FireDanHawkins.net

Let's Get Excited

2009-12-04T17:05:00.000-08:00

Week after week this fall, CU looked flat. There's also an
anecdote from the season opener against Colorado State. After
pregame warmups, the Buffaloes were fired up, bouncing off
the walls inside the dressing room. In came Hawkins, who
proceeded to make everyone calm down because this was "just
another game," and the team's deflated mood carried on
throughout that 23-17 loss to CSU.

For the Haters

2009-11-29T21:08:00.000-08:00

How dare you ask me about objectives!

I love the part where he refers to the program he inherited after the 2005 season (in which Colorado went to the Big 12 championship) as a program that was "burned to the ground". Love how this guy can't take responsibility for his terrible performance. "We just have to cinch it up a little!"

Pathetic

2009-11-27T16:36:00.000-08:00

Game today was even harder to watch than normal, since for the first time all season I didn't have the hope that Hawkins was going to be fired after the game. It was a nice touch to score 6 points on the last play of the game -- you really showed the haters Hawk! On the bright side, at least the Buffs aren't going to get blown out in the big 12 championship 2005 style. That "honor" goes to the Huskers. If they can't put away a team as undisciplined and poorly coached as Colorado, they're going to get put away pretty quickly by a team that's actually good.

Unbelievable

2009-11-26T14:53:00.000-08:00

I hate to ruin your Thanksgiving, but it's not me that's ruining it -- it's the Colorado AD.

ESPN:

Colorado has announced that Dan Hawkins will continue to coach the Buffaloes and return for his fifth season next year.

This is one of the most cowardly decisions I've ever witnessed. If Mike Bohn was interested in anything besides his own career, he wouldn't be saying this.

Hawkins Never Ceases to Amaze

2009-11-19T22:29:00.000-08:00

It's hard to win the turnover battle 4-1 and lose a game, but Hawkins just managed to do exactly that. Can someone explain to me why you have your kicker kick a 49 yard field goal, but 15 minutes later facing a shorter field goal you decide to go for it? Coaching has killed this team all season and it killed the team again tonight.

Halftime

2009-11-19T18:08:00.000-08:00

You might think the game is going pretty well, but I just wanted to point out that Oklahoma state still hasn't completed a pass. Go Buffs!

Another Thursday, Another Loss

2009-11-19T08:48:00.000-08:00

Hard to believe that the last time Colorado played at Oklahoma State the Buffs won 34-0. The sad part is that the last time the Buff went to Oklahoma State was 2005 -- Barnett's last season. It honestly amazes me how little time it took Hawkins to completely run the football program into the ground. The line for the game tonight is Oklahoma State by 17, but if the score was 34-0 before Hawkins' obligatory garbage time touchdown, I wouldn't be surprised at all. The only consolation for Buffs fans about the game tonight is that the second-to-last humiliation on national TV this season will hopefully be Hawkins' second-to-last game as Colorado's head coach. Best of luck to the team tonight, but if you think the Buffs have a chance at winning this game, you're wrong.

CU Loses Again

2009-11-14T16:12:00.000-08:00

Is it wrong that I'm glad CU lost? Is it wrong that I think the worst thing that could happen for Colorado football is to beat Nebraska in 2 weeks? Tell me I'm wrong, but I think I'm right.

500 Signatures

2009-11-11T20:19:00.000-08:00

If you haven't signed the petition yet, please do. Thanks to everyone that has signed already. It looks like the AD is finally starting to get the message. (A link to the petition is on the right)

Six Points

2009-11-07T16:01:00.000-08:00

That was the difference between Colorado and Alabama on December 30th 2007. Today, Colorado is on the verge of its 4th straight losing season. Alabama is 9-0 and one of the favorites to win the national championship. But at least we've got Hawk Love.

One Step Closer to 2-10, or Not

2009-11-07T15:20:00.000-08:00

Down 21-10 at halftime I was honestly expecting another loss. I guess this is why A&M was only a 3 point favorite despite being 5-3 and going against a 2-6 team. If Hawkins can piece together a few more wins, he's looking at another extension.

The Weak and Timid

2009-11-04T07:14:00.000-08:00

Klatt isn't happy with Hawkins either:

Former Colorado quarterback Joel Klatt has criticized athletic department leadership and coach Dan Hawkins recently for painting over a sign on the wall in the auditorium in the Dal Ward Center that was meaningful to players during Klatt`s time in the program and to previous Buffs.

The sign read "The pride and tradition of the Colorado Buffaloes will not be entrusted to the timid or the weak."

It first appeared in the CU team room during former coach Bill McCartney`s tenure and was in front of players in the program virtually every day throughout much of the past two decades according to Klatt, who is the co-host of a sports talk radio program in Denver weekday afternoons on 1510 AM.

"It was one of the those signs that you sat in the team room and you realized that for years and years before you, Buffaloes sat in the same seats you were in and they looked at that sign and they worked hard and you knew that they understood what you were going through," Klatt said.

The timid and weak Hawkins must have been offeneded by the sign. Or maybe he just thought there wasn't any point in having blatant lies written on the wall of the locker room, since Mike Bohn has clearly entrusted the pride and tradition of CU football (what's left of it) to him.

Hawkins Responds

2009-11-04T06:54:00.000-08:00

No Comment! NO COMMENT!

The Beginning of the End

2009-11-03T20:58:00.000-08:00

Darrell Scott is leaving CU:

Sophomore tailback Darrell Scott, the biggest recruiting prize in coach Dan Hawkins' four-year tenure at Colorado, is leaving the program after 1 1/2 season filled with injuries and frustration.

Who didn't see this coming? Scotty Knight apparently.

"He never said anything," receiver Scotty McKnight said. "If he did, I would have tried to keep him here ... Maybe he felt this is the best thing for him and that's the way it goes."

Sad to see Darrell go, but I can't blame him at all. Hopefully this and the other quality recruits that are bound to follow suit will force Bohn to fire Hawkins. Oh wait, CU doesn't have any other quality recruits.

Unfortunately, Darrell Scott's decision to transfer won't just ruin Dan Hawkins chances of getting any decent recruits, it will tarnish CU's reputation even after Hawkins gets fired. It will be a long long time before CU even has a season with a winning record.

On the bright side, can't wait to see how Hawkins tries to spin this one. "We have so much talent on this team, there just wasn't room for someone like Darrell. I'm glad he'll have the chance to start on a less talented team like UCLA."

Breaking Down the First Half

2009-10-31T12:10:00.001-07:00

Announcer: "Why are the Buffs only rushing 4?" (said at 5 minute intervals)
Translation: "Why does Dan Hawkins still have a job?"

Mizzou Coach before halftime: "This game is far from over"
Translation: "We're not afraid to run up the score"

Hawkins: "We just have to make a few adjustments at halftime, this is a game of inches"
Translation: "I really have no idea how to improve this team, so I'm just going to go in the locker room and talk about playing harder"

(Ok, I just made the last one up.)

Hawkins Exceeding Expectations

2009-10-31T11:52:00.000-07:00

I excepted CU to lose, but down 33-0 with 4 minutes left in the 2nd? Hawkins must surprise himself sometimes with how poor his recruiting and coaching is. I mean, it took 3 touchdowns before the Buffs realized that playing 3 CBs against 5 WRs doesn't work when the QB isn't under any pressure.

Its the Big 12 (North)!!!

2009-10-31T10:17:00.000-07:00

CU is bad, there's no doubt about that. But sadly, if the Buffs had (somehow) managed to bear Kansas State last week, they would probably be the favorite to win the North. An amazing turn of events considering the 1-4 start to the season. Not that anyone that remotely pays attention to CU football thought the team has any chance of winning last weekend (except maybe Dan Hawkins depending on whether you think he pays any attention to the football program or not). The sad part is that playing in a Big 12 North division that has been one of the worst in recent memory, Hawkins is preparing to match the embarrassing 2-10 record of his first season.

I feel sorry for Vegas this week, they had to choose a line in a game featuring a 4-3 team with and 0-3 record in the Big 12 and a 2-5 team with a 1-2 record in the Big 12. Not an easy task by any means, but I can't say I disagree with Missouri being the 3 point favorite, still it's pathetic to be giving points at home when the other team hasn't won a single game in the Big 12. And the even more pathetic part is that the sucker bet is on the Buffs to cover. Vegas knows how bad of a coach Hawkins is, but people are going to look at the match-up on paper and pick Colorado. Who knows -- maybe Hawkins will actually let Tyler Hansen play the entire game, but it's obvious from the line that Vegas expects Cody to play.

4th and Goal

2009-10-24T12:36:00.000-07:00

At the 2 yard line.
4th and Goal.
Cody playing QB.
My confidence on a scale of 1 to 10: -7

Captain Garbage Time

2009-10-24T12:30:00.001-07:00

We're down 14 in the fourth quarter. Let's send in Cody! He can totally pick apart defenses when they are playing prevent! FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT GO CU!

Lesson Learned

2009-10-24T11:39:00.000-07:00

I'm glad that even though Dan Hawkins wasn't able to figure out which quarterback to start at the beginning of the season, he was able to figure it out after starting 1-4. Cody won 1 game against Wyoming and two of his four losses were against teams that aren't even remotely good. But with Tyler starting, the Buffs are 1-0 and beat a ranked opponent. Looks like the switch is really paying off so far. I for once feel confident in Hawkins' ability to make common sense decisions. There's no way he would put Cody back in and let him put up stats like 2/5 / 20 yards / 1 int. Totally inconceivable.

(CU 6/KSU 20)

You Came, You Saw, You Signed

2009-10-21T14:31:00.001-07:00

Thanks to everyone that has signed the petition to fire Hawkins. I'm excited to say we've reached 300 signatures, but many more are still needed to make something happen. I encourage you to tell you friends about the petition and get them to sign it. Keep up the good work!

A Win is a Win

2009-10-17T19:48:00.001-07:00

Not sure how we won. Not sure if we should have won. But we did.

Hawkins is the Problem

2009-10-17T16:56:00.000-07:00

Wow, totally different looking team tonight. Maybe Dan Hawkins' coaching wasn't the biggest problem afterall. Problem was his overconfidence in Cody. Any doubt CU would be 3-2 if this team was on the field in week 1?

Consolation

2009-10-17T10:18:00.000-07:00

Another week, another loss. If there's something Buffs fans can take away from the game this weekend, it's that it won't be broadcast on national TV. In sports, there's really only one thing worse than an embarrassing loss -- an embarrassing loss on national television and having all your buddies tell you how sorry they feel for you the next day. This week's 9.5 point line says a lot more about Vegas' confidence that Hawkins will do anything he can to score touchdowns in garbage time than in the Buffs being in any way good. In fact, Hawkins' propensity to score more points in garbage time than in the part of the game that actually counts is perhaps his most deplorable characteristic. Does any self respecting coach or for that matter any coach that has the intention to win a game engage in these types of shenanigans?

Last night I was playing a game of Madden. Down 28-0 with 2 minutes left in the third quarter, the guys I was playing decides to kick a field goal. 28-3. I wouldn't have thought it was possible to have so little confidence in one's skill and ability to win, if not for watching Dan Hawkins made the same types of decisions every weekend. This whole scenario got me thinking -- what would Dan Hawkins do if he played Madden? Would he inexplicably attempt a fake punt on 4th and 20, then later punt on 4th and inches? Down 21-0 with :30 seconds left in the game, does he drive down the field to kick a field goal, then hold a press conference about how the end of the game showed that the team was improving -- "We're right on the brink!". In franchise mode, does he trade away his first and second round picks for a running back, then leave him on the bench for the rest of the season? Does he start one quarterback for the first 5 games of the season, then decide to burn Tyler Hansen's redshirt so that he can play in a time share with the starting QB? (My bad, that last one probably hit a little too close to home.)

I'm not excited at all about the game tonight. If you think I should be, why?

Hawkins: Tyler Hansen Will Start, or Will He?

2009-10-13T21:23:00.000-07:00

From the Daily Camera:

"If you have two guys ready, you can kind of go with the hot-hand theory more, you know?"

No Dan, we don't know. If Buff fans learned anything from watching Jim Tracy turn around the Rockies this season, it's that consistency and continuity are essential to winning. Of course, Hawkins wouldn't understand either of those concepts. Most of his press conferences consist of grand proclamations about how he plans to completely reinvent the offense and defense before the following weekend. Has a coach ever had a winning record with this type of philosophy?

As disappointed as I was about Hawkins burning Hansen's redshirt, I at least thought that Hawkins had the sense to start Hansen for the rest of the season. But, I guess even that modicum of trust was a mistake.

Here's my advice to Hawkins. You've showed CU fans that nothing you do on or off the field will so much as make Mike Bohn think about firing you. CU fans already think you have no strategy and no idea what you're doing. So why not take it to the next level? Send out a formation with 9 receivers, a center, and a QB. Attempt a field goal from your own 20 yard line. Inexplicably leave the field during the middle of a quarter. Put Vaseline in your hair and look like you want to cry the entire game, but never actually do it (my bad, you're already doing that). Hold a press conference in which you state that you will be starting both Tyler and Cody -- the "2 QB set". Punt the ball on 1st down. The possibilities are endless.

If know you're going to lose, better to lose big.