talent – he likes to use the word “fortify” – in several areas of need. Most freshmen arrived in June to work with returning players and get a jump on class work.
His assessment of the incoming class at key positions:
Wide receiver: “All three freshmen (Kendrick Celestine, Markques Simas and Josh Smith), everybody seems to like a bunch,” Hawkins said.
Offensive line: “All those guys are putting up good numbers in the weight room,” Hawkins said. “You’ve got to feel that somewhere, because of our (low) numbers at that position, there’s going to be one or two or three guys that are going to be in the two-deep.”
Defensive line: “You have to feel like somewhere in that D-line area that there’s going to be a guy like Conrad (Obi) or Lagrone (Shields), or maybe both, that will emerge there,” Hawkins said.
Secondary: “There’s some (incoming) talent there,” Hawkins said. “Again, because of numbers, some of those guys can help.”
Of course, CU also will have a new quarterback. Cody Hawkins, a redshirt freshman who ran the scout team last fall, is competing for the starting job with junior-college transfer Nick Nelson. Last year’s starting quarterback, senior Bernard Jackson, was moved in the spring to a “slash” role and will play mostly at wideout or running back.
The only disappointing news in the offseason was the loss of two highly touted junior-college transfers. Running back P.T. Gates, whom Hawkins compared to Reggie Bush in terms of explosiveness, failed to qualify academically and plans to enroll at CU in January. Defensive end Drew Hudgins, a sack specialist, ruptured an Achilles tendon during summer conditioning and might be out for the season.
Losing Gates opens the door for freshman Brian Lockridge to challenge senior Byron Ellis and redshirt freshman Demetrius Sumler for time behind tailback starter Hugh Charles.
“It’s not like we had to have that guy,” Hawkins said of Gates, who rushed for 1,338 yards last fall at Saddleback College in California.
“We’ve got more talent this year,” Charles said.
CU/At a glance
Coach: Dan Hawkins, 2-10 at CU, 55-21 overall in six Division I-A seasons
Last year: 2-10, 2-6 Big 12 (fifth in Big 12 North)
Returning starters: OFFENSE (9) – WR Alvin Barnett, Sr.;
FB Maurice Cantrell, Jr.; TB Hugh Charles, Sr.; TE Riar Geer, So.; G Edwin Harrison, Sr.; QB Bernard Jackson, (moved to WR or RB) Sr.; T Tyler Polumbus, Sr.; G Daniel Sanders, Jr.; WR Patrick Williams, Jr. DEFENSE (7) – LB Jordon Dizon, Sr.; SS Lionel Harris, Sr.; DT George Hypolite, Jr.; LB Brad Jones, Jr.; NT Brandon Nicolas, Jr.; FS Ryan Walters, Jr.; CB Terrence Wheatley, Sr.
Key practice dates: Practices begin Monday with newcomers in the morning and veterans in the afternoon; first combined practice is Friday (first day in pads). The public is invited to watch practices through Aug. 18. Morning sessions generally begin by 9:45. Afternoon workouts begin at 4. Scrimmages are set for 10 a.m. on Aug. 12 and Aug. 18 (fan appreciation day); closed scrimmage Aug. 24.
2007 schedule
(Date, Opponent, Time)
Sept. 1 *Colo. State 10 a.m.
Sept. 8 at Arizona St. 8:15 p.m.
Sept. 15 Florida State 8 p.m.
Sept. 22 Miami, Ohio 1:30 p.m.
Sept. 29 Oklahoma TBA
Oct. 6 at Baylor TBA
Oct. 13 at Kansas St. TBA
Oct. 20 Kansas TBA
Oct. 27 at Texas Tech TBA
Nov. 3 Missouri TBA
Nov. 10 at Iowa State TBA
Nov. 23 Nebraska 10 a.m.
*at Invesco Field at Mile High
Staff writer Tom Kensler can be reached at 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com.
